Houston Bears announced in a written statement released last weekend that the organization has cancelled its annual Bear Camp event, which had been set to take place in May at Grizzly Pines, a clothing-optional campground serving the gay community which has, as the website notes in all caps, a “MEN ONLY” policy.
In explaining the decision to cancel, the Houston Bears announcement says, “A community member recently inquired if they could attend Bear Camp at Grizzly Pines because the member thought that Grizzly Pines had a policy of not allowing transgender men to stay at their facilities.
“The Houston Bears Board was not aware of such a policy being in effect and, frankly, thought it might be an outdated policy from the previous owners,” the Bears’ statement continues. “We decided to ask Grizzly Pines for clarification. They have confirmed that it is their policy to only allow cisgender men to stay at their facilities.”
The statement then reiterates that Houston Bears “welcome and celebrate all men, cisgender and transgender, at our events. … The idea of having an event where we would be forced to tell some of our members ‘not you’ is incompatible with our values.”
“The idea of having an event where we would be forced to tell some of our members ‘not you’ is incompatible with our values.”
Houston Bears, in a statement explaining why the group chose to cancel an event planned at a campground that bans trans men
The statement notes that Houston Bears asked the Grizzly Pines management if they would suspend the “no trans” policy just for Bear Camp, but Grizzly Pines management declined. “We had hoped a successful event would demonstrate to them the value of being all men inclusive. Grizzly Pines, however, has opted to keep their policy in place,” the statement notes.
Houston Bears went on to say the organization “appreciates [Grizzly Pines’] understanding” regarding their decision to cancel the event and that the Houston organization “remain[s] open to working with [the campground] in the future if the policy is rescinded.”
Read the statement in its entirety on the Houston Bears Facebook page.
Houston Bears rescheduled the 2025 Bear Camp for May 16-18 at Rainbow Ranch Campground in Groesbeck. Visit the Houston Bears Facebook page or website for information.
The management for Grizzly Pines responded with a public statement on Monday, March 31 (which, by the way, was National Transgender Visibility Day), saying that Houston Bears knew “full well of our policy regarding trans-men well in advance of their organization booking their dates” for Bear Camp.
“This policy has been in place for more than ten years and it has never been hidden or kept from public, a fact that the Houston Bears have been fully aware of since the beginning,” the Grizzly Pines statement claims. “… We would also like to apologize for any misunderstanding or confusion their new stronger support for the trans community has caused anyone. This was never an issue with their board in the past when they scheduled their events with us and quite honestly came as a last minute surprise.”
The Grizzly Pines statement goes on to say the campground has always aimed to “provide a safe, affirming and liberating space exclusively for cis gender men — a place where community is built around shared lived experiences, comfort and connection. … We fully support and respect the broader LGBTQ community including our trans siblings and we believe there is room within the world for a wide variety of spaces that celebrate the richness and diversity of our identities. However, Grizzly Pines exits [sic] as a private niche retreat and its purpose is not to serve as a one size fits all solution for the entire LGBTQ+ spectrum.”
The statement continues by saying the “no trans men” policy is rooted in “preservation of a shared experience,” “comfort and vulnerability,” “focus, not exclusion” and the “right to define our community.”
Dallas Voice could not find where Grizzly Pines originally posted its statement online and it is reported that the campground has removed the statement. But the statement in its entirety is posted on the Facebook page of John Anderson, a former Dallasite now living in New Orleans and founder of Gay Camping Friends, which Anderson said is the largest LGBTQ+ outdoor community in the world, with more than 231,000 members.
Anderson this week condemned Grizzly Pines’ exclusion of trans men, saying in a Facebook post that he hopes “this latest backlash will help all campgrounds re-evaluate their policies on trans inclusion.”
He continued, “Gay Camping Friends is thinking about taking additional action in our group against all campgrounds that exclude trans people. We aren’t sure what that looks like, yet — but these are changing times, and if you can’t let trans men into a male only campground. you don’t share the values that Gay Camping Friends holds.
“I am calling on all male only campgrounds to accept trans men.”
John Anderson, founder, Gay Camping Friends
“I am calling on all male only campgrounds to accept trans men.”
RGV Bears, a Rio Grande Valley group, has expressed support for trans men and for the Houston Bears’ decision, announcing that RGV Bears is also canceling an event that had been scheduled at Grizzly Pines.
A post on the RGV Bears Facebook page notes: “To our RGV Teddy Bear trans members, we will create events that we can continue to enjoy together in siblinghood (bearhood).”
Dallas Voice has reached out to Dallas Bears, host of the annual Texas Bear Round-Up, for comment but has not yet heard from the group.
Dallas Voice is also aware of some serious allegations made in social media posts regarding a member of the Grizzly Pines staff. Because we have not yet had time to verify those allegations, we will not be printing them here.
— Tammye Nash
