ON A BEAR HUNT

JONATHAN CASANAS (JC), 35, TALENT ACQUISITION

Taking care of my body made it easier to discover what I love about it and not what I hate about it. I also realised that if someone doesn’t like my love handles, then they weren’t meant to hang onto them. I also stopped comparing myself to others.

But I didn’t learn to love being a ‘bear’ until the late 90s and early 00s, when bears were still taboo. They went against the grain. It reminds me that the misfits aren’t misfits any more, that the community is my chosen family.

It wasn’t until I volunteered at a youth centre, preparing young professionals to join the workforce, that I saw the need to do my part and give back by better positioning people in a world that didn’t accept us. Since then, I’ve joined the board of 4Ward Miami, a non-profit organisation. I’ve also helped produce an inclusive and diverse Hispanic festival, called Gay8 Festival, which is now the largest of its kind in the United States, with over 80,000