ComiCon, GenCon, AnthroCon, AnimeCon, so many conventions all over the world, yet society thinks that those people that attend Furfest are strange? Just because some individuals like to don fursonas like wolves, foxes, cats, dogs, and even hybrids, doesn’t mean that they are any different than you or I under the costume.
Furries, if you need a technical definition, are people that are fans of anthropomorphic characters, these are simply characters that have human traits such as: Sonic the Hedgehog, Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, you get my point. For those in society that think it’s a sexual thing, you’re looking up the wrong definition. Can it be a sexual thing, absolutely, but Furries get bad reps because of bad press and people that have indulged in sexual activities and even illegal activities while wearing their fursuit. There are always some bad apples, doesn’t make the whole bushel rotten.
Furries were first recognized in 1980 at the NorEasCon II: World Science Fiction Convention. Two decades later, conventions now can easily see hundreds of furries in their full fur costumes. Although, Furries are still a misunderstood bunch, but to give you an idea of who would don a fur costume there are doctors, lawyers, housewives, accountants, CEOs, and many, many more that are Furries. Just like a costume party at Halloween or Mardi Gras, you never know what you’ll get under the costume, but there’s a pretty good chance they are humans with feelings just like the rest of the world.
Some furries say that they identify with the animal or character they portray, as they do not feel they fit into normal society. Just as a male identifying with a female instead because he doesn’t feel right in his body, furries sometimes feel the same way. I know I don’t have to spell it out, you guys are pretty smart, but you get what I’m saying.
Here’s a little glance into the Furry glossary:
- Fursona–furry persona
- Plushie–person who loves cuddly toys, you know the same as most of us
- Fleshie–a non-furry person
- Fursuiters–people who dress in animal costumes
- Yiff–furry porn
- Skritching–scratching and grooming, a frequent practice among furries
Some furries dress in their fursuits all day long, others only when they feel like it, and rarely do they have sex in their fursuits, because really, who wants to mess up something that could easily cost them thousands of dollars to be made? Seriously, if I’m spending $5000 on a fursuit for my fursona, you can damn well bet I’m not going to try having sex with it on.
A common misconception about Furries is that they are sexual deviants or perverts that are into sex with animals or something stupid like that. Society can be so shallow, if they don’t understand something, then there must be an evil reason for it to even exist. People need to get a grip!
I could jump on the soapbox here, but I won’t. Go ahead and do what I did, research Furries, you might be surprised what you find about them. I had no idea, but I do now, and in my opinion they’re pretty cool.
