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Coon
3 years ago
General
The number of furries that have been jumping down my throat over my character's name has been steadily increasing over the last five years. This past weekend, I was nearly autobanned from an online con I had taken days off work to attend. Mind you, my character's name has been "Coon Surya" since at least 2006. Until around five years ago, the only people who were giving me shit over it were non-fur trolls or people who were in actual anti-fur groups in places like Second Life. In all that time, how I present the character hasn't changed much, if at all...so I'm over here wondering what has.
I shouldn't have to keep explaining to furries that Coon is a raccoon. Y'all are neither stupid nor are you children, but I keep having to explain this to you like you are and now I'm starting to wonder.
Also, did you know that Coon is an actual real name that some people have? It's not common, but there are some of these people out there. I'm starting to feel really bad for them!
I shouldn't have to keep explaining to furries that Coon is a raccoon. Y'all are neither stupid nor are you children, but I keep having to explain this to you like you are and now I'm starting to wonder.
Also, did you know that Coon is an actual real name that some people have? It's not common, but there are some of these people out there. I'm starting to feel really bad for them!
Someone else sent me a link for how it was used as a racial caricature, but words have double meanings, and being the term for the caricature was derived from the word raccoon as well. I feel people need to look at context before jumping to conclusions when it is being used as a proper name.
because hooray for common words being co-opted into slurs while still retaining legitimate use.
but I run with the assumption that I can never be sure who does and does not know something anymore, too many times have I assumed that someone knew something and had it back fire.
But Coon Surya is a raccoon. Technically not human. She is neither black nor white.
It blows my mind that I keep having to explain that to people who claim to be furries.
Calling someone any kind of racial slur is disrespectful and wrong.
That's never been what I've been doing here. It's not what Coon has ever been about.
As Adleisio mentioned, context is important. It seems strange to me that someone would feel the need to approach me while I'm wearing a raccoon avatar or hanging around on a furry chat to take issue with Coon's name. In any other context, yeah sure. But doing that to someone presenting a raccoon character just seems really dumb to me unless they're being an obvious troll about it.