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Do furries deserve the negative stereotype?
9 years ago
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For those unaware what I mean by this exactly, it's the stereotype/assumption that the furry community is just a fetish group for people who are sexually turned on by fucking in fursuits and/or into bestiality. Now just to be clear on my thoughts on those things, I'm mostly fine with both of those things under certain settings, albeit the latter one could, and probably should, merit a discussion on its own. The main problem I feel, comes from a mix of bad publicity put out by media outlets, and legitimate criticisms of certain aspects of the community. Here I'll outline my own thoughts on both.
Generally speaking, News programs have been steadily growing more positive in their coverage of furry conventions. I remember seeing a segment in which local business owners were praising the furries for bringing in business, and I really enjoyed seeing this. However I have noticed that no matter which news program covers it, they always manage to find the weirdest person(s) there for an interview or a b-roll segment. Not that we have to strive to paint the community with unrealistic colors, but it does admittedly irk and cause me to recoil a bit seeing an obnoxious fur get air time. The internet has also blasted furs as a lot of you probably already know, usually in comment sections, however I legitimately believe after reading so many of these "furfag" comments, that a good chunk of these individuals aren't merely trolling solely to get a rise, but actually think the way they do, being that furries are nothing but a bunch of weird animal fetishists.
But are they wrong to think this way? Is there no legitimate reason for them forming this opinion?
Before I answer, I would like a moment to discuss my critical opinions on aspects of the furry community. This is of course coming from a fur, but I'm going to be as objective as I can be. This fandom is truly a unique one, being one that spills into and mixes with many others, and as such, you see a very large and diverse pool of individuals that belong to this community. As such, it's only natural to have some people with issues in the group, however these persons seem to be much more prevalent in this community. Why is this? I think it boils down to quite a few issues, but I'll touch on the ones that matter the most (imo). This community is extremely open-minded and accepting, and while this is a good thing, it creates a space where people really open up sexually, which I don't feel is inherently a bad thing, but isn't always received well. People may develop odd fetishes due to the environment and supportive attitudes of others also in that situation. The other possibility is that people with already hardcore sexual intent may become active of furry websites for the same accepting reason. Furry pornography is not any worse that rule 34 other fandoms create. The furry fandom is largely made up of people aged 18-30, so at the end of the day, it makes sense why we love ourselves some furry porn, however to the random passerby it may come off as us being sex-obessed, which we are I feel to a point, but it is extremely hypocritical to insult sexualized furry art, then go jack it to random hentei.
So in the end my answer is "No", but there is some nuance to it. While it is unfair to demonize the group as a whole for the actions of a few, those "few" are extreme enough to create a blemish on the community's image that is worth legitimate criticism. I will say thought that in know way am I supporting the hateful comments and stereotypes put out there and I hope this community heads more and more into positive favor.
Generally speaking, News programs have been steadily growing more positive in their coverage of furry conventions. I remember seeing a segment in which local business owners were praising the furries for bringing in business, and I really enjoyed seeing this. However I have noticed that no matter which news program covers it, they always manage to find the weirdest person(s) there for an interview or a b-roll segment. Not that we have to strive to paint the community with unrealistic colors, but it does admittedly irk and cause me to recoil a bit seeing an obnoxious fur get air time. The internet has also blasted furs as a lot of you probably already know, usually in comment sections, however I legitimately believe after reading so many of these "furfag" comments, that a good chunk of these individuals aren't merely trolling solely to get a rise, but actually think the way they do, being that furries are nothing but a bunch of weird animal fetishists.
But are they wrong to think this way? Is there no legitimate reason for them forming this opinion?
Before I answer, I would like a moment to discuss my critical opinions on aspects of the furry community. This is of course coming from a fur, but I'm going to be as objective as I can be. This fandom is truly a unique one, being one that spills into and mixes with many others, and as such, you see a very large and diverse pool of individuals that belong to this community. As such, it's only natural to have some people with issues in the group, however these persons seem to be much more prevalent in this community. Why is this? I think it boils down to quite a few issues, but I'll touch on the ones that matter the most (imo). This community is extremely open-minded and accepting, and while this is a good thing, it creates a space where people really open up sexually, which I don't feel is inherently a bad thing, but isn't always received well. People may develop odd fetishes due to the environment and supportive attitudes of others also in that situation. The other possibility is that people with already hardcore sexual intent may become active of furry websites for the same accepting reason. Furry pornography is not any worse that rule 34 other fandoms create. The furry fandom is largely made up of people aged 18-30, so at the end of the day, it makes sense why we love ourselves some furry porn, however to the random passerby it may come off as us being sex-obessed, which we are I feel to a point, but it is extremely hypocritical to insult sexualized furry art, then go jack it to random hentei.
So in the end my answer is "No", but there is some nuance to it. While it is unfair to demonize the group as a whole for the actions of a few, those "few" are extreme enough to create a blemish on the community's image that is worth legitimate criticism. I will say thought that in know way am I supporting the hateful comments and stereotypes put out there and I hope this community heads more and more into positive favor.
I've met many friends in this fandom who have ZERO interest in any sexual aspect, and I have met many who OVERINDULGE in it.
In a fandom this diverse, it's very easy to find a large concentration of either. They don't always intermingle, and sometimes they seem like almost separate fandoms.
People like to focus on the negative, and when you focus on it, you focus on that concentration of hypersexual people rather than the ones doing simple SFW stuff.
Besides, sex sells. When people hear "The furry fandom makes money off drawing dicks and butts" it's very easy to get peoples' attention.
"Money? How could you make MONEY?" and then they see sex, and it's instantly a dealbreaker.
It also doesn't help when people get too uppity and try to defend the fandom with their dying breath. It gives more fuel to the fire
Passion merely enhances that negative stereotype that might already linger in the outsider's mind.
And like you said, the media LOVES to exploit the lowest common denominator for entertainment, and the lowest common denominator loves to be the loudest when voicing their opinions on the fandom.
I would say a good chunk of society is sex-repressed, and prefers to keep it behind closed doors, so to see people not only parading it out in public for all to see, but to also see some people GLORIFYING it to a point where it starts to take on an identity of its own, it's easy to see why people dislike the fandom as a whole, despite some not taking part in any of it.