Furry representation in pride parade

[Gizmo]

Y'know what? You're right.

I don't have a problem with furries at pride or furries being a part of the community at large or furries trying to be accepted just as much as everyone else.

My problem is, and throughout this entire debate has always been, a small group of people going out and trying to present themselves as representatives of "The Furry Community."

This is probably the best way of putting it. Furry really does mean different things to each person and having two or three people trying to run a booth explaining what "Furry" is just isn't going to work out. While you can try to explain what it isn't and may even be successful, the best way to have people understand what furry is is for them to learn for themselves. That's something they can only do if they choose to either come to a convention, or become a part of the furry community. Either way, a booth at pride isn't going to work.

I'm glad a few people went out in suit last weekend, and I'm glad the reception was positive. Maybe next year more people will feel comfortable going. That still won't warrant a booth, or pamphlets, or organized representation because we really don't need it and it's obvious that very few people want it.

Couldn't agree more! That being said, as a community, we should restrain anyone attempting to hand out fliers or discuss the community as a representative - at ANY function! We all should be able to live by the same rules!

[Gizmo]

I'm tired of hearing about this...

The bottom line is; Gay pride Parade is a FETISH thing, anyone who says its not is blind. (if you are blind im sorry)

And we don't need Furries to be pushed into the Fetish world anymore then it already is.

Fetish??? REALLY????
20/20 vision here!
If what a person is born as is a fetish, by your own reasoning, the str8 community is a fetish as well ... the whole sexual community on the planet is a fetish!

[Coal Silvermuzzle]

1) Stop giving so much of a fuck about how furries are viewed- people will always think that we are weird no matter what we do.
2) Start having more fun with the fandom, and maybe you wont feel so guilty that you're a part of it.

  Best words I have seen posted, by me or anyone here, no offence. Very good point, like the days when punk first came out, stop caring what people think about it. Go out be yourself and have fun.

[Karo the Dingo]

Fetish??? REALLY????
20/20 vision here!
If what a person is born as is a fetish, by your own reasoning, the str8 community is a fetish as well ... the whole sexual community on the planet is a fetish!

Did you read what i posted? "Gay pride Parade is a FETISH thing" And BTW Gay Straight and Bisexuality is a fetish, it involves sex.

[JessieTwolf]

Fetish??? REALLY????
20/20 vision here!
If what a person is born as is a fetish, by your own reasoning, the str8 community is a fetish as well ... the whole sexual community on the planet is a fetish!

Okay, that's not what Karo meant, and your sarcasm comes across as rude and blatantly shoving someone else's opinion off to the side.  Read it again.  What he meant was the *parade* represents a lot of gay fetish-type themes.  Just like how Furry represents different things to different people, so does being gay.  There are a lot of gay people out there who do *not* like how the pride parade portrays being gay.  The furry fandom already has an issue with being portrayed as fetish as well.  

My opinion is that if we actually go full throttle and represent Furry in the Pride parade next year, it is very likely that Furry, and our convention will be portrayed as part of the gay/fetish community.  Now, if that's how we *want* to represent ourselves, then great!  But if we are looking to portray something opposite, like family friendly, cartoon animal/comics/puppetry/art/entertainment loving fans of all things anthro-animal, then I feel that we'd be misrepresenting Furry.

Furry means something different to everyone.  If people want to go fursuiting in the pride parade next year, rock on and have fun!  But it is my opinion that no one person or group should actually try to represent Furry as a contiguous group.

[Coal Silvermuzzle]

 To the sysops, this is a poll not a trolling thread. Enough is enough, keep the poll up or wipe it out. but at least lock the theard, because this is only going to make things worse. Proud to be furry and proud to be gay, always will be always was.

[Sairys]

To the sysops, this is a poll not a trolling thread. Enough is enough, keep the poll up or wipe it out. but at least lock the theard, because this is only going to make things worse. Proud to be furry and proud to be gay, always will be always was.

Whos Trolling?

people are just expressing their opinion of this subject.

[Carthage]

Furry means something different to everyone.  If people want to go fursuiting in the pride parade next year, rock on and have fun!  But it is my opinion that no one person or group should actually try to represent Furry as a contiguous group.

Couldn't agree more! That being said, as a community, we should restrain anyone attempting to hand out fliers or discuss the community as a representative - at ANY function! We all should be able to live by the same rules!

This is fantastic to see. Agreement and consensus about probably the most divisive topic to hit this forum in a long time.

To the sysops, this is a poll not a trolling thread. Enough is enough, keep the poll up or wipe it out. but at least lock the theard, because this is only going to make things worse. Proud to be furry and proud to be gay, always will be always was.

No it isn't a trolling thread, but nobody is trolling. You may have started a poll, and for a while it may have functioned as a poll, but it seems to have become the beginning of the end of a huge argument. People have feelings that clearly need to be expressed. If things in this thread get as out of hand as they have in other threads then a lock may need to be put in place. Until then, there's no reason why people shouldn't be allowed to continue what has been a reasonably civil conversation that is starting to reach a common opinion about how the BC Furry community should represent itself.

It's good to see this. It's important to do this. And we shouldn't stop it now because it isn't just a poll anymore.

[Selkit]

Coal, what exactly about this has become a 'trolling' thread? The opinions brought up aren't all aligned with yours, sure, but that's part of healthy discourse. I'm actually honestly a little disturbed that you would simply try to quash the whole thread simply because there's a diverse range of thought expressed.

[Coal Silvermuzzle]

  I may have used the wrong term, but in a way you are right, it should continue to it's conclusion. Might even do the community some good, as long as it doesn't get to a point where people start saying "so and so is a "blank" and shouldn't be voicing his "blankity blank" opinion" I know for a fact that RainRat or one of the other sysops will lock it if it gets out of control. I retract my other statement about locking it, lets see where it goes. There are over 700 members hear and we have only heard from a few.

[Coal Silvermuzzle]

  Selkit, valid point, but it has nothing to do with other people voicing their opinion, or in opposition to my opinion. I just don't want to see the community at each others throats.

[Peli]

Might as well throw my two cents into this.

The best analogy I can come up with is comparing the furry fandom to say, a modelling hobby. Is it a fun passtime, and possibly an interesting topic of conversation among friends? Yes.
Is it something you necessarily have to take so much "pride" in, and explain fervently to anyone who will listen to you? I don't think so. Most people don't care, some will ridicule you, and most people don't care (said that one already; reiteration) what you do to occupy your time. If you're having fun with your hobby, great! But an interest in the furry fandom is not something so dramatic or "pride-worthy" as a sexual orientation or gender dysphoria.

tl;dr: "Official" furry representation in such a public forum is to me, ludicrous.

[Zen]

I recently discussed this with a non-fur friend of mine. I asked him what her knew of furry/furs/antros/etc and he said "isn't that a fetish thing." I explained it as a "group of eccentric hobbyists" and compared it to otaku and computer geekery. (That comparison worked because my friend is a big anime fan and game, and understands levels of "fandom" from that.) So I also tend to explain furry as hobby rather than anything else.

[Malikai Wolf]

And like some one else said, there are lots of tv cameras there and if we did enter into that parade as a group, if we got any bad PR at all, not only could we mess things up for us but also for furries across canada, so what gives us the right to take that chance and possibly have more people look upon us poorly and have other furry groups hate us for screwing things up for them? And we all know how fickle the media can be.

[mediar]

No, wrong venue to break BC Furries into. We dont need to start off in a "fetish" enviroment. So i vote no.