Furries, people who wear animal costumes, aren’t freaks, study finds
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| News Media Commentary | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Furries, people who wear animal costumes, aren’t freaks, study finds |
| Commentator: | Lisa Gutierrez |
| Date(s): | Aug 7, 2017 |
| Venue: | Toronto Star newspaper |
| Fandom: | Furry |
| External Links: | Toronto Star article, archive link |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Furries, people who wear animal costumes, aren’t freaks, study finds is an article from Canadian newspaper the Toronto Star. It discusses the results of a social study on furries' psychological health. The article also places blame on the media for some of the negative perceptions around the furry community.
Excerpts
'Put simply, he writes, furries are fans like Trekkies or sports nerds. They’re “fans of media that features anthropomorphic animals — that is, animals who walk, talk, and do otherwise human things,” he writes. “At first glance, it seems like anthropomorphic animals are a bizarre thing to be a fan of. That is, until you realize that most North Americans today grew up watching Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny cartoons and reading books like ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ and ‘Charlotte’s Web,’ and continue this proud tradition by taking our children to see the films like ‘Zootopia.’”'
"The community is very inclusive — furries are seven times more likely than the general public to identify as transgender and about five times more likely to identify as non-heterosexual."
"Researchers say the media routinely mischaracterizes furries as fetishists or, though unproven by data, somehow psychologically dysfunctional. (Not surprisingly, then, furries are often shy about speaking to the media.)"