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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Because of wow. / And Now for Something Completely Different: Syrian Refugees Welcomed by Canadian Furries

And Now for Something Completely Different: Syrian Refugees Welcomed by Canadian Furries

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Yes, you read that headline right. Given all the insanity we’ve been covering this weekend, I thought it would be good to post about something nice for a change. When the Vancouver, BC hotel that was hosting the annual VancouFur convention turned out to also be one of the temporary housing sites for Syrian refugees that have been admitted to Canada something really wonderful happened. The anthropomorphic animal reenactors reached out to the refugee children to welcome them to Canada.

CdC1r9RXEAA6IWY*

To quote one of the participants:

Mike Schmidt, who attended VancouFur wrote on Vancity Buzz: “One of the many highlights for me was when the new group of Syrian refugee children came in and got to interact with us. To them we were cartoons to come to life, to us [it] was a means to display our acting performance to a very appreciative audience.

CdADgviWEAAvDVg**

Click on over and see the videos and more pictures of the refugee children having a great time interacting with the furries (the first one is autoplay).

 

* Image found here.

** Image found here.

Reader Interactions

107Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    I thought it would be nice to post about something nice for a change

    Thus the need to import it from Canada.

  5. 5.

    HL_guy

    Lemme get this straight- when as a nation, you decide not to totally suck, wonderful stuff happens? Go figure.

  6. 6.

    NotMax

    Actors in animal outfits. Or costumed cartoon animal performers.

    Furries is a different kettle of fish altogether.

  7. 7.

    geg6

    Saw this on Book of Faces the other day and just squeed with love. The furries are wonderful people. Pittsburgh hosts them at least once a year and we love them. They are wonderful guests and the entire city has embraced them since they first started having functions here at least a decade ago. This is exactly who they are: kind, welcoming, altruistic and charitable. The world would be a better place with more furries in it.

  13. 13.

    The Republic, Blah Blah Blah...

    Extra bonus points if this somehow drives our conservative betters down here stateside into a preternatural frenzy of… whatevers…

  14. 14.

    Miss Bianca

    @HL_guy:

    You know, the more I hear about Canada’s warm reception of Syrian refugees, compared to our pants-pissing reaction, the prouder I am of them and the more depressed I get about us. I wonder if it’s really too late to try to emigrate…

  18. 18.

    Frankensteinbeck

    This doesn’t surprise me at all. Furry conventions have a reputation for being very friendly and good neighbors to the community around them.

    @NotMax:
    No, those are furries! Those are specifically and obviously furries. ‘Fursuiters’, in the lingo. I have several furry friends. They are only ‘anthropomorphic animal reenactors’ in the sens that that’s basically what a furry in a fursuit is.

  20. 20.

    Peale

    I thought it was furriers. I mean, maybe the mink industry is more open than most and won’t complain that the refugees stole their jobs.

  22. 22.

    Mnemosyne

    @NotMax:

    I think furries got an (unwarranted) reputation as pervs thanks to a couple of lurid HBO shows. As far as I can tell, it’s just another form of cosplay — not my bag, but it’s better to have people cosplay as animals than to cosplay as “patriots” and take over wildlife refuges.

  24. 24.

    ruemara

    Furries are rather fun and know what it’s like to be slimed in the media.

    I found it amusing that tonight I’m making asparagus pizza and Betty’s last thread was about asparagus.

  25. 25.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    It’s shocking that a place we want to wall off is so nice to refugees. Oh, wait. They want us to stay away; well, who can blame them?

    I wasn’t even gonna go with furries welcome furriners, because it’s so dumb.

  26. 26.

    Miss Bianca

    @Mnemosyne:

    Yeah, I’m afraid the word “furries” has a freaky connotation for me as well, which is why I did a double-take when I saw the headline…

    Now, you know, Canadian *Furies* might have been even weirder…I don’t think those kids would have enjoyed meeting them, if they’re like the Greek ones…

  27. 27.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Mnemosyne:
    It’s a fandom. It’s like every other fandom, part social group, part shared interest. There are plenty whose kinks revolve around it. There’s a giant internet stash of Kirk/Spock porn. Such is life, people like sex. Fursuiters are the cosplay branch, just like there are cosplay branches of other fandoms.

  32. 32.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    @Miss Bianca:

    Now, you know, Canadian *Furies* might have been even weirder…I don’t think those kids would have enjoyed meeting them, if they’re like the Greek ones…

    At least they’d apologize as they wreak bloody vengeance and drive you insane.

  41. 41.

    different-church-lady

    Some of those kids look like they’re not so sure about the new location…

  50. 50.

    Mnemosyne

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I was once in a jury pool with a stripper. I think she identified her occupation as “dancer” for court purposes. And there were no barriers to her being on a jury, because all of her work was done at night.

    G had a loan shark in his jury pool — or, as the guy called himself, an independent contractor in the field of finance.

  51. 51.

    Troublesome Carp fka Geeno

    Thus proving once and for all that furries are more human than Republicans.

  53. 53.

    Mike J

    @Mnemosyne:

    I was once in a jury pool with a stripper.

    I dated one a few times, but my ex gfriend and I got back together, She wound up dating my roommate for 3-4 years and being my gfriend’s best friend.

  58. 58.

    Eric U.

    I worked with a stripper (her day job) in a factory. We all had a big laugh when the UPS guy recognized her, apparently he was a fan. One of the other guys that worked there dated a stripper. I never really heard the story of how that factory came to hire so many people related to exotic dancing.

  59. 59.

    different-church-lady

    @Frankensteinbeck: Which is one of the many reasons you don’t want to be making obscure hand gestures at them while wearing an oversized blue fox outfit.

  60. 60.

    Darkrose

    Some of the most awesome friends I’ve had are furries. They get a ton of underserved crap and kink-shaming, and it makes me happy to see them being lauded for doing something cool.

  64. 64.

    PhoenixRising

    @Mnemosyne:

    I was once in a jury pool with a stripper. I think she identified her occupation as “dancer” for court purposes. And there were no barriers to her being on a jury, because all of her work was done at night.

    One of my kid’s teammates was a stripper who had always wanted a pony as a kid. So for her 40th birthday she bought a horse and 12 lessons. We met her at the 7th of those, and she got good enough to compete in the entry-level classes.

    At the time kid was 11. We explained that [friend] was a special kind of dancer, whose job happens at night, in places where kids aren’t allowed, when she asked about attending a recital.

    The woman herself got out of the adult entertainment field soon after that conversation, and told me that one of her motives for her career change was not wanting Kid to find out about it.

  65. 65.

    PhoenixRising

    This is going to sound both stupid and ignorant, but it’s late and I’m tired: Does anyone know whether furries consider themselves to be kinksters, or is that only those who are actually enrobed while…you know.

    I was not aware that there was a not-necessarily-sexual component to furry-dom until this post. So now I’m intensely curious about cosplay for…um…civilian purposes. Are there really folks who get in a mascot outfit for reasons other than it gets them off OR they are the turtle?*

    *At NCAA game, ’06, the guy in front of us was the non-outfitted Terrapin. Apparently they take turns because it’s so hot in there. I mean temperature-wise. Okay, this is awkward, but not as awkward as having to explain to my wife why we’re seeing ads I would expect to see if I searched for ‘non-sexual furry’.

  67. 67.

    Mnemosyne

    @PhoenixRising:

    I’m kind of surprised she was able to get to 40 in that field — she must have had some actual talent. But I can see why spending time with kids might be a motivator to get out of it.

    I had a few qualms about writing this romance novel and having my family find out that I wrote about teh sex. Then I remembered that my 80-year-old aunt LOVES to read (and watch) Game of Thrones and realized that, if anything, I’m probably too vanilla for my elderly relatives. The ones who are my age would probably be a lot more shocked.

  69. 69.

    Felonius Monk

    @Suzanne:

    “Engineer” would usually imply that they have a license.

    Only if it has the word Professional in front of it. (pedantic answer)

    [Last week I cudn’t spel engunear and now I are one.]

  72. 72.

    ? Martin

    @I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet:

    Licensed engineers usually have a title like Professional Engineer (PE). Someone who gets a degree in Electrical Engineering and has a job title as Electrical Engineer is not usually licensed.

    Depends. Licensure is typically required in situations where there isn’t a company that can accept liability for mistakes that the engineer might make. If you’re an EE and make a toaster that isn’t to code, your company will cover the lawsuits. If you’re an EE and design an electrical grid that isn’t to code, you might go to jail. Engineering signing plans typically for public works (bridges, etc) will need to be a PE. A licensed PE is basically subject to malpractice like a doctor would be.

    Civil engineers are most commonly licensed, but there are electrical, mechanical, petroleum engineers that need to be licensed. Each state has its own peculiarities – seismic here in CA, wind in OK, petroleum in TX, usually springing from some catastrophe that in hindsight could have been avoided.

    When I get a home inspection, I insist on a PE.

  75. 75.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @? Martin: As you say, it depends. I wouldn’t think that most EEs at Intel or IBM are licensed, for example. Those engineers who deal with things that directly impact the health and safety of the public are a smaller kettle of fish than the field as a whole.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  76. 76.

    ? Martin

    @I’mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet:

    I wouldn’t think that most EEs at Intel or IBM are licensed, for example. Those engineers who deal with things that directly impact the health and safety of the public are a smaller kettle of fish than the field as a whole.

    No, not there they wouldn’t be. You’re more likely to find them at places like GE where they design/build nuclear reactors, large power systems, etc. Think Fukushima, not Dell.

  78. 78.

    Mike J

    @Bubblegum Tate:

    In his own statement, Shapiro said the episode was emblematic of how he believes the site’s management had sold out the legacy of its founder and namesake, the late Andrew Breitbart.

    Bwahahahahahahahahahahah

  79. 79.

    Pontiac

    Yeah, ‘furries’ is the right term, and those who do the costuming thing are ‘fursuiters’.

    One thing that makes furry different from other fandoms is that it doesn’t have any canon (like Star Trek or Star Wars) and the creative output and engagement of it isn’t driven by any large scale profit seeking corporate or other structure – creators range from individual amateurs up to individuals making their living making art to sell to the community, but not really anything more than that – obviously outside-the-fandom sourced material like Zootopia is important, but the stuff we make ourselves is by /far/ more important to most – so we’re sorta fans of ourselves.

    This leads into the other thing that’s great about furry – there’s also no authority structure, really – nobody can speak for all of it in any way or render judgement on who is a ‘real furry’ and who isn’t. It’s always been that way, for the whole 20 years I’ve been involved. (This last part should help gauge how seriously one should take my comments here – I’m just some damn hyena…)

  80. 80.

    Ruckus

    @Felonius Monk:
    You must have known my dad. That was one of his favorite sayings.
    “Last week I couldn’t spell ngineeeeer and now I are one.”

    Of course he might not have been the only one to say it.

  83. 83.

    PurpleGirl

    Two years ago I was helping my friend Cassie at a regional pet adoption event in Hartford. During the afternoon there were three guys (I’m guessing) wearing animal mascot costumes walking around the event space and playing with the children there. We took a few photos with them and our kittens. I think the adults also liked hugging and playing with the mascots. (I did.) Don’t know if the guys were furries but the feeling might be the same as the Syrian children had with the furries at the hotel. A friendly encounter and warm hugs.

    Also it was different than the the feeling I used to get from seeing and talking with costumers at science fiction conventions. Those people were into acting their roles but not necessarily being friendly to children in the halls or costume calls (evening shows).

  84. 84.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @PhoenixRising:
    Furry fandom is not inherently sexual. There are people who get into it sexually. There are people who get into anything sexually. There are presumably people who have fursuits designed for sex, but I have known a fair number of people who do fursuiting, and have never met one or even heard of one who uses them sexually. I can’t imagine how you’d do it, since mascot costumes are bulky, but I’m assuming someone has managed because there is nothing someone hasn’t done. The fursuit is a costume, like people dressing up as Klingons at Sci-Fi conventions. Exactly like that, since some costumers are creating a whole identity, and others just think they look cool.

  85. 85.

    Pontiac

    @PurpleGirl:
    If the costumes looked very nicely made and each one some personal identity to it, then it was almost certainly furries. Commercially made costumes are by comparison really bad!

  88. 88.

    ruemara

    @Mike J: This was a paleo pizza. big fat portobello caps filled with turkey mixed with salsa. Baked with sliced tomater on top. mostly cooked, pull out, slice some sparagus, shred some cheddar atop (or put a fat slice of provolone, no one is watching), bake some more. Once melty and asparagus are medium tender, turn off oven, serve self a pizzette. Side salad is good, but I found one was very filling.
    Cannot wait to use the other for dinner.

  89. 89.

    frosty fka Bro Shotgun etc etc

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I think strippers should be referred to in professional terms as apparel removal engineers.

    That would certainly have made the 8-hour PE exam a little more interesting!

  90. 90.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Elmo: True. I was referring to the term of endearment that Cole uses to refer to us; other than you fuckers.

  92. 92.

    Randy P

    @Ruckus: Thread probably dead but I’ll add my $0.02 anyway.

    The “now I are one” joke is ancient and well-known enough that an engineering related artificial intelligence program in the 80s was called R1 in honor of the joke.

  93. 93.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @Randy P: FWIW in this deadest of threads–

    I worked as a logistics engineer & then a reliability & maintainability engineer at Westinghouse in the 80s–my official job title was Senior Engineer–without so much as an engineering degree (physics & applied math), let alone a professional certification. Wasn’t all that pleased with the job title, but for what they paid (your Department of Death tax $$$ at sortakinda work) they could call me anything they liked, including late for dinner.

  95. 95.

    Shana

    @Ruckus: My late father, an architect who went to the University of Illinois, which has a huge engineering school, said the same thing.

  96. 96.

    Doug R

    @Miss Bianca: The Harper Government was trying to play it down the middle when the photo of the refugee boy drowned washing up on shore tore through Canadian media like wildfire. The reaction pretty much guaranteed Harper wouldn’t win.

  97. 97.

    Brachiator

    I think if I were a refugee child I would feel traumatized again being surrounded by Furries.

  98. 98.

    ArchTeryx

    @Frankensteinbeck: A fandom that’s used to being pissed on by all the other fandoms, though that’s gradually been getting better over the years.

    There’s a reason my handle is ‘ArchTeryx.’

  100. 100.

    Paul in KY

    @Mnemosyne: If you are a ‘Furry’, does that mean 100% that you like to engage in sex with other costumed characters? This question can be directed to any commenter with a better knowledge of them than I.

  103. 103.

    Miss Bianca

    @Doug R:

    The power of an image…there was a photo of a Syrian refugee, a father in tears, trying to evacuate his family, that broke my heart. And then I saw a photo of that same man, beaming with his whole family around him, safe and sound…in Canada.

    I love, love, love our neighbors to the North.

    @Paul in KY:

    you forgot to add the obligatory “Asking for a friend”

  104. 104.

    Bill Arnold

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Have you discerned the meaning of the Large Yellow Duck in the Brazil protest context? ( “Big Yellow Duck” is a banned search term in China, probably unrelated.)

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