Been meaning to write this for a long time, but I here is my "TEDTalk" about Furry, and how it relates to me.
I'm sure most of you here know what I'm about to say next, but based on comments I keep seeing around the internet, it bears repeating.
Furry does not necessarily refer to a fetish.
In fact this is what it is: an interest in anthropomorphic non-human animals. Most commonly cartoons, but could also mean realistic depictions. The word "furry" describes people that are either into this kind of art, or the creatures in the art themselves. And the animals do not necessarily need to be mammals, though other terms like "scaly" can be used for reptiles for example.
Yes, some of that art can be erotic, but then again, anything people can imagine can be made erotic. I won't deny that aspect exists, of course (and there's nothing wrong with it), but that's not even the main focus.
Another misconception I've seen is that it exclusively involves costumes. While that's one of the many artistic outlets involved, it's just one of many.
So that's just a general overview. There are different personal reasons how Furry relates to an individual, and that varies WIDELY. A lot of people are into it purely for artistc/aesthetic reasons/grew up with Disney's Robin Hood and thought the animal characters looked more interesting then they would as humans.
Some people create fursonas because they really like a certain animals and like to create depictions of themselves as that animal, but it's purely on an artistic/symbolic level.
Some people get into fantasy role playing aspects, but characters are just characters. (My lizard people rpg characters fit here. I like to role play as reptiles because I think they are bad ass and cool looking)
Then there are individuals like myself (who may be a minority in the fandom, I'm not actually sure because not everyone is open as I am), who feel a deep identity with a particular animal that goes far beyond just "really liking" them.
In fact, before the internet there was a whole lot of conflation between my therianthropy and what would be considered Furry. Back when I used to draw a lot, my self portraits I suppose would be called a fursona, but in my case it's not a character, but an artistic rendering of the real me I feel, if I were to merge both human and lupine aspects.
I think this conflation is why I would get so upset as a young adult when people on the internet attacked furries, because it triggered flashbacks of how my two exes treated me because of my wolf.
(Ironically I started this post dispelling conflations, lol.)
Anyway, aside from the interest for personal reasons, I think anthro animals as a concept is pretty neat. Maybe someday I'll take a crack at that TMNT rpg again, I really liked my bat character.
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