Commentary: Is Furry Discrimination Widespread? Probably Not

 

Recently in the SL Enquirer, there was an article about the discrimination those who prefer furry avatars face, going as far as to call them "the most hated community" in Second Life. There have been tales of discrimination against furs in SL for years. But how much could most expect to encounter? My own personal experience suggests: maybe not too often. So in response, a commentary of my own.

Read the story in People.

 

Furchanted Shopping Event

 

 

For those who like to shop, there's a  place that was recently recommended by a longtime reader: "Furchanted," high above the Imagination sim. Organized by Max Arkala (Maximillian Loon), it was described as being aimed at users of both human and furry avatars. 

 

Going about, there were a number of shops with a number of mods and accessories.  And as advertised, not all of them were for furries despite the name.

 

For those looking for activities other than shopping, there's also a crystal hunt, a dance area, and a water slide. There was also a booth for the "Beyond Star" comic that was recently featured in Draxtor Despres' "in Second Life" videos. There had been music events, but they may be over.

 

The event is open until Saturday July 29

https://www.ariuscity.com/furchanted_event/
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Imagination/81/131/2002

Reader Submitted Picture: "And They Call Furries Weird?"

 

 

Taken by Cynthia Farshore. At the filming of the First Lap of the Relay, one guy in a human avatar was, oddly dressed, "And they call furries weird? Suuuuuuuure."

 

SLife And Times: Two Sides of Banned For Being Furry

You go about Second Life in a type of avatar that you're quite proud of and helps define you, at least in the virtual world. One day, you get an invitation to a place you haven't heard about. You have time, as well as some nice clothes to wear, so you figure you might as well give it a try. But once there, you're told to change who you are, or leave. This is the situation one of our readers faced. So how should one respond? While the Newser has written about the subject before, this time we got in touch with someone from the venue in question. As it turned out, the other side did express some sympathy, but naturally the two people had quite different viewpoints.

Read the article in People.

Anthropomorphic Influences

It's well known that fans of anthropomorphic characters, aka "Furries" have been a part of Second Life about since it started. But they're also a part of many games. "World of Warcraft," the old powerhouse of MMOs, had a few anthro races. "Skyrim" has two. And more. Mods of popular games allow you more options at playing a nonhuman character. Nydia Tungsten recently had a few things to say about the issue.

Read Nydia's story in Other Grids, MMOs, and Games.

SL Video: "Furries of Second Life - Why This World Is Our Home"

(Click here if the video fails to play)

From Luca on March 5, "Over the years of me being on Second Life I've met and became friends with many furries from all across the globe who are truly wonderful people."

"We made this world our home for all that we love and are passionate about, and it's limitless possibilities."

Luca was the one whom earlier posted the "Just How Big Is Second Life" video.

"Furry Tower" at Luskwood

From March 1, 2008. It used to be in Second Life that avatars could "stack" on top of one another. And at Luskwood on occasion we'd try making a "furry tower." This one was eleven avatars high. I've heard stories of towers as high as two dozen people high before someone crashed or had to leave. But eventually the physics of Second Life were modified so avatars could no longer stack on one another so easily, and the "furry tower" activities became a whimsical memory of Luskwood's past.

The Furry Wrestling Federation

Wrestling has a number of fans in Second Life, and comes in various styles. But as the virtual world allows one to be other than human, what place do nonhumans have in the wrestling scene here? One such place is the Fury Wrestling Federation, also known simply as the FWF. Becky Shamen, after hearing about the group from a couple friends, decided to take a closer look at them. They are not a new group, but have been around a few years, and their matches can have some twists and turns.

Read Becky's article in People.

Furry Fashion

Bloodykitty's search for places to shop took her to Furry Fashion. Although not a user of furry avatars, she took a look at the place, which has it's own sim at Furry. Besides shopping, for both outfits and avatars, the area boasts a newcomer welcome area, and a club, the Furry Fashion Lounge. So what did she think?

Read Bloodykitty's review in Places.

The “Wingless” Free Avatars (2009)

So you're interested in furry avatars, but you have only a handful of Lindens on you? It used to be that if this happened to you, you were just plain out of luck, or had to make do with one of the older furry avatars made early in Second Life's history, such as the starter ringtail that was one of the options for newcomers on day one in 2006. Then came a much better choice. Wingless Emoto made his lines of avatars free and available to Second Life's public. Bixyl Shuftan wrote about them in 2009 in Second Life Newspaper. Six years later, the avatars are still around.

See the 2009 article in Design.

Reader Submitted: Blue Hole

Several years ago, Second Life Newser's predecessor, SL Newspaper, did a story on PADI Dive World, a place in Second Life where avatars could scuba dive. For furs, the equipment could be used though required some adjusting. Today Dive World is gone, and it's equipment that's still around unable to work. But Fritter Enzyme sent in a reader submission about a scuba place in Second Life active today. And for any furs interested in diving, there's equipment made with them in mind.

Read Fritter's story in Places.

Meeting Furs For the First Time

Today the Newser welcomes our newest writer Tiddily Winks. For her first article, she brings up the subject of running into an unfamiliar class of avatar in Second Life, her initial encounters with furry folk. So how did things turn out?

Read Tiddily's article in People.

Madpea's Kiana Writer to Sing at Furry Fair

When Kiana Writer, the head of the Madpea area, known for it's gaming and other activities, agreed to be part of the "Feed a Smile" charity auction, she probably had no idea what to expect. But what happened didn't cross her mind at all, "what I didn't think was that IF I write I'm willing to do ANYTHING for this, then I should be truly prepared for ANYTHING!"

The winning bid for Kiana was made by Chloe Seljan, the owner of the Potpourri Markets. So what did Chloe have in mind for Kiana to do? She had only one request ...

"I need you to sing at Furry Fair."

Chloe is the organizer of the Furry Fair, which has been going on all this month. Today is their "Feed a Smile" Day, and Kiana was made part of the line-up of musicians as a singer.  She goes on stage at 7PM SL time, "As a person who keeps her word, I decided that I WILL SING! It's been neverending practise now to make sure that my voice will be smooth as silk and lots of training (wine) to keep my nerves calm as I don't like to be in front of an audience. No matter what, there will be plenty of SURPRISES and GIFTS for the audience."

So will Kiana end up making scores of fans from Second Life's furries? Tonight will tell.

The event is at 7PM SL time at Boutou (123/119/25)

Source: Madpea Blog 

Bixyl Shuftan

Free or Low Cost for Furries: A Rant and Some Good News

DrFran's latest Fashion article has a bit of commentary. As popular as shopping hunts are, and as numerous furred residents in Second Life are, how come there's no shopping hunt aimed at furries? Once her two cents were in, she wrote about a shopping hunt she did while as a catgirl that had some good dresses.

Read DrFran's article in Fashion.

Drax Files Radio Hour's First Episode

On Friday January 10, the first episode of the "Drax Files Radio Hour" took place. The broadcast took place at 7AM SL time "From an attic somewhere in Berlin" with Draxtor Despres doing the show with Jo Yardley, noted for her "1920s Berlin Project." The show opened with a short "Friendly greetings" by Torley Linden, then after the introductions Draxtor and Jo discussed several topics.

The first subject was Occulus Rift reviving interest in virtual reality. The details and realism attracted a number of fans, though there was one down side: the realism of the experience while moving around while standing still in real life was making some people nauseous. Jo felt Occulus Rift would be used for more than Second Life and computer games. They described Babbage Linden as thinking differently, who felt it would start small and never really go mainstream.

They then talked about the NSA, and it's investigating Second Life. At one point Jo remarked, "seems that the NSA is taking Second Life more seriously than the media." "I don't know if that's good," Draxtor replied, "or very very sad." "A little bit of both?" "At least someone takes us seriously." Drax played in interview with "Ashkin," in which they talked about the NSA investigating Second Life's furry population. Their conclusion was that they often worked in creative fields and were actively involved in programing. There were also worries a Bin Laden avatar could be used to recruit terrorists, Jo and Draxtor comparing it to worries about neo-nazi activity. They also discussed with amusement pop singer Lily Allen confusing bitcoins with Lindens in being offered "hundreds of thousands of bitcoins to perform in Second Life years ago."

There was also a discussion about "fitted mesh" with guests involved with Second Life fashion design. Draxtor also brought up the upcoming "Feed a Smile" event in the Lavender Fields later that day, and concluded with an uncut soundtrack of the Drax Files episode with Scottius Polke, "too much stuff ended up on the cutting room floor."

The recording of the Drax Files Radio Hour's first episode can be found here: http://draxfiles.com/2014/01/10/show-1-oculus-nsa-fitted-mesh/ .

SL Video: "Roaring Furries"

(Click Here if the video fails to load)

From "Vilvi"

"Tough thugs & wicked ladies (or dressed like one), big bucks, bitter love and dangerous destinies."

Music: Lana Del Rey - Off to the Races

Filmed at the Shepham Estates

Untangling Tango

Today, Becky talks about designer tips for girls with implants. As a clothing outfitter, she included a notecard with her outfits for bustier girls about how to tweak things to get the most out of the dress with the avatar. Today, there's a new kind of implant on the scene, and Becky shows how to get the best out of it and your clothes. And if you prefer furry avatars, Becky shows how the ladies can be busty bunnies.

Read Becky's article in Design.

Sha's Thoughts: Ancient Furries

Becky "Sha" Shamen's latest column was inspired by thinking about the few places in Second Life that do not allow furry avatars. She reveals a bit about her philosophy and worldview as she looks into the history (and pre-history) of anthromorphic beings. Among other reasons that prejudice against residents preferring furred avatars doesn't make sense, Becky suggests another reason. "Furry" characters have long appeared in human history.

Read Becky's column in Extra.

Wingless Avatars in Inworldz

Want to explore other grids besides Second Life, but you're used to wearing a nonhuman avatar? Well, for Inworldz, the option for going about with a tail has arrived. The freebie Wingless avatars, available in Second Life for several years, are now in the Inworldz Grid.

Read more in Extra.

Perri Prinz and her Spectral Shadows Story Series

Grease Coakes recently interviewed Perri Prinz, a resident of the Sunweaver Estates where SL Newser makes it's home. Perri's known for being a DJ with an ample collection of 60s and 70s tunes. But for the interview Grease asked about her "Spectral Shadows" series. A serial with many plots and subplots that she's written for many years, Perri talked about a few of it's influences.

Read more in People.