Explaning to mother
ok first of all this is not the 'how to tell parents your a furry thing' I already did that...
The only problem is after I explained furry, to my parents my mother took it upon herself to learn evreything she can do to support me... and thats when she discovered the dark side of furry. I want her to look at it how I explaned it to her (scooby doo, sonic, and little bear are some of the cartoons I used to show what furry's are) But no matter what or how I explain it to her, she just cant get over the bad part.
Thanks in advance <3
lol the rule 34 thing would just make things worse XD but it would be so funny to actually tell her that!
I looked at the fur fright article from one of Blackjack's posts and loved it! I might have to refer her to that, sometime.
Thank's for the helpfull link Origamigryphon 
Go for what Eagle's Flight and Origamigryphon say! You're still far luckier than I am (I don't think pops would support me in this), and all the unfortunate Euro furs that aren't yet 18. Thanks to Germany's Arschloch Bürokratie (translate this phrase to English-it'll be fun 
), their nearest con, EuroFurence, is now closed off to them: http://www.eurofurence.org/EF16/terms.htm
Be thankful for all the freedoms the US gives you.
To start with, shows like Little Bear and Scooby-Doo ARE NOT good representations of what furry is. She'll come to think of the subculture as some apocalyptic combination between kiddy and pornographic. Start improving your mother's opinion of the fandom with these webcomics:
www.kevinandkell.com/
www.ozyandmillie.org
www.ozfoxes.com/fauxpas.htm
You could also read the Usagi Yojimbo and Pogo series with her.
And if she has an open mind, show her Sabrina Online or Sequential Art.
You need quality material to showcase your interests, or else people who don't understand them will just keep rejecting them.
TV Tropes explains this well: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GatewaySeries
Why aren't Little Bear and Scooby-Doo good representations of the Furry Fandom? I'd use them as examples in a heartbeat.
Mr. George, Little Bear and Scooby-Doo are media properties aimed almost exclusively at young children. They're not horrible, but they weren't created to interest anyone reaching puberty and up. Granted, Little Bear is tastefully handled, I'll give you that, but Scooby-Doo was simply the hot franchise of its moment (the '70s and '80s) designed to earn Hannah-Barbera more dough.
The critics need to see that furry encompasses a wide variety of themes, genres, characters, stories, and aesthetics. Not just kiddy media and "furrotica". It will improve the fandom's reputation and win over more enthusiasts.
Please, Mr. George is my father! (I've always wanted to say that hehe).
Of course the Fandom covers a wide variety of things, but the point is to explain it to people in terms that they understand. Many people have seen Scooby Doo, Little Bear, Looney Toons, and Disney Movies. Joe Q. Public can understand, remember, and can associate positively with those.
Not everybody has heard of Kevin And Kell, Ozy and Millie, and OzFoxes. Using them as examples would confuse people more than inform them. And to explain what they are, you'd end up explaining what the Furry Fandom is anyway using kid shows and other cartoons.
We can't expect people to become experts on the subject in one sitting, nor can we force the information upon them. All we can do is give them the basics, and if they're interested, they'll learn more on their own.
It's the positive first impression that we give them that will stick.
Not everybody has heard of Kevin And Kell, Ozy and Millie, and OzFoxes. Using them as examples would confuse people more than inform them. And to explain what they are, you'd end up explaining what the Furry Fandom is anyway using kid shows and other cartoons.
It would be a bit easier, of course, if the general public remembers - if they have ever encounted them at all - such things as:
The Wind in The Willows
Rupert the Bear
Stuart Little
Charlotte's Web
Archy and Mehitabel
Uncle Remus' Tales
The Fables of Aesop
The Fables of LaFontaine
The stories of Hans Christian Andersen
Chaucer's Canterbury Tales
Reynard The Fox
The Brothers Grimm
Half of the works of Rudyard Kipling
Almost anything by Beatrix Potter
Alice in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass, & THe Hunting of The Snark
The works of AA Milne (Winnie the Pooh, et.al.)
Babar the Elephant
...and a couple pages of other literary titles and references, which in an earlier time would have been part of nearly any American Childhood, even post-television.
You, sir, are one sharp lupine. Are you a journalist or novelist, by any chance? You look like you have it in you. Thank you for your guidance.
Still, there's a huge difference in quality between Scooby-Doo and, for example, Usagi Yojimbo. It would be like introducing newcomers to political fiction through the heavily biased (and not very subtle or tactful) Rolling Stone Magazine cartoons instead of V for Vendetta or The West Wing. The Looney Toons are cool with me, though (along with Pinky & the Brain). Those are witty and clever.
As a parent of teenagers I'm always worried about what they are doing and with whom they are associating. I imagine your mother has the same concerns.
Just be open and honest with her. Answer her questions truthfully, and give her the benefit of pulling from her life experiences. Ask her about her hobbies and interests as a teen. I'm willing to bet she can remember others with the same interests as her at that time, that were also more focused on the darker aspects.
If you know any furs in your area, introduce them to your mom. Possibly, with your parents permission, have a furmeet at your house. Let them see what furs are like when they get together.
I really can't give you specific advice without knowing your mother personally and seeing the relationship between you, but I do hope that you can work things out without too much trouble.
I know my mother is concerned, that is a mothers job after all.
Hobbies, and intrests... I think that would probably be intresting to hear her come to that realization that furry isnt the only thing that has sicko's in it.
I never thought of having a furmeet! I know afew fur's around me, also that would just be pretty fun on my part!
Thanks for the advice! Its really cool to actually hear this from a parent, in the fandom!
Show her all the sleazy otaku and gamer websites (like Kotaku, Sankaku Complex and arguably IGN) to prove your point. Despite its extremes, the Furry Fandom's members have been quite friendly and civilized towards me (Thanks to its wittiness, sparks of creativity, inclusiveness, and understanding participants, I feel more at home with furrydom than with mainstream pop culture. It has the heart and quirkiness that modern society needs more of.)
You know fellow furs that live near you? I'm jealous of you. If only were as lucky.
Also, the Kung-Fu Panda quote: "Yesterday is History Tomorrow is a Mystery Today is a gift, thats why it is called the present." I'm more than sure that the priviledged residents of Somalia, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria will agree with it. I mean, it's not like life is sometimes tough or unfair. That's just preposterous!
Explain to her that it is a very, VERY small part of the Furry Fandom, but it unfortunately gets the most attention because negativity seems to spread the fastest.
Don't forget the AC convention chairman's (Uncle Kage's) parents attend AC regularly
(that's Grandpa and Grandma Kage), and have been known to attend furry conventions
without him when he's busy at work!
Much to my chagrin. People over 60 should never be left unsupervised. They lack the maturity to make sound decisions on what parts of the convention they should or should not visit and which parties to avoid.
Nothing like having your parents stumble into your hotel room at 10pm, reeking of Ben Gay and tanked up on Metamucil shots.
Does that mean you're going to start assigning me a security guard if I attend in 2012?
Yes. Her name is Vicky Wyman.
Oh, I don't know - last year in Suhl, thanks to your mother, I received a practical education in Wine Appreciation, specifically concerning the whites of the Thuringer region; from your father, an object lesson in Passive Inscrutability; a dual-chaired seminar on the dynamics of an enduring marriage; and a Master's Class in Sagacity, from them both.
If your mother is so worried, why not just invite her to the convention itself? After checking out the convention. She can explore the city of Pittsburgh.
Heck she might enjoy the con so much, she might volunteer and become a staffer.
One can only hope, Ken. 
Has the convention been enjoyed even by people who aren't furs? Sounds good to me.
Yes they have. :3 My group invited a friend to go along, and he went (merely because he wanted something to do/see). From what I saw, he had a great time.
The ones that wouldn't enjoy the con are the ones that believe in the irrational stereotypes, or are the ones that think all mascot costumes are 'creepy'.
There are many people from Pittsburgh who aren't furs that buy day passes just so they can see the fursuit parade.
I was talking to a mother and daughter in the lobby who were having a grand old time taking pictures of the suiters, and mentioned the parade the next day. They seemed really excited about it, and told them that they could buy a day's pass to see it, and about all of the furry goodies they could look at in the dealer's den if they wanted to get into the spirit of things. I hope they did end up coming to see it. :3
Nifty.
I just came out and told my parents, my mother told me at first she didn't go for it beacuse of CST but I told her that is only a very small part of the fandom. My dad was all for it and has been very reasanable with it and I think he is geting into the fandom 2 as a bear
Yeah 
My dads all for it, heack he would fursuit if he didn't have neck problems.
Shoot, he could still dress up if he wanted! It may not be a full blown suit, but just a face-mask with some paws and a tail and he'd be set. 
I'll have to ask him if he would want to. He is the biker sorta father and rides for charity. I could see him wearing a tail and hand paws
Good for ya! My younger brother hasn't taken my interest in furry things too well (and I'm afraid of telling my parents, especially since my relationship with Dad is less than ideal).
I feel that this would be a good addition to this topic:
Presenting the Furry Fandom to the Public - by Uncle Kage
Conway does a good job of explaining it. Still, we need to admit that our subculture does have its own dumb and grotesque parts (what other survey cares about zoophiles?!!! 
).
By not dealing with them, we're only adding fuel to the fire. We like to complain about our negative treatment, but we sometimes need to look in the mirror and improve ourselves.
Haha, I remember this person on the furaffinity forums that either wanted to seem cool, was a troll, or actually wanted to try this..but they claimed they had several suits, one for every day of the week and then some, and would wear them like regular clothes. She even wanted to make it so the zipper would lock so she could stay in a costume permanently.
We of course called her out on it, explaining how unsanitary that is, and asking for pictures. She only supplied pictures she found of fursuits on google owned by other people. I said "no, we want to see your closet, full of your costumes." Not surprisingly, she couldn't respond to that one.
Don't let your passions control you.
It doesn't look too difficult. I checked out Kevin & Kell and found some of the strips entertaining (with a few really good ones), but the printed editions of these webcomics can get a bit expensive. If my brother and Mom could get me Tragedy and Hope for $30, though (an obscure essay on the developmental patterns of civilization and where we may be going), along with some other highly niche books (e.g. Mao II by Don DeLilo), they shoouldn't have too much of a problem affording one or two strips for Christmas.
Second and last point, I don't know anyone near me nor any group interested in the furry subculture. There isn't much down here in Latinamerica, is there? And what could I do?
Hang around here with us! There may not be much around you, but that doesn't mean you can't contribute to the Fandom and get to know people.
For example: I'm no artist or a suiter, but I'm writing an fantasy adventure novel with a furry setting. Its a couple of years in the making and I think people will like it once I release it!
Find your niche. This is your opportunity to be creative.
Best of luck with your novel! If only I could teleport something to you in return for all your advice.
"Find your niche. This is your opportunity to be creative." I'm planning a little Halloween skit at my school (if it isn't censored and is approved). I hope it comes into fruition and turns out decent.
Johnny Dragon, may I ask what your novel will be like? I have a few ideas myself, but I'd rather not rush them into becoming something poorly written. Sorry, but I'm curious. Thank you! 
If it were my mom, I'd simply say, "It's just Rule 34. There IS porn of it, no exceptions!"
But I don't know how she would take that, and it may escalate her into seeing if it is true, and then ruin her favorite subjects forever..XD;
Seriously, just tell her that every fanbase of ANYTHING (Star Trek/Wars, etc) has its extremists and 'dark side,' and that those are the minority, and that most furries are in it because it is a fun hobby.
I'll also link Blackjack's post here: http://www.anthrocon.org/node/5948/my-plan-will-it-work That has commentary by mundanes who have seen furries in their natural element (conventions), and how it's 'as wholesome as a Catholic school Halloween party.'
I'm sure there will be other people who will have better words of wisdom than I, who are actually parents. :>