> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Furry panic rears its head again - URL: https://bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io/furry-panic-rears-its-head-again/ - Published: 2025-03-14T19:47:24.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-07T22:47:59.000Z - Description: No, it's not a thing. - Author: Sara Cress - Tags: Newsletter, #Migrated-1794091451356, #Import 2026-11-07 22:47 I apologize if you’re unaware with furries/furry culture, you’re about to learn. From [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furry%5Ffandom?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io): > The **furry fandom** is a [subculture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subculture?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io) interested in [anthropomorphic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthropomorphism?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io) animal characters. Some examples of anthropomorphic attributes include exhibiting human intelligence and facial expressions, speaking, walking on two legs, and wearing clothes. The term "furry [fandom](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fandom?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io)" is also used to refer to the community of people who gather on the Internet and at [furry conventions](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furry%5Fconvention?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io). In this way, they’re just like anime or sci-fi cosplayers. They wear costumes to find community and those communities are sometimes, you know, deeply weird and sometimes sexual. Your weekend Stormtrooper dabbler who enjoys going to conventions — most of the community — isn’t the same as a woman living her life as Princess Leia. More from Wikipedia: > In their 2007 survey, Gerbasi et al. examined what it meant to be a furry, and proposed a taxonomy in which to categorize different "types" of furries. The largest group—38% of those surveyed—described their interest in furry fandom predominantly as a "route to socializing with others who share common interests such as anthropomorphic art and costumes." They also identified furries who saw themselves as "other than human", or who desired to become more like the furry species which they identified with. Why am I telling you all of this? Because furry panic occasionally grips conservatives and conservative media, and now it has entered the Texas legislative session, with [a bill filed yesterday](https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/billtext/pdf/HB00054I.pdf?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io#navpanes=0) by Stan Gerdes (R-Smithville): “the Forbidding Unlawful Representation of Roleplaying in Educational Spaces or F.U.R.R.I.E.S. Act.” ![spongebob stupid Meme Generator - Piñata Farms - The best meme generator and meme maker for video & image memes](https://storage.ghost.io/c/6d/51/6d51d957-e70d-452f-8661-3823af319edd/content/images/2026/11/91619491-d13e-4cd8-959d-4d4a5711ee91_1000x600-jpeg-1.jpg) The bill bans “Non-Human Behavior” and (A) using a litter box for the passing of stool, 10 urine, or other human byproducts (B) a personal or outward display, except during a school play or by a school mascot, through surgical or superficial means of features that are non-human such as: - (i) tails; - (ii) leashes, collars, other accessories designed for pets; - (iii) fur, other than naturally occurring human hair or a wig made to look like human hair; - (iv) artificial, animal-like ears; - (v) other physiological features that have not historically been assigned to the homo sapiens species through a means of natural biological development; (C) barking, meowing, hissing, or other animal noises that are not human speech; and (D) licking oneself or others for the purpose of grooming or maintenance. All of this stems back to a couple of things. The first is probably where the whole thing originated: ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/6d/51/6d51d957-e70d-452f-8661-3823af319edd/content/images/2026/11/4ee28e9d-5a32-4599-b1c9-e216bd2105c1_942x584.png) And then [this](https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/misinformation/urban-myth-litter-boxes-schools-became-gop-talking-point-rcna51439?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io): > Every school district that has been named by those 20 politicians said either to NBC News or in public statements that these claims are untrue. There is no evidence that any school has deployed litter boxes for students to use because they identify as cats. > > But the claim has taken on a life of its own among a growing number of Republicans, conservative influencers and political commentators. In an episode of Spotify’s “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast \[in 2022\], host Joe Rogan told former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard that a litter box was installed in a school that his friend’s wife worked at for a girl who “identifies as an animal.” A clip of the discussion quickly began to [circulate](https://twitter.com/1776ProjectPac/status/1580237901652463621?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io) on social media. Rogan did not name the school, and his publicist did not respond to a request for comment. I expected Gerdes stupid bill to not be taken seriously, but then Greg Abbott [spoke to the Texas Pastors Policy Conference yesterday](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/greg-abbott-furries-vouchers-20220159.php?utm%5Fsource=marketing&utm%5Fmedium=copy-url-link&utm%5Fcampaign=article-share&hash=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaG91c3RvbmNocm9uaWNsZS5jb20vcG9saXRpY3MvdGV4YXMvYXJ0aWNsZS9ncmVnLWFiYm90dC1mdXJyaWVzLXZvdWNoZXJzLTIwMjIwMTU5LnBocA%3D%3D&time=MTc0MTk4MDAxOTc5Mg%3D%3D&rid=YzcwZjVmOTUtMWJkOC00ZjIxLTg5MjUtMDE2ZThlMTk1NDU2&sharecount=NA%3D%3D), saying this: > Abbott’s remarks appeared to call back [unfounded rumors from 2022](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/politifact/article/fact-check-furries-litter-box-17072203.php?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io) that public schools across the country were catering to students who identified as animals. In one instance, the GOP chair in Williamson County [falsely claimed Round Rock schools were lowering cafeteria tables](https://www.kxan.com/news/local/williamson-county/tables-not-being-lowered-for-furries-rrisd-responds-to-candidates-twitter-claim/?ref=bayou-city-sludge.ghost.io) for furries. > > “In some small rural sections of school districts in the state of Texas, they have in their schools, what are called furries. Y'all know what this is?” Abbott asked the crowd, which responded with a smattering of “yeahs.” > > “Kids go to school dressed up as cats with litter boxes in their classrooms,” Abbott said. He then connected this to his school voucher plan: > “If you have a child in a public school, you have one expectation: your child's going to be learning the fundamentals of education — reading and writing and math and science,” Abbott said. “If they're being distracted by furries, those parents have a right to move their child to a school of their choice.” There it is. Drumming up woke furry panic to convince parents that public schools are no longer serving their educational needs. This is all very stupid, and also ties into trans panic in schools. These are things that simply aren’t happening, but right-wing media has convinced all of your grandparents that kids aren’t learning math anymore, they’re taking classes in nonbinary history while shitting in litter boxes at the lunch table. Having been a summer camp volunteer to girls 8-18 for a few years now, I see a lot of kids who are on the autism spectrum find comfort in their little cat ears and little plush tails hanging off their backpacks. Little kids LOVE cats. They all seem to go through a phase where they love to meow for attention. Accessorizing school uniforms with harmless stuff gives kids some creative control over their appearance. There’s not a single kid allowed to wear a full costume to school unless it’s Halloween. There are not fucking litter boxes in our schools. I’m so tired of this gaslighting that’s so transparently misleading propaganda that helps no one and always leads to Republicans offering solutions that make them richer. I think that’s enough for today, don’t you? Thanks for reading Bayou City Sludge! This post is public so feel free to share it.