REBUFFED

Milo Yiannopoulos Banned From Furry Convention

“Hate is not welcome at Midwest FurFest,” organizers of the annual convention wrote in a statement.

A midwestern furry festival has banned Milo Yiannopoulos from attending the annual convention. “Hate is not welcome at Midwest FurFest. We are dedicated to providing a safe, harassment-free convention experience for all, regardless of age, race, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, or personal beliefs,” organizers wrote in statement to Right Wing Watch. “... The board of Midwest Furry Fandom, consistent with our posted code of conduct, has rescinded Mr. Yiannopoulos’s registration. He is not welcome to attend this or any future Midwest FurFest event.” Furries are a subculture of people who gather to celebrate anthropomorphizing animals; attendees often choose animal personas and dress in full-body animal costumes.

Yiannopoulos announced he was attending the convention on his Telegram messaging channel—one of the only social platforms that still welcomes him after he was banned for life from Twitter. The right-wing persona non grata wrote that he has adopted a snow leopard “fursona,” and shared a picture of his ticket purchase to the convention to be held in December outside Chicago. His announcement did not fly in the furry community. FurFest said it received numerous complaints online and told convention goers it would investigate “all concerns being relayed to us.” This is not the first time a furry convention has had a brush with neo-Nazis. In 2017, Fur Con, a furry convention in Denver, Colorado, was cancelled after a group of far-right furries known as Furry Raiders reserved a block of hotel rooms at the event.