At the Mount Nebo Middle School in Utah, USA, students wearing animal ear headbands faced harassment from their peers.
The school addressed the situation by reminding students to respect each other and abide by their institution’s dress code, using their slogan, R.O.A.R.. It stands for “Respect, Outstanding, Academic and Responsible.”
Using this slogan in their message, however, apparently caused the parents who received it to assume the school “supported” students’ “rights” to wear “furry accessories” to school, the New York Post reported.
In fact, Mount Nebo Middle School uses the panther as their symbol and mascot, this which inspired their slogan.
Adding to the fire were online rumours that grossly misrepresented the incident.
Some of the rumours claimed that furries were “allowed” to “bite, bark and pounce on their peers in classrooms”, even sprayed “human repellant” at their peers, and “those who complained about it got suspended”.
As it spread, American politically conservative media channels and politicians amplified these rumours, worsening the situation.
The rumour turned a matter about dress codes and mutual respect into a matter about furries wearing fursuits and their alleged disruptive behaviour, leading to a protest.
Officials from the school and school district confirmed all the rumours were false.
This incident highlighted the need for accurate reporting and open dialogue to dispel misinformation and promote understanding between different communities.
Furries are individuals with an interest in anthropomorphic animal characters.
关于兽迷“在校捣乱”的不实传言引发学生抗议
在美国犹他州的尼波山中学（Mt. Nebo Middle School），几名戴着动物耳朵头饰的学生遭到同龄人的骚扰。
校方通过提醒学生们互相尊重并遵守学校的着装要求来处理此事，并使用了他们的口号 R.O.A.R.，意为“互相尊重（respect）、成功杰出（outstanding）、学取知识（academic）和责任之心（responsibility）”。
然而，《纽约邮报》报道称，在信息中使用这个口号却导致收到信息的家长们误以为学校“支持”学生在校佩戴“毛兽配饰”的“权利”。
事实上，尼波山中学使用黑豹作为他们的象征和吉祥物，这也是他们的口号的灵感来源。
雪上加霜的是，网络谣言严重歪曲了事件。
一些谣言声称，兽迷被“允许”在教室里“咬、吠和扑向同学”，甚至向同学喷洒“驱人剂”，而“那些抱怨的人则被停课”。
随着谣言的传播，美国政治保守派媒体和政客放大了这些谣言，使情况恶化。
谣言将着装规范和互相尊重的问题变成了关于兽迷穿着兽装及其在校“捣乱”的问题，从而引发了抗议活动。
学校和学区的官员证实，所有谣言都是假的。
这一事件凸显了准确报道和公开对话的必要性，以消除错误信息，促进不同群体之间的理解。
兽迷们是对拟人化动物角色感兴趣的人。
Global Furry Television 