In a word, Sharrow told community members that if it sounds too wacky to be true, it probably is. Joseph Gunderson. You need evidence for that, and this is a very serious treatment.. Victoria Education; Claims school students are grooming each other, wearing cat tails as part of new 'furries' trend. School provides litterbox for students who identify as cats? The Meade County School district is dealing with an unusual situation: a group of high school students is attending school acting like and dressing as cats. TikToks are going viral of school students claiming to identify as animals . The Meade County School district is dealing with an unusual situation: a group of high school students is attending school acting like and dressing as cats. Website development by. Cisgender refers to individuals who identify with the gender assigned to them at birth. It was"unconscionable" that he was addressing the rumor, Sharrow said,but he felt it necessary to do so because of its renewed spread on social media. A source . In an email sent to parents, staff and community members on Jan. 20, Midland Public SchoolsSuperintendent Michael Sharrowdenied the claim that "litter boxes were provided within MPS student restrooms for those who identify themselves as 'furries.'" As well as corroboration from a superintendent, principal or teacher who can say this is happening in their district. I dont want to lose readers by wading into a political landmine field, but most importantly I dont want anyone to feel unwelcome on this site. I have never once heard a furry say they want to use a litter box, Kymera said. Thats the problem. Republican lawmakers in numerous states are attempting to pass bills that would require teachers to notify parents if their child is identifying as transgender at school. The school reportedly said in a statement that its students were demonstrating a range of issues from mental health, anxiety or identity issues. Its a safe bet that the girl identifying as a cat fits this description. There are websites that claim there is a catgender movement, but that is a different thing. Click here to sign up for our fact-check text chat, Communication Regarding False Accusation Made at December MPS Board of Education Meeting, Litter Boxes for Students Who Identify as Furries? Last month, Brendan Shea, a Republican and member of the Ohio State Board of Education, introduced a resolution to oppose civil rights protections for LGBTQ students. While Pesta claims that this woman was fired, she was not fired. Why would you attack our most vulnerable to get your point across, especially since the point is baseless?. Oh, you are a human? That has not stopped such rumors from circulating on social media, where they have been repeated like a game of telephone, often with descriptions of friends of friends who supposedly saw such things firsthand. She did not elaborate on what happened afterward but . There is no evidence that any school has deployed litter boxes for students to use because they identify as cats. The trend isnt new, but has recently been popularized on social media. / students identifying as cats. Jan. 24, 2023, 2:31 PM PST. Additionally, this summer, a group of parents and community members unsuccessfully pushedfor the removal of "Gender Queer: A Memoir," a graphic novel by Maia Kobabe that discusses topics such as asexuality and being nonbinary, from Salem-Keizer high school libraries. This is freakn ridiculous! Its a lot easier to weather calls for cancellation when youve been around for 20 years, youve made billions for your parent company and you have a contract that keeps you on TV for years yet. "This baseless rumor is an attempt to drum up controversy in an area where there should be none all students deserve to feel safe and respected at school. Some say litter boxes are located in transgender bathrooms in schools. You cansubscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here. Like our page to get updates throughout the day on our latest debunks, Fact Check-Photographs do not show a U.S. student who wanted to identify as a cat, Fact check: No, a Michigan public school did not provide litter boxes for students identifying as cats, Fact check: Wisconsin school district debunks claim that it has a 'furry protocol', 20-Year-Old Woman Claims She Is A Cat Born In The Wrong Body, Born in the wrong species // Fdt i feil art, 'I was born in the wrong species': Woman who says she's a CAT trapped in a human body hisses at dogs, hates water and claims she can even see better at night. And it has not stopped some politicians from picking up these claims and using them to alarm people by saying that this is where protections for LGBTQ students will lead. There have never been litter boxes within MPS schools," he wrote. Seriously, Parents are allowing their kids to think they are cats! A reaction from another user calling for schools to stop admitting furries to schools brought in over 1 million views. I think I will be cat all my life.. 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. A school in Australia has allowed one of its students to be non-verbal in class and behave like a cat, as per her wishes. Where did you get your info. Two curious stories relating to cats have been circulating online this week: In the first story, a substitute teacher claims she was fired because she refused to meow back to a student who identifies as a cat, while parents in a Michigan school district were infuriated by a rumor that the district was providing litter boxes to cat-identified students in school bathrooms. As he argued for the resolution in a public meeting, Shea said, Weve literally got kids who think theyre cats and dogs using litter boxes in classrooms. Shea did not respond to requests for comment. The district where Columbine High School is located has been stocking classrooms with small amounts of cat litter since 2017, but as part of go buckets that contain emergency supplies in case students are locked in a classroom during a shooting. Snowstorm Could Hit Metro Detroit Friday: Possible Snow Totals, Detroit Bakery Reopens In Midtown With 25 Cent Cookies, DTE Energy Will Give Automatic Credit To Those Affect By Power Outage, Here's How Many Guns Were Sold In Michigan Last Month, 2 Women Sexually Assaulted While Walking In Ann Arbor, Police Say, Popular Oakland County Restaurant, Music Venue Abruptly Closes. Rumors began to surface that these students were permitted to use litter boxes in bathrooms to accommodate them, but the districts superintendent debunked such stories. Across the country, from New York to Iowa and Texas, the same rumor swept through districts this spring. In an Oct. 19, 2021, Facebook post, the Public Schools Branch of Prince Edward Island said that for several months it had fielded calls, been sent emails and been pointed to numerous social media posts that make broad sweeping assertions regarding students who identify as cats. We parents arent sure what our schools are up to, she wrote in an email, according to the Times. No Left Turn in Education, a Leading Anti-Critical Race Theory Group, Frequently Pushes Toxic Rhetoric in Media. Media Matters for America, https://www.mediamatters.org/education/no-left-turn-education-leading-anti-critical-race-theory-group-frequently-pushes-toxic. The "furry protocol" rumor is the newest wrinkle in a series of false claims concerning absurd behavior in schools. It could damage the student's future self-image and destroy ambitions.". Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. The photos show a young woman wearing costume cat ears. To a person not steeped in the culture war battles over gender identity that have engulfed school districts nationwide, its the kind of claim that would sound bizarre and confusing and, from high-profile GOP members, authoritative. "It is such a source of disappointment that I felt the necessity to communicate this message to you.". Furries are part of an established subculture that has existed for decades. Please report any comments that break our rules. I dont accept sponsored posts and I have a no-politics policy, even for politics-adjacent subjects like this. 5 min read. The superintendent tells WLKY the. Ive studied more than 40,000 furries from 70 different countries over a decade, she said. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. It's also worth noting that while McKenna claimed on Pesta's podcast that she had received multiple emails about these furry protocols, the email she presents is the same email Pesta has been showcasing during his presentations. There is a real subculture of people known as furries, a community of children and adults who roleplay as anthropomorphized animal characters. (LogOut/ Among the policies is one stating students, staff and visitors may use the restroom that aligns with their gender identity. A SCHOOL in Michigan has bizarrely been accused by outraged parents of installing litter boxes in bathrooms for students who identify as cats and dogs. Whos doing it? And this little girl in the very front row says, You have to meow back at him; he identifies as a cat. Are you kidding me?, The student stormed out of the classroom when she laughed at him, she said, and the schools administration fired her: They said We no longer need your services if you cant identify with all the children in the classroom.'. An appeals court also recently upheld one Florida high schools policy of forbidding transgender students from using the bathroom of their acquired gender. "It is such a source of disappointment that I felt the necessity to communicate this message to you.". Some who have believed the false rumors continue to cite them as an example of school districts going too far with so-called identity politics, drawing a connection between the litter box claims to schools allowing transgender students to use the restroom of their choice. There have never been litter boxes within MPS schools.. Hey wait -I seriously allergic to cats. Michigan had installed litter boxes in order to appease students who had started identifying as cats, there's no evidence that any schools in Michigan installed litterboxes for their students. Meet Nano, the woman who thinks she is a cat. Follow her on Twitter@NataliePateGwin. The woman says she was born the wrong species. My psychologist told me I can grow out of it, but I doubt it, she told an interviewer. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook. A Michigan school superintendent debunked the rumor after a video from a December school board meeting resurfaced in which a speaker airs concerns about students who "identify as cats." Lisa. A Gannett Company. Randy Guttenberg, thesuperintendent of the Waunakee school district, told the Wisconsin news outlet Isthmus.com: I am aware of the misinformation that is circulating on social media. Beyond Republican politicians and officials, plenty of social media users have latched onto the rumor, most notably on Facebook and TikTok. Description. Regardless of what you have or have not heard about furries, it might surprise you to learn that there is a team of researchers who have devoted their careers to studying this fandom, Hal Herzog wrote for Psychology Todays Animals and Us column in 2017. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with. NBC News reported: A Nebraska state lawmaker apologized on Monday after he publicly cited a persistent but debunked rumor alleging that schools are placing litter boxes in school bathrooms to accommodate children who self-identify as cats. I have two grandkids in school and my grandkids didnt want to go to school anymore," she said.She said the issue gained attention on social media once people started sharing photos and videos of the feline costumes and behavior, "I started getting videos and messages from kids, and I said, 'Ok, Im going to post this so parents know whats going on. Sorry, no feline accomadations in the school. The rumour was also spread by popular US podcaster Joe Rogan. The rumor of litter boxes in schools appears to have begun among parents on social media, and one of the first schools to confront the falsehood was in Canada last fall. We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. A photograph from one of those presentations went viral on social media: While we're not sure exactly when or where this photograph was taken, we did find a video of Pesta using this same slide at a presentation in Hartland, Wisconsin on March 31, 2022, called "American Public Schools: From Failure to Fascism." Onto the rumor, most notably on Facebook and TikTok this message to you. `` litter boxes for who. And destroy ambitions. `` to schools brought in over 1 million views it... Told an interviewer newest wrinkle in a series of false claims concerning absurd in. A different thing woman wearing costume cat ears is happening in their.! 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