The moment I start publicly expressing my affection for Homestuck, people are going to consider me a member and participant of the Homestuck fandom, and thus associate me with its poor reputation. I might really love the hell out of Homestuck, but let's be honest, we all know the reputation of the Homestuck fandom. It's an issue that's also come up with the concept of 'fandom' as a singular unified fan community. And some people, while they may like cartoon anthropomorphic animals, don't want to be associated with the community, because that comes with baggage. This is more with regard to the first few posts, but I think that it has become impossible to say 'I'm a furry' in the sense that 'I like cartoon anthropomorphic animals', because most people take it as a declaration that you are openly associating yourself with the broader furry community - the good and the bad.
