Furry Weekend Atlanta (FWA) is a

furry convention A furry convention (also furry con or fur con) is a formal gathering of members of the furry fandom — people who are interested in the concept of fictional non-human animal characters with human characteristics. These conventions provide a ...

held annually in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

History

Furry Weekend Atlanta started as an outgrowth of a local furry meetups often held in Atlanta at the homes of various members of the

furry fandom The furry fandom is a subculture interested in anthropomorphic animal characters. Examples of anthropomorphic attributes include exhibiting human intelligence and facial expressions, speaking, walking on two legs, and wearing clothes. The term ...

. As the gatherings became larger, the idea of formally holding a convention was raised. After several unsuccessful attempts, a plan was made to hold a convention in February 2004. The name ''Furry Weekend Atlanta'' was chosen to echo the name of the

anime convention An anime convention is an event or gathering with a primary focus on anime, manga and Japanese culture. Commonly, anime conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels or college campuses. They feature a wide variety of acti ...

held in the city,

Anime Weekend Atlanta Anime Weekend Atlanta (AWA) is an annual four-day anime convention held during September/October at the Renaissance Waverly Hotel, Cobb Galleria Centre, and Sheraton Suites Galleria in Atlanta, Georgia. The convention is the largest Southeastern a ...

. The name became a federally

registered trademark The registered trademark symbol, , is a typographic symbol that provides notice that the preceding word or symbol is a trademark or service mark that has been registered with a national trademark office. A trademark is a symbol, word, or wo ...

on December 2, 2008. Originally held around

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...

, the convention was rescheduled to be held mid-March in 2009. In January 2022, Furry Weekend Atlanta's Twitter announced they have partnered with the Hilton Atlanta hotel nearby as a ‘overflow hotel’ for their upcoming convention later this year.

Organization

Furry Weekend Atlanta, Inc., is the 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation which organizes the Furry Weekend Atlanta convention. Furry Weekend Atlanta Inc. is headed by an executive committee and in addition to operating the annual convention, promotes the acceptance of the furry fandom in the southeast United States. Furry Weekend Atlanta, Inc. retains only the funds necessary for the organization of the Furry Weekend Atlanta convention, and donates the rest to charities.

Charity

From 2005 to 2006, Furry Weekend Atlanta supported th
Ellijay Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary
a state and federally licensed

wildlife rehabilitation Wildlife rehabilitation is the treatment and care of injured, orphaned, or sick wild animals so that they can be released back to the wild. Process Rehabilitation begins when an animal is found and reported to a wildlife rehabilitator, or seize ...

center located in Ellijay, Georgia. Furry Weekend Atlanta attendees donated almost $4,000 to the Sanctuary in 2006, and almost $3,000 in 2005. From 2007 to present, Furry Weekend Atlanta has supported the Conservator's Center, a nonprofit organization working to preserve

threatened species Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...

Furry Weekend Atlanta by year

References

External links

Furry Weekend Atlanta
– official website
Furry Weekend Atlanta
at WikiFur {{Atlanta events Furry conventions Recurring events established in 2004 Conventions in Atlanta Tourist attractions in Atlanta Annual events in Georgia (U.S. state) 2004 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)