I suspect there's a solution between true (and truly expensive) professionals and insufficiently-experienced volunteers.
Semi-professional fan security groups such as the Dorsai Irregulars (WikiFur) and F.L.A.R.E. are often available for not much more than what at-con volunteers get. Because they work fan cons, they tend to have more experience with fandom idiosyncrasies than the typical rent-a-cops a furry con could budget for. In theory this means a better outcome.
They might be able to work something out if organizers decided they wanted a professional security team to work with them, too - though if an incident got that serious, you might want to call the police. As Lamar notes, a professional attitude is what's key.
Sandy Schreiber made a relevant post on Facebook when the RF letter was posted. Several commenters are Dorsai members; one noted that the official presence of the D.I. might not be suitable for a west-coast event due to the travel cost and the number of existing contracts. But perhaps a few of them, or a similar organization, could be drafted in an advisory role.
I suspect there's a solution between true (and truly expensive) professionals and insufficiently-experienced volunteers.
Semi-professional fan security groups such as the Dorsai Irregulars (WikiFur) and F.L.A.R.E. are often available for not much more than what at-con volunteers get. Because they work fan cons, they tend to have more experience with fandom idiosyncrasies than the typical rent-a-cops a furry con could budget for. In theory this means a better outcome.
They might be able to work something out if organizers decided they wanted a professional security team to work with them, too - though if an incident got that serious, you might want to call the police. As Lamar notes, a professional attitude is what's key.
Sandy Schreiber made a relevant post on Facebook when the RF letter was posted. Several commenters are Dorsai members; one noted that the official presence of the D.I. might not be suitable for a west-coast event due to the travel cost and the number of existing contracts. But perhaps a few of them, or a similar organization, could be drafted in an advisory role.