I have to say that goth representation in media is really, really depressing and bland. As someone who has always been a goth girl and has a lot of goth and punk friends and has always gravitated towards the misfits like me, I can definitely say that the media portrays us all wrong.

We are passionate people and we all have personalities. The only thing they get right is most of us are witty and sarcastic, but we’re not boring and we have talents and interests. Not all of us are gloomy – I had a goth friend that I met in college who absolutely was bubbly and charming and her favorite color happened to be pink.

There’s also different types of goths. There are traditional goths, cyber goths, romantic goths, vampire goths, hippie goths, tribal goths, casual goths, and there’s even a branch of goths known as white goths (think Miyavi’s character from the second Maleficent movies).

Also, we’re misfits not freaks. Some of us may refer to ourselves as weirdos or freaks, but it is really irritating when a stranger comes up to you and calls you these things. We may be different, but that doesn’t make us any less valid and it doesn’t mean we should be valued any less.

Black happens to be one of my happy colors and power colors. I actually only wear white when I’m either being a unicorn or I’m depressed and I need some more color in my life.

Like anything in life don’t judge a book by their color.

Are some goths emo little balls of gloom? Yes. Are we all? No.

So I’m begging for more media representation not only goths but all the different types of goths because there’s no one way to goth.

Also my goth friends are/were pretty friendly and protective of me. We are loyal friends, so can you stop making us antagonists? We are only rude to people who hurt us or those we love. Goths are awesome and deserving of love just as much as anyone else, and it’s really sad that there’s still people out there in 2020 who think it’s okay to judge people for what they wear.

Just because you don’t understand something doesn’t make it wrong or mean it is something vile or repulsive. It is okay not to get things, but it is not okay to rip down someone over who they are just because you don’t understand it.

Linda M. Crate’s works have been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. She is the author of six poetry chapbooks, the latest of which is: More Than Bone Music (Clare Songbirds Publishing House, March 2019). She has also authored two micro-collections, and two full length poetry collections.