In last week's edition, romeobabe wrote an article called "From Place to Fashion." It was a good, well-written article, but I found some problems in, not only the article, but the BBS.
I hadn't gotten around to fully reading the Times until this Monday. When I read the Times, I start with the Front Page article, the best of the best. I then move on the Interview, Help, Creative Writing and so on and so forth. When I got to the Fashion section and I read "From Place to Fashion" and the corresponding BBS topics, I was a little shocked.
Several people had suggested that people would hate you if you dressed a certain way in a certain place. For example, RoseeKat said "uh at the tables people will be like we hate you your a prep or something." I have to entirely disagree. I've been at the tables and they won't hate you if you dress like a prep or whatever you happen to look like. Believe it or not, but most of them could care less what you look like. They have friends not because they're dressed in all black, but because they're fun to talk to.
It's the same thing with real life. My friend, Katelynn, refuses point-blank to step within a five foot radius of Hot Topic. She also refuses to go to any concert where the words 'alternative,' 'rock' or 'emo' would be a perfect description of the music the sing (or in some cases, scream). I invited her to go to a Silverstein concert with me and she said no, that she was afraid little emo kids would stab her because she's blonde and wears pink. Yeah, I gave her the death stare and then asked "Are you insane?" She had nodded and I just rolled my eyes and walked away, but not before adding "They're people, Katelynn; they aren't going to kill you."
Stereotypes are everywhere; we can't escape them. But the last place we need them is on the Internet. A virtual website with made-up faces, nonetheless. That's why I was so surprised to see how some people think that other people will hate them or refuse to be their friend because of the way that they look. Really, it's a bunch of pixels.
Seriously you guys, buy what clothes you want. Don't be afraid to stand out. Don't think of what your friends will think when you're buying your clothes, or anything for that matter. That applies to both online and in real life. Do you think that people hate me because right now I'm wearing a long-sleeved blue shirt under a white one that says "Music Heals My Soul" with black skinny jeans? No, they don't. But that's okay; I don't care if people hate me, because I'll wear what I want.
Fashion is supposed to be a way of expressing who you are. Fashion should be an excuse to be who you are without people putting you in a box and labeling you with 'punk,' 'prep,' 'emo,' or 'country.' Really, it doesn't matter. It's clothes.
This is Kaila, off to work on vocabulary homework . . .
(Is it worth it? Can you even hear me? Standing with your spotlight on me . . .)
