|
There were sketches found in her locker, and notes scrawled in
binders. They were disturbing thoughts and images, far beyond those of typical
moody teenage musings. She also kept a blog, as many young people do nowadays.
She posted what was on her mind: the music she liked, the parents she says she
hated, the boyfriend she loved and plans about how her family would meet their
end.
She is 12 years old. Her screen name is “Runaway Devil.”
Her boyfriend is 23. His screen name is “Souleater”.
Together
they carried on a relationship, despite the protestations of her parents.
Together, they are accused of brutally murdering her mother, father, and baby
brother.
And together, they claimed that Goth made them do it.
This
is a sad but true story playing out in Medicine Hat, Alberta. It was an
unspeakable crime that shocked the entire country. The young girl’s whole
family was viciously stabbed to death in April 2006. The girl, now 13, was
convicted on three counts of first degree murder. Her boyfriend will be tried
in the coming months.
Something so appalling evokes the natural human
reaction to ask why did this happen? In our search for answers, we accept
anything that is offered, no matter how weak or illogical. A possible
explanation was found on the internet. Shortly after the couple was arrested,
police found their blogs on VampireFreaks.com. The two claimed they were
werewolves, spoke of living forever, and feeling the hunger for blood.
Of
course. Now we understand why this happened. They were Goth. That explains the
murders.
As someone who works in the news industry, I flinched when I
heard that they considered themselves Goth. I knew that newsrooms everywhere
would be abuzz, churning out stories on how bad it is to be Goth, just as they
did with Columbine and the Dawson College shooting.
In my office, I
found myself defending the subculture. It’s not the first time I have done
it, and I am quite happy to play the role of educator; anything to help dispel
the myths perpetuated by ignorance. But as the story played out, I found it
increasingly difficult and frustrating to explain that Goth did not make these
kids do anything. As I tried valiantly to defend the aesthetic I love, a
co-worker proved the exact point I was trying to make about misconceptions
within the community by telling me: “You aren’t really Goth. You look
nice, not freaky with big dog collars and white makeup.” I used her
response to point out that Goth isn’t freaky with white make-up, it’s
not just about wearing black. Her perspective showed the lack of understanding
so many people have.
The public blaming Goth for the murders made me stop
and ask, WHY do people do this, and why do they equate Goth with evil?
I will refer again to Columbine and Dawson College. In both instances, the men
involved wore black trench coats, and they were dubbed Goth. As far as I could
glean from all information the information that was made available, they were
not. I, and anyone else in the scene will point out, wearing black does not a
Goth make.
There is no need for me to explain to you, dear readers,
what Goth is. You know that already. But why does the public see us as violent?
Perhaps it’s our love of darker things. We’re not afraid of death. We
like to tragic romance of Lord Byron, the haunting imagery of Edgar Allan Poe,
the fright of a vampire movie. Do we act these things out? No. I have never
plotted to kill my parents, or anyone else for that matter. Neither have my
friends. People in the Goth community are some of the most gentle people
I’ve met. Never once have I felt like I was in physical danger at a party
or club where we congregate. As proof of our docile nature, let us consider
this: think of all the violence, the stabbings, the shootings (many of them
deadly) that have occurred at bars in Toronto that do NOT cater to the Goth
community? Nothing deadly or overtly violent has occurred at Savage, Sanctuary,
Velvet, Neutral, or any other Goth bar I have frequented. So who is the violent
group now? But I don’t go around saying that everyone that attends a club
on Richmond street is a vicious brute, or that every person that likes rap
music is a gangster. It is not the things that you like that make you evil.
It’s the person you are.
Consider this: You could be a devout
Christian that refrains from drugs and alcohol and the temptations of the flesh
(except for the purposes of procreation) and still drown all five of your
children, one by one, in a bathtub. I speak of Andrea Yates, who is currently
serving life in prison for murdering her children. When police were
investigating the crime, the public began to speculate that it was the doctrine
of her uber-Christian husband that led her to commit the crime. That’s
exactly the same as the public saying that Goth made someone commit a violent
act. In the case of Andrea Yates, it was determined that she suffered from a
severe form of post-partum depression.
It all boils down to
stereotypes. Unfortunately we will never get the whole planet to understand
what we’re about. It is an exercise in futility. The murders in Medicine
Hat were committed by a girl who is very troubled. She will undergo intense
therapy and rehabilitation while she serves her sentence. Eventually, people
will realize, that Goth had nothing to do with the murders. Rather it was her
fragile mental state. When her boyfriend goes on trial in the fall, this whole
issue will be brought up again. Co-workers will ask that question, did Goth
make him do it? And I will turn around and say, “Of course it did. I plan
to kill my parents too. And suck the blood out of their lifeless bodies,
because I am a vampire. And a werewolf. Oh and I worship Satan. And I have a
pentacle burned into my flesh.” Right.
So we’re back to
where we started- stereotypes and an unwillingness to learn about something we
know nothing about.
In the meantime, I will leave the misinformed with this
message: For all those who have called me Creepella, Morticia, freak, or who
have admonished my dark wardrobe or cross on my shoulder, watch what you say. I
just might come after you. I am Goth after all.
posted Sept 2007
by dem
|
