Every time I see an obviously-queer middle schooler wearing a walmart Nirvana shirt try and discreetly stare at me, i remember why I dress like this. Every time I see some 7th grader with a pixie cut and a 'how to pass pre-t trans men' outfit trying to glance at me without seeming too obvious, or every time some 9th grader sees me in goodwill looking through the men's black T shirts for band tees, with a leather jacket or a pair of ripped jeans over my arm, and they come up and say they like my outfit. Every time I see a kid I could have easily been, who will easily grow up to be me.
It's not just for me. It's showing people who I used to be so similar to, that they can be themselves too. The same way 17 year olds showed me when I was 14, acting the same way they act, trying to be slick about watching what the cool goth girl in the thrift store was getting, so I could dress just like her when I grew up.
I got there. Now it's my turn to turn around and help others get here.
I wear a dog collar to school. Yes, every day. Yes, it's obviously a DOG collar, it has a tag and spikes. Do I get stares? Yeah. People don't really say anything to me about it, and if they do, they're- like- freshmen. i don't care about the opinions of 12-14 year old boys. the only thing i really do get for my collar is people either being passive-aggressive (two can play at that game), or i get people complimenting me on it. nobody has ever threatened me over it.
I don't wear a tail to school. i used to. i've had people take pictures of me, threaten to jump me, yell slurs at me, follow me home... so i stopped.
I didn't stop wearing a tail because I'm ashamed of who I am. i stopped wearing a tail to protect myself and people around me, my FRIENDS. because no amount of showing off and being proud is worth getting hurt over, or getting other people hurt over.
be open when it's safe to be open. your personal expression is not worth putting yourself into danger. You can't be out and proud if you're dead.
Edit: hey! A lot of people like this post! So I wanted to add in where I coined the term Dogpunk
Edit 2: I have seen a lot of people suggest this so I'll put it here: DO NOT!!! PUT NEEDLES IN YOUR TAIL!!!!!!! Unless you want them lodged into your legs when you sit down!
i attach my tails to stretchy/coil hair ties so if it gets pulled, it won't snap, the tie will just stretch. sometimes the tie itself will get too stretched out, but it's easy enough to replace. make sure it's stretchy enough that it won't go slack and break your tail anyway
spiked collars. so serious. if people try and grab your neck/collar they'll get poked. Breakaway collars might not be such a bad idea either, but admittedly i hate how they look so i usually just go with a buckle lol
when i was younger and just getting into the punk scene (maybe 12 or 13) i got a pair of combat boots and had my dad (also a punk) to put holes in the toe and superglue in 4 heavy duty spikes on each boot. then i painted them to look like dog toe boots, the kind that you see on pinterest. They were against my school dress code, but i wore them on walks through my redneck ass town to keep myself safe, and the spikes looked like claws. super cool imo way to go 12 year old me
if you go masking, doing quads, or even gearing in public, please for the love of fuck don't go into sketchy areas alone, and make sure at least one of your friends knows if you're going out. plus faking a phone call has saved my life before
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if you aren't safe, don't wear it/do it. i promise being safe but looking like a 'normie' is better than getting your ass kicked because you're wearing a tail
find friends! seriously, there are probably others in your area. just sitting in my summer school class, i met a cat therian who was doing over her math class who sat with me at lunch. if you're wearing stuff, people will strike up a conversation. don't be afraid to chat with people! the buddy system has also saved my life!
Me when i point out blatant racism from blatantly racist people, and my 'friends' get mad because they really like their work so they CANT be racist (Johnny Depp and Tim Burton) and proceed to turn everybody against me for some reason???
bruv you have never met them and will never meet them, why are you so pent up lol. i feel like their racism is the bigger problem here than me not approving of it
"The receptionist in Beetlejuice was black!" No she wasnt. She was green. Her actress is latina. Literally where in your ass did you pull this from?
"Yeah well! well! what about that siren in Wednesday!" You mean the only black character in that show who was also a villain?
"The football players in Beetlejuice!" Stereotypes
"Okay well! well Oogie Boogie!" Oogie Boogie is a type of monster that is literally named after a SLUR for Black people, is the ONLY person in that whole movie voiced by a black person, and looks like he's wearing a fucking KKK hat.
be so fucking for real right now. cuts up their jeans to make patches against racism :]
YOU WANT TO IGNORE ME SO BAD!!!!!! YOU WANT TO NOT DISTRACT ME SO BAD!!!!!!! YOU WANT TO NOT PET ME SO BAD!!!!!!!! YOU ARE SO SCARED OF ME!!!!!!!!! YOU WANT SO BADLY TO STAY OFF MY OWNER'S PROPERTY!!!!!!!! YOU WANT TO BEWARE OF DOG SO BAD!!!!!!!!!
chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail chases my tail
