What Lavoce Does
Lavoce aims to improve Goths’ financial futures and banish shame. Lavoce says that you are more than a novelty and more than a niche vendor, or whatever it is you do to make a living. You are who you believe yourself to be, and you are whatever you were born to be. Being Goth is like breathing. One does not just stop breathing because someone is told to. Eventually one has to choose whether to live or die.As Thomas Paine said, “Give me freedom or give me death.” Unfortunately, some chose to die, and that is a reality that Lavoce will change.
Lavoce says that you don’t need to develop a drinking habit to be among like-minded dark romantics. I do not see why Goths need to put themselves into a potentially triggering situation just to be themselves. It’s almost as if the powers that be want to condition us like Pavlovian dogs to feel bad about our nature and to make us want to be something other than ourselves. It is almost like having to pay for food in order to perform a bodily function, or paying a toll to drive from point A to B, or purchasing air rights. Goths have the right to be with like-minded people without spending money on potentially debilitating habits.
I have recently met someone with whom I hope to collaborate in terms of providing the Goth scene with options that do not involve drinking and would be of special interest to oldbies. Stay tuned.
How You Can Support Lavoce’s Cause
You remember “Drain the Swamp”? How could you not? That is a result of how DC was insulated from what was going on with the rest of the country, and the entire world, during The Great Recession and beyond. Denver is the same way with their Goth scene. Even though I love its thriving community, which stands in sharp contrast to DC’s, one just cannot ignore the ignorance regarding the rest of America, and again, the world. Some Goths there, especially those native to Colorado make taking the Goth scene for granted an art. They believe that every state has a Goth scene. Smh (shaking my head).
Goth nights at bars and clubs are great for fostering a sense of not being alone, and there is certainly a place for that, but they are not so great with changing the mindset people have toward Goths. Some Denver Goths complain about normies accidentally walking into a Goth night at a bar out of curiosity, but just as the GLBT community needs allies (which could be why Denver has the largest pride fest), so do Goths. (And plus, some perceived normies are really just corporate Goths, just as some allies are curious or questioning.)
So, I took action and introduced my normie friend to the Goth scene and a few people in the scene to reduce ignorance and increase awareness. (I tend to dislike the word “tolerance” as it breeds a continued level of close-mindedness.) You remember “Bring Your Child to Work Day”? We should really consider “Bring a Friend to Goth Scene Day”. The way to change the world is not to shelter oneself with people and news that only reaffirms our own confirmation bias (sorry, got back into politics), but to reach out to the world around us to increase awareness. It is only through increased awareness that we can also increase safety (or perceived safety, which can sometimes be just as important for preventing suicide). Even though Denver has more numbers to effect change, everyone has the ability to do what they can to make the world a better place for Goths. Remember that people’s lives are at stake.
Lavoce: We Are People Too, Inc. 