Teen Gothic

i've noticed on social media that the comment section on 90% of a goth-related post is just people arguing between about what is goth and what isnt, the difference between goth and gothic, what music is goth and what isnt, etc. dont get me wrong, i believe that it is very important for people to help educate others in a respectful way. but i feel like a lot of the times the way its done is either mean or straight up spreading misinformation.

i just watched a makeup transition video of someone most-likely outside of the subculture but i have no way to know. she did a "goth look" and it definitely wasnt trad goth but it looked very romantic goth. and almost every single comment was people correcting her – in a mean or passive-aggressive way. some were super condescending, explaining the difference between "goth" and "gothic" and others were saying stuff along the lines of "you arent goth do some research" but really, at the end of the day, does it matter? yes and no. most people outside of the community dont know the difference between certain words or phrases within the community, and its great to help inform others who dont know. but the way its done is just so… mean :/

also someone commented (and i quote) "you cant just do goth makeup. if its a one off thing, sure!". this was so weird to me because who is going to stop her? quite literally lol. like is someone gonna go up to someone and say "hey you have to take off that makeup look because you dont listen to the music"

i hope one day we all come together and fully respect others, and embrace this subculture as one. informing others who are curious, and not gatekeeping a beautiful thing. for right now i think im going to step away from the online goth community – and local community and embrace the subculture by myself for awhile.

what are people's thoughts? am i overreacting?