It is over 100 degrees in Albuquerque Sept. 5. The people lined up on the curb fan themselves to try to beat the heat pounding down on them. The shade is a welcome retreat for most of them, and they share food and stories of exploits. Members of the Dir en Grey New Mexico street team make the rounds, handing out pins, telling stories of concerts they have attended and gushing about the times they have met members of the band.

This sounds like a normal scene before a concert, right? Well, apparently that is wrong, because the people waiting on the curb are Gothed out, wearing lace and leather and high-heeled boots. When people would pass by us, they would point, laugh, or make a snarky comment.

Why weren’t we treated in the same manner as people at a pop concert? Because people judge by appearances. Even if that man wearing high-heeled boots and a lacy coat is just as nice, or nicer than a teenage girl at a Miley Cyrus concert, he is treated as a lesser being.

The people sitting around us on that insanely hot curb offered us almost everything they had, even stories about the Dir en Grey and Apocalyptica concerts they had been to before. They offered us sushi, soba, udon and Dr. Pepper, simply because we were sitting there with them.

And yet, people driving by stared or pointed. Some even went so far as to outright insult us or laugh at us or throw things simply because of how we looked. But these strong, kind people didn’t let it get to them. They ignored the comments, dodged the things thrown at them, and rarely commented on the insults being thrown their way. Never before have I met such kind, selfless, interesting people.

So the next time you see Goths sitting out in the sun waiting for a concert, do the right thing. Think of them as human beings and show them the same respect you would show to any other person.