There’s this really weird stereotype that floats around about kink people always being the kind of people who wear chains, bondage pants, the like in public. Or, they have mildly fetishistic apparel that they incorporate into their outfits. They’re typically portrayed as kind of creepy and really dark. I guess what I’m trying to say here is that stereotypical portrayals of kink people are usually that they have very clearly and very obviously ostracized themselves from general society.
And, then you’ve got the basement kinksters. Yes, I’m looking at you and that little stunt you pulled in Pulp Fiction, Tarantino. I’m talking about the idea that they all have dungeons in their basement lit by candles with chains hanging for the ceiling. When they come up from said basement dungeons, they’re key members of society and only then do they blend in. But, a-ha! They’re still portrayed as creepy.
I’d like to imagine I’m not a creepy person. I mean, my dorm room doesn’t have a trap door that leads to some ornate, medieval dungeon. And, hey, there’s nothing wrong with people who’ve got it. I just think the huge underrepresentation of people from the other end of the kink spectrum is a little bit upsetting. The BDSM community is this really diverse group of people. Yet, we’re almost always symbolized by the creeper with the basement dungeon, the gimp, or the femme fatale dominatrix.
But, hey, if the lady in the photograph wants to control me in whatever candlelit dungeonesque room she’s posing in, I’m game.