The Painted

The Painted (also called Paint-punks, Colored Stumps, and Brights) is a popular counter-culture and aesthetic founded upon the efforts of demihumans and other near-humans created by the College of Biogenesis after the series of conflicts known as the Demihuman Rebellions. The goal of the movement is to be seen as people who’s lives are of equal value to that of the humans that they once served.
The Look: Demihumans were created by the College of Biogenesis to have milk-white skin, white hair, and silver eyes so that, when adorned in their gray robes, they would not draw attention to themselves. They would be the perfect servants. Uninteresting to look at while still clearly visible even in low-light conditions so they could always be quickly located and called upon. Demihumans also possess minimal sexual dimorphism beyond their voices and have so little facial variance as to be difficult to distinguish from one another at a glance.
In rejection of everything the mages tried to make of them The Painted dye their hair and paint their nails bright, eye catching colors, wear jarringly contrasting colors in their outfits, and sometimes even wear strangely colored contacts if they cannot afford to have their eyes magically changed to be a new color. Their milk-white skin is then used as the perfect canvas for all manner of body paints and tattoos, transforming their pale, colorless forms into bright expressions of their individuality. Many piercings and jewelry is also common among those who can afford it.
While initially a demihuman movement the aesthetic of The Painted has caught on among the youth of humanity as well. Many teenagers and young adults fashion themselves similarly with bright, garish colors that do not have to compliment one another. While some do this as a state of fashion many profess to wear the style in support of the demihumans and their rights as people.
The Cause: The primary goal of The Painted is to showcase the individuality that the College of Biogenesis attempted to deny them. It is a struggle for personal identity as well as a struggle for a cultural identity for their kind. One that can stand alongside the wide range of human cultures as one equally as colorful as any other.
For others it is a fight for equality. A battle against phrases like “half the pay for half the man” that demand lesser pay for demihumans for the same job based on their lack of height and physical shortcomings compared to healthy human workers. Or for better living conditions as many demihumans are forced to live communally in old, worn down buildings humans have no interest in refurbishing. Or even for the right of representation, as many countries the world over still have yet to give demihumans the same rights humans of their nation have when it comes to roles in the government.
Regardless of what colors they fly or the creeds they espouse, all The Painted want is to be seen. Seen not as the servants they were created to be but as the people they are.