Though it makes me sad to think we needed to make “hopepunk” a word; how is having hope a “punk” thing? :|

It’s punk af. Punk is a leftist/inclusive/anti-authoritarian movement that focuses on self-reliance and direct activism to get shit done. A lot of the general punk scene has been all over the board on their optimism/pessimism about our ability to affect meaningful change. Recently, subgenres of punk have sprung up that are very much still punk, but focus on one category of change or have a more optimistic outlook. Solarpunk is a branch of the punk movement with a green focus. Hopepunk focuses on can optimistic outlook with traditional punk values. Fashion-wise and music-wise, they tend to lean towards greens/blues or brighter/lighter colors or more folk-punk or upbeat tunes.

Weird Barbie would definitely qualify as hopepunk.

Just like any other sub-genre, though, if it rubs you the wrong way, it’s generally fine to just refer to it as the parent genre. Hopepunk is still punk, so feel free to call it that if it works better for you.