Emo rescue.

• Author: Riggs, Mike
• Position: Artifact - Brief article

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EMO--A MUSICAL subculture defined by melodramatic, sometimes whiny lyrics delivered over distorted guitars--faces a global assault. In Russia the Duma is considering a law to ban emo dress in government buildings. In the U.K. and New Zealand, tabloids blame emo music for teen suicides.And in Mexico, mopey and androgynous emos have been forced to defend themselves against physical attacks. Punks, skaters, skinheads, goths, and the other subcultures that comprise Mexico's tribus urbanas (urban tribes) rioted against the emo kids in March.

The French sociologist Michel Maffesoli created the concept of urban tribes in 1985 to classify metropolitan youths who share a dress code, behavior, and political philosophy. Mexican scholars adopted Maffesoli's criteria as American styles filtered across the border. But...