What's up with emo kids these days?

Everywhere you turn, they're in the news:

Emo Kids: We're Not Suicidal, Just Have Questionable Taste in Music
Emo Kids are Under Attack: Are They Scapegoats or Sinners?
The Big Hurt: Pied-pipers lead innocent teens to emo cult Valhalla

.....and my personal favorite:

Mexico Declares War on Emo

My question is: since when did being "emo" become such a big deal? Why are people hating on emo kids? And finally: when did emo become suicidal?

I guess a lot has changed since I was a kid. I still remember this article from Seventeen magazine when I was probably about 15:

(click to enlarge)

Maybe I was wrong, but at that point, emo seemed, well, cool. My friends and I bought converse sneakers and Buddy Holly glasses and messenger bags not because we were trying to access our deepest emotions (we were in the drama club, so we already did this) but because we thought they looked neat. Our music of choice (Saves the Day, the Get-Up Kids, the Starting Line, Weezer) was mostly poppy and fun, with poetic lyrics that we could write in white out on our text book covers and upbeat melodies that sounded best blasted from the stereos of our parents' vans. There was certainly some emotion involved- I have vivid memories of untouchable exuberance skipping down the boardwalk at Seaside Heights after senior year prom, singing All American Rejects with my buddies - but mostly, we gravitated towards emo because it was a welcome change from all the crap on MTV at the time (Britney Spears, N Sync, Limp Bizkit, Korn) and was ridiculously listenable in comparison.

Scarier than emo: Korn

We were the mix-tape generation, the staying-out-late-hanging-out-at-diners generation, the anti-Dave Matthews, anti-sport, straight-edge generation, and emo was our music of choice. We are all very innocent back then, and the music seemed innocent too. So between now and then...what happened?

Me, age 18, looking angst-y

Really, I'm not sure. And rather than try to investigate, I decided to go straight the source: my 15-year-old brother.

Now Tim is a hockey player and a lifeguard, and probably the farthest thing from an emo kid (although he does have his fair share of adolescent angst) but as a high school freshman, he is also keenly aware of stereotypes and labels.

Our conversation went something like this:

Kate: What does emo stand for?
Tim: I think it stands for "emotional" or something, but really it seems like it means "I'm depressed, and I'm suicidal"
Kate: Are all emo kids cutters?
Tim: Probably not really, but there is an association between emo kids and cutters
Kate: Do you think that kids that are already depressed find emo, or does emo make kids depressed?
Tim: I think emo makes kids depressed. I mean, most of the emo people seem normal until they start listening to the music.
Kate: Do you think it's just because they like the image?
Tim: Oh yeah definitely, for a lot of kids they just like the image.
Kate: Are all emo guys gay?
Tim: I'd say most of them are probably gay.

"I'd say most of them are probably gay"

Kate: What exactly is emo these days?
Tim: It seems like now emo is really more Screamo. It's generic music, none of the bands have any talent, and they just complain about how they hate life.
Kate: What is one of the more popular emo bands these days?
Tim: Maybe...Under Oath
Kate: I've never heard of them.
Tim: They're not very good.

--

Clearly Tim is not the genre's biggest endorser, but he also claims that he wouldn't not be friends with someone just because they're emo. (A look at his Myspace page, which is filled with girls with black eyeliner, confirms this.)

So what's up with emo these days?

I'll leave you with these tidbits from the WikiHow Page on "How to Be Emo":

• Consider taking up an instrument such as the bass, guitar, drums or even the violin. If you invest enough time into it, the violin can sound incredibly emo.
  
• Try writing poetry and turning it into songs. It will help your mind, body, and spirit metamorph into being a true emo.

and finally:

• Don't be emo just because its "in" right now. Most emos deny they're emo at all! You have to feel the groove of being emo. Don't be a poser!
• Don't run around saying "I'm Emo!" If you are emo, it will show, you don't need to announce it.
  

Advice for us all to live by.