Rolling Stone magazine have used one of my photographs to accompany a small piece on the round up and harassment of Emos, a stereotyped melancholic sub-culture associated especially with teenagers, in Yerevan, the Armenian capital. Even though their number might be large, the authorities are reportedly taken the craze seriously. Indeed, many are saying, perhaps too seriously...

Authorities in the Armenian capital of Yerevan are reportedly putting pressure on young fans of the punk subculture emo, claiming that the music undermines social stability and that its emotionally wrenching content is causing teenagers to become suicidal.

[...]

"I do not like emos, in fact. I absolutely don't like them. I do not understand or accept them," Armenian Chief of Police Alik Sargsian said in an interview with a local newspaper earlier this month, as quoted by EurasiaNet. He also called them "dangerous" and said that they could "distort our gene pool."

Another young emo said, "No one is forcing us; the thing is that our members are emotional and there have been cases when they attempted suicide. However, it's not like it is a mass phenomenon."

The article can be read online here, while more photographs from the Fête de la Musique event where the photograph was taken are available here. Meanwhile, I'm always looking for more freelance and commissioned work in Armenia, Georgia and the Caucasus in general so contact me through my web site or at onewmphoto[at]gmail.com.