Straight Edge: Hardcore Punk, Clean Living Youth, and Social Change

by Ross Haenfler

Straight edge is a clean-living youth movement that emerged from the punk rock subculture in the early 1980s. Its basic tenets promote a drug-free, tobacco-free, and sexually responsible lifestyle—tenets that, on the surface, seem counter to those typical of teenage rebellion. For many straight-edge kids, however, being clean and sober was (and still is) the ultimate expression of resistance—resistance to the consumerist and self-indulgent ethos that defines mainstream U.S. culture. In this first in-depth sociological analysis of the movement, Ross Haenfler follows the lives of dozens of straight-edge youths, showing how for these young men and women, and thousands of others worldwide, the adoption of the straight-edge doctrine as a way to better themselves evolved into a broader mission to improve the world in which they live. Straight edge used to signify a rejection of mind-altering substances and promiscuous sex, yet modern interpretations include a vegetarian (or vegan) diet and an increasing involvement in environmental and political issues. The narrative moves seamlessly between the author’s personal experiences and theoretical concerns, including how members of subcultures define “resistance,” the role of collective identity in social movements, how young men experience multiple masculinities in their quest to redefine manhood, and how young women establish their roles in subcultures. This book provides fresh perspectives on the meaning of resistance and identity in any subculture.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Sociology, Punk, Activism

264 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Larry-bob Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book by a straight-edge sociologist who studied the straight-edge scene, primarily in Denver, Colorado. I was familiar with the Dick Hebidge school of subcultural theory (aka Birmingham University's Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies.) However, Hanfler argues that the CCCS' focus on style shortchanges other forms of resistance. In the third chapter, he examines sXe as a social movement rather than as a style-based subculture. Haenfler draws parallels to the gay and lesbian movement in terms of a movement that is not only bounded by formal organizations, but is in part based on individuals' expressions and identifications.

Haenfler discusses masculinity and the role of women within straightedge. He has a feminist viewpoint and points out straight edge's need to be more inclusive to women as one of its biggest areas for improvement.

The book has good footnotes and references, but the index is somewhat lacking - while there is an entry for "homophobia, opposition to", there is no index reference to the comparisons of straight edge with the gay and lesbian movement that pepper the book. Also the referenced writers are not listed in the index, and not all bands mentioned are in the index.

I think Haenfler's approach could be useful for a sociologist studying other youth movements, particularly riot grrrl and queercore. Also, I think that someone needs to do a sociological study of drunk/gutter punks.

My copy is a third printing, so apparently it is being bought, hopefully both by "the kids" and by academics.

[Xdarcyx · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very in-depth look at social trends and group dynamics among youth movements, but particularly Straight Edge. This is an extremely nolegable presentation of research and study into the Straight Edge community and movement, its contradictions as well as the trends that differ among sex, age and race. It also examines collective identities versus personal identities and militant hardline attitudes versus much more liberal and "positive" attitudes. This book provides a very scholarly study into the Straight Edge movement and identity and compares it with other movements throughout history. its pretty wicked.

[Gabriella Mastrelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very academic look at the sXe movement and the author does a good job at attempting to define a very fluid movement. I would however, have liked to have seen the inclusion of more personal stories of straight edgers.

[John Jankowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sharing a sympathetic review, followed by my notes and citations:

http://archive.boulderweekly.com/1026...

This review originally appeared in the BOULDER WEEKLY

Generation X'd

By Vince Darcangelo

At the age of 15, Ross Haenfler had quit drinking before many of us had even started. "I came to the conclusion that the only way to really fit in with the popular crowd was to drink to excess," says Haenfler. "It just seemed like my friends, their mission was, 'How can we secure alcohol for the weekend? How can we get drunk in the most efficient way possible?' I just had doubts about that. I just started feeling that I was tired of trying to prove myself in that way."

Then in 1989, he attended his first punk rock show and was introduced to the straight edge subculture—punk rockers that abstain from alcohol, drugs, tobacco and promiscuous sex and are oftentimes vegans, usually identified by a black "X" on the top of their hands. He lost some friends in the process, who ridiculed his new lifestyle choice, but joined a new crew that would permanently alter the direction of his life.

"In my freshman year of high school, I encountered the punk rock scene and met some really cool punks and straight edge kids," says Haenfler. "They were the activists and artists, people who made it cool not to drink."

Haenfler has been straight edge for 17 years now, and throughout the '90s and early part of the '00s, while pursuing his Ph.D. in sociology at the University of Colorado at Boulder, he was a part of the Boulder/Denver hardcore scene. He wasn't just a participant, he was a researcher, and he did his doctoral dissertation on the straight edge community. After graduating, Haenfler took his dissertation a step further and on June 25 published a book, Straight Edge: Hardcore Punk, Clean-Living Youth, and Social Change, that chronicles the history of straight edge, the findings of his research and provides an insider's view of the Boulder/Denver hardcore scene.

Haenfler says he wrote the book for two reasons. The first concerned the negative connotation associated with the straight edge scene, which has acquired a reputation for violence.

"There had been a lot of negative publicity about straight edge in the late '90s," he says. "There was always a lot of bad press about kids trying to force their beliefs on others. That just wasn't the straight edge that I knew."

The second concerned the duality of the ethics of the straight edge scene and hardcore music in general, which promotes a culture of tolerance and progressive ideals, yet is dominated by hyper-aggressive males. In his research Haenfler observed that men and women experience the scene very differently and documented this in the scientific journal Men and Masculinities. It's something he refers to as the two faces of straight edge men.

"Here's these young people, most of them are men, who are giving up some of the primary signifiers of young masculinity," he says. "They're not drinking alcohol. They're not doing drugs. They're not engaging in those risk behaviors. And many of them take a stand against promiscuous sex, which basically means they're against the whole sexual conquest idea, proving masculinity by going to bed with as many women as possible.

"The other face of straight edge men is the hyper-masculine face," he continues. "It's often very physical dancing. To an outsider, it might seem very violent... It's very exclusive. You're not going to see a lot of women getting involved in that way."

Straight Edge covers everything from its core values to its role as a social movement. It also looks at life after subculture, how hardcore kids stay straight edge when they leave the scene behind.

"The whole idea of true till 21 or true till college, well, it's easy to accept that—nobody's straight edge after 25," says Haenfler. "But there are a lot of older straight edge people out there... They're just not going to shows every week. I thought that was cool that these people didn't totally abandon what the subculture meant to them; they just customized it to fit with their adult lives."

The same holds true for those still in the hardcore scene. Dan, the bassist for the Mutiny (all of whose members are straight edge), is 33 and still at it. Steve Beam, the singer from Killing Kings (two of whose members are straight edge), has been straight edge for 14 years. Steve-O, who runs sound at Sox Place, makes light of the challenge of being straight edge.

"I go to a party and people offer me a beer and I say, 'No. I'm straight edge.' People look at me like, 'What?' Then I have to give them a brief history of punk rock," he says, laughing. "They think I'm weird. It's just easier to say that I don't drink. Then they just think I'm an alcoholic."

At its core, Haenfler says that being straight edge is as much a personal as political choice.

"For me, straight edge turned out to be this very informal, loose movement of people who were changing their everyday lives, but, for many of them, with the hope of changing their culture in some small way," he says. "Not drinking. Not eating meat. Not engaging in promiscuous sex. Those are all personal choices, but those are political choices. If enough people are doing those things and doing them together, there's an opportunity to lead by example and create some kind of social change."

Straight Edge: Hardcore Punk, Clean-Living Youth, and Social Change is available from Rutgers University Press.

+ Notes and quotes from the text:

+ "The basic tenets of sXe are quite simple: members abstain, completely, from drug, alcohol, and tobacco use and usually reserve sexual activity for caring relationships, rejecting casual sex."

+Old school straightedge hardcore punk bands '81-'86: Minor Threat, Verbal Assault, SSD, 7 Seconds, Uniform Choice

++Minor Threat "Straight Edge"

I'm a person just like you
But I've got better things to do
Than sit around and fuck my head
Hang out with the living dead
Snort white shit up my nose
Pass out at the shows
I don't even think about speed
That's something I just don't need

I've gone straight edge

I'm a person just like you
But I've got better things to do
Than sit around and smoke dope
Because I know that I can cope
Laugh at the thought of eating ludes
Laugh at the thought of sniffing glue
Always gonna keep in touch
Never want to use a crutch

I've gone straight edge
I've gone straight edge
I've gone straight edge
I've gone straight edge

++Minor Threat "Out of Step"

I don't smoke
Don't Drink
Don't Fuck
At least I can fucking think

I can't keep up
Can't keep up
Can't keep up
Out of Step with the world

++ "More Than the X on Our Hands: A Worldwide Straight Edge Compilation"

+ Youth Crew Era '86-'91: Youth of Today, Bold, Gorilla Biscuits, Turning Point, Side By Side, No for an Answer, Insted

++ Youth of Today "Youth Crew"

Me you youth crew!
If the world was flat I'd grind the edge
To the positive youth my heart I pledge
X on my hand now take the oath
To positive youth to positive growth
To positive minds, to pure clean souls
These will be all my goals
Walk with me and my crew
There is so much shit we can do
And we won't stop until we're through

+ Vegetarianism gains popularity:

++ Insted "Feel Their Pain"

Hear my words--Feel their pain
Eating their flesh--you have nothing to gain
A moral opposition
To the murder of animals
It's my philosophy
To take life is criminal
The smiling clown
For the billions served
Represents to me
Bloodshed undeserved

+ Other periods include a shift toward Emo and Political Correctness, along with Victory Records/Metalcore bands and sounds.

+ Sex Reserved for Caring Relationships: "...[C]asual sex as yet another pitfall of of dominant society, their counterparts in other youth subcultures, and their more mainstream peers. It carries the possibility of sexually transmitted diseases and feelings of degradation and shame...."
++ No for an Answer "You Laugh" https://noforananswer.bandcamp.com/tr...

+ "Straight edgers claim that resisting social standards and expectations allows them to follow their own, more meaningful path in life, toward greater self-actualization."

+ Social justice causes become central for many: "Each can set limits of his or her own morality, recognizing and accepting that there is no one pure or correct lifestyle, and within that framework strive towards ahimsa: a way of life which causes the least possible amount of harm." --Trial, "Through the Darkest Days"

+ "Courage Crew": Formed in the early '90s by two brothers in rural Ohio who felt marginal and were subject to harassment by other young men and police. Co-opted. Bred thuggery.

+ "Straight edge women have to walk the fine line between being too feminine and not being feminine enough."

+ The pros and cons of the Internet. "Subcultural space" generation. Cons of downloading/burning music from the Web.

+ Merging subcultures and commercialization. Suicidegirls.com, e.g. "Commercialization and the Internet have accelerated the process of syncretism so that today it can be increasingly difficult (though not impossible) to distinguish sXers from their subcultural peers...."

+ "Changing everyday actions and living out value identities is more sustainable [than political action]." Cultural change more consequential than legal victories--e.g., civil rights movement/racism: "...[I]n focusing on political challenges and changes that ultimately impact social relations on a deeper level than laws."

[Matěj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairly concise (and academic) history of Straight edge focusing mainly on one question - is Straight edge a movement? Does it hold sway outside your own personal beliefs? Does it have the potential to bring about (a degree of) change in society? The short answer is... kinda.

What I liked most was the inclusion of the people who have left the "scene" and this way of living in general - usually we don't hear about these "sellouts" (that should be at least italicised in the text), so it was informative to hear their story.

Some of the language is dated, but it is not that serious of a flaw.

[Vince Darcangelo · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://archive.boulderweekly.com/1026...

This review originally appeared in the BOULDER WEEKLY

Generation X'd

By Vince Darcangelo

At the age of 15, Ross Haenfler had quit drinking before many of us had even started. "I came to the conclusion that the only way to really fit in with the popular crowd was to drink to excess," says Haenfler. "It just seemed like my friends, their mission was, 'How can we secure alcohol for the weekend? How can we get drunk in the most efficient way possible?' I just had doubts about that. I just started feeling that I was tired of trying to prove myself in that way."

Then in 1989, he attended his first punk rock show and was introduced to the straight edge subculture—punk rockers that abstain from alcohol, drugs, tobacco and promiscuous sex and are oftentimes vegans, usually identified by a black "X" on the top of their hands. He lost some friends in the process, who ridiculed his new lifestyle choice, but joined a new crew that would permanently alter the direction of his life.

"In my freshman year of high school, I encountered the punk rock scene and met some really cool punks and straight edge kids," says Haenfler. "They were the activists and artists, people who made it cool not to drink."

Haenfler has been straight edge for 17 years now, and throughout the '90s and early part of the '00s, while pursuing his Ph.D. in sociology at the University of Colorado at Boulder, he was a part of the Boulder/Denver hardcore scene. He wasn't just a participant, he was a researcher, and he did his doctoral dissertation on the straight edge community. After graduating, Haenfler took his dissertation a step further and on June 25 published a book, Straight Edge: Hardcore Punk, Clean-Living Youth, and Social Change, that chronicles the history of straight edge, the findings of his research and provides an insider's view of the Boulder/Denver hardcore scene.

Haenfler says he wrote the book for two reasons. The first concerned the negative connotation associated with the straight edge scene, which has acquired a reputation for violence.

"There had been a lot of negative publicity about straight edge in the late '90s," he says. "There was always a lot of bad press about kids trying to force their beliefs on others. That just wasn't the straight edge that I knew."

The second concerned the duality of the ethics of the straight edge scene and hardcore music in general, which promotes a culture of tolerance and progressive ideals, yet is dominated by hyper-aggressive males. In his research Haenfler observed that men and women experience the scene very differently and documented this in the scientific journal Men and Masculinities. It's something he refers to as the two faces of straight edge men.

"Here's these young people, most of them are men, who are giving up some of the primary signifiers of young masculinity," he says. "They're not drinking alcohol. They're not doing drugs. They're not engaging in those risk behaviors. And many of them take a stand against promiscuous sex, which basically means they're against the whole sexual conquest idea, proving masculinity by going to bed with as many women as possible.

"The other face of straight edge men is the hyper-masculine face," he continues. "It's often very physical dancing. To an outsider, it might seem very violent... It's very exclusive. You're not going to see a lot of women getting involved in that way."

Straight Edge covers everything from its core values to its role as a social movement. It also looks at life after subculture, how hardcore kids stay straight edge when they leave the scene behind.

"The whole idea of true till 21 or true till college, well, it's easy to accept that—nobody's straight edge after 25," says Haenfler. "But there are a lot of older straight edge people out there... They're just not going to shows every week. I thought that was cool that these people didn't totally abandon what the subculture meant to them; they just customized it to fit with their adult lives."

The same holds true for those still in the hardcore scene. Dan, the bassist for the Mutiny (all of whose members are straight edge), is 33 and still at it. Steve Beam, the singer from Killing Kings (two of whose members are straight edge), has been straight edge for 14 years. Steve-O, who runs sound at Sox Place, makes light of the challenge of being straight edge.

"I go to a party and people offer me a beer and I say, 'No. I'm straight edge.' People look at me like, 'What?' Then I have to give them a brief history of punk rock," he says, laughing. "They think I'm weird. It's just easier to say that I don't drink. Then they just think I'm an alcoholic."

At its core, Haenfler says that being straight edge is as much a personal as political choice.

"For me, straight edge turned out to be this very informal, loose movement of people who were changing their everyday lives, but, for many of them, with the hope of changing their culture in some small way," he says. "Not drinking. Not eating meat. Not engaging in promiscuous sex. Those are all personal choices, but those are political choices. If enough people are doing those things and doing them together, there's an opportunity to lead by example and create some kind of social change."

Straight Edge: Hardcore Punk, Clean-Living Youth, and Social Change is available from Rutgers University Press.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prinzipiell ein gutes Buch und von allen Universitätsverlagsbüchern definitiv das lohnenswertes zu dem Thema. Die Conclusion ist ein wenig zäh aber ansonsten werden gewisse Themen, wie toxische Männlichkeit und die Rolle der Frauen in der Szene beleuchtet. Auch geht es um das Leben in der Szene, wenn das Alter von 30 erreicht wird und wie die Zukunft für Straight Edge aussehen könnte. Wer das Thema mag, kann zugreifen aber wer was leichtes dazu lesen will, nimmt das Rettmann-Buch.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read that gave a name to what I proclaimed in high school and values of clean living and positivity by which I sill live.

[Liv Degendorfer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative for those who are unfamiliar with the subculture. I kinda wanted more from it but I understand what it is trying to accomplish

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I couldn't muster up the energy to finish reading this, actually -- probably because I never felt affinity for Straight Edge as a movement or a genre. In my formative years of punkness the straight edge bands Minor Threat, 7Seconds, and SSD were some of the bands I loved the most, and I got a great amount of inspiration from these punks who, like myself, eschewed drinking, drugs and smoking, not only as a health choice but as a lifestyle. Still, I never considered myself Straight Edge with a capital S and E because it seemed like a delineation that was pointless, divisive, egocentric, prejudiced and ultimately destructive. Pacifism and inclusiveness were values I gained in part through punk, as much as the clear-thinking honesty I thought straight edge was supposed to encompass. But the Straight Edge movement of the late '80s began to embrace so much that I hated about mainstream society -- a male-centric jock ethos, intolerance, religion, violence, absolutism, and petty jealousy -- the very things that led me, from the beginning, to punk as a place of escape, inspiration and shelter (no pun intended).

Ross Haenfler is a self-described feminist who grew up in the Straight Edge movement, but instead of becoming disillusioned or dismissive as I did, he took its positive lessons with him as he moved on into academia. Thus he is able in "Straight Edge: Clean-Living Youth, Hardcore Punk, And Social Change" to describe what sXe is all about in a very scholarly way while using the language and perspective of an insider. He treats the subject with a great amount of respect, but does not gloss over or seek to justify its negative aspects.

I learned a good deal from this book about the world of Straight Edge that evolved after I blew it off: Krishna-core, metal-core, etc. But has my overall opinion of Straight Edge changed? Well, probably a little. At least I now know what some of my sXe friends are referring to when talking about this-or-that subgenre. And through Haenfler's story of his own experience in the movement I can see how otherwise perfectly intelligent and conscientious people can get involved in a movement that I've viewed as simplistic, sexist, and self-righteous. So, yes, this book (well, as much as I was able to read of it) was an eye-opener, and I would recommend it as the most well written piece on the subject that I have yet to encounter.

Thanks to xYosefx for loaning this to me -- and for doing even more than this book did to redeem Straight Edge in my eyes (okay, that pun was intended).

[rully · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sebagai seseorang yang terlibat dalam scene straight edge generasi awal, Ross telah menyaksikan banyak perubahan dalam scene ini. Banyak hal yang ia lihat dan alami secara pribadi dituliskan dalam buku ini, mulai dari peristiwa mencuri minuman pada masa sekolah di Junior High school hingga akhirnya menemukan "kesejatian" saat meyaksikan show hardcore straightedge pertamanya pada masa senior high, hingga keterlibatan dirinya sebagai aktivis kampus yang membawanya bertemu dengan istrinya sekarang, hingga penelitian yang ia lakukan dengan metode observasi langsung pada scene straight edge Denver.

Sebagai lulusan sosiologi (bahkan konon sekarang ia telah menjadi asisten profesor) Ross juga melihat straight edge sebagai fenomena sosial, sebagai sebuah gerakan yang muncul oleh kaum muda sebgai bentuk pemberontakan terhadap berbagai peristiwa sosial. Ross melihat straight edge sebagai bentuk murni dari gerakan punk/hardcore, sebuah bentuk pemberontakan terhadap punk itu sendiri, bayangkan seorang straigh edger mampu berpantang dari obat - obatan terlarang, minuman beralkohol bahkan sex bebas (sebagian malah menjadi vegetarian bahkan vegan) lalu aktif secara politik dan tetap "gahar" berpogo di moshpit. para penganut (entah bahasanya tepat atau tidak) straight edge mampu mentransformasikan jargon "for the better world" menjadi tidak sekedar slogan, namun aksi nyata dengan bertindak positif namun tetap vokal dalam menyuarakan perubahan sosial.

[Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was well written with a lot of insight into the straight edge scene. I feel that lifetime scene members as well as those who have never heard of the scene at all. The author is a straight-edger that was involved in the Denver scene and spent quite a few years interviewing and researching the scene and it's members. He touches on many important subjects; such as commercialization of subculture, hyper-masculinity, women in the scene and the many contradictions within the scene. He does a good job at showing the positive aspects of the culture as well and the negative, such as the militant SxEers. He does talk about the music and various bands, but not as much as some would like. This isn't the book to read if you're looking for lots of band and music information, though many bands are mentioned. Overall I found this book to be very informative with a lot of other sociological studies and theories sited and discussed. People who are into subcultural studies should find this a pretty good read.

[J.J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was some interesting information about the hardcore scene in the early '80's and the initial coining of the term 'straight edge' by Ian Mackeye. I lost interest after the interviews of different edge kids though, confirming my unabashed hatred for almost every other straight-edger that I have come into contact with. A group of close-minded morons that have to set up ridiculous lists of constraints in order to make their social click more exclusive. The term and state of mind goes no farther than Mackeye's initial meaning: I'm straight, therefore I have the edge over someone that is inebriated. I had to shelve the book when quotes like "You can never claim straight edge again once you break from it," began to pop up. It is those type of people that have made the term straight-edge synonomous with idiotic douchebag. I think I will keep listening to Eyehategod and Neurosis while you fucks can cream your jeans over chugging breakdowns.

[Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone who’s ever tried to explain some subcultural shit to someone who’s well-adjusted and wise enough not to be involved in subcultural shit can understand the enormous difficulty that Haenfler faced in writing this book. If he were just an academic, he could just go full cornball. But Haenfler is a real-life edgeman so he’s got skin in this game. I think he threads the needle pretty well in writing a book that is mostly legible to outsiders while being mostly not embarrassing to insiders.

Also he agreed to an interview for the first issue of my straight edge zine in ‘09 so that’s pretty cool.

FFO: stage dives, brotherhood, PMA, being a person just like you, having better things to do.

[Andrew Bellemer · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's cool to see a scholarly work about straightedge written by someone who has been intimately associate with the scene. Unfortunately, I didn't find that the auto-ethnography approach provided much compelling insight. At times, the author comes across as an apologist for some of the contradictions and problems inherent in the scene, without providing enough critique and/or analysis of those problems.

[Frankie OK · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, an interesting, educational, and all around entertaining book about a relevant movement in today's society. I picked it up at last years American Sociological Association conference and read it immediately afterwards. Haenfler delivers an honest, true presentation of both yesterday's and today's hardcore/straigh edge scenes. I loved it.

[Dan Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Introspection not ranking highest on my list of activities, this book really helped me realize the forces that have shaped my life and my values. If you don't know anything about straightedge, this book would probably be not so good (unless you're into sociology or something). But me being Straight Edge, this book speaks directly to my life. if you're not now you never were and all that.

[sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written by a straight-edger who was too involved in the politics of the scene to present an un-biased viewpoint. He couldn't seem to stop telling me about cat fights he broke up at shows. I now dislike straight edge kids more than ever.

[Eric · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book is terrible to the point of unreadability. I stubbornly trudged through every terrible page of Evasion and I couldn't get past page 20 of this.

[Emil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading just because it is the only scholarly sociological study involving punk/hc written by a participant. It's a quick read too.

[Niels Lodewijk]

Interesting academic book about the straight edge hardcore scene. I liked reading some research of a scene I was part of sometime.

[D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lolz... yeah i once was, and it was a good book...

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book.