The "g" word

Diaz, for one, has to laugh at the cultural subjectivity of fearing young minorities because of the way they dress--especially considering that every Friday and Saturday night Deep Ellum features no shortage of underage white kids on foot with shaved heads or multi-colored hair, and a ring or stud through every soft spot on their bodies. These young stragglers inspire an emotion in many Hispanics, he says, but it's not fear.

"A lot of us laugh at those kids," he says. "We see this skinny white guy with chains and a shaved head and studs through his tongue, and we think, 'Man, how do you expect to get a girlfriend?' Or you see white girls with earrings through their noses, and you wonder, 'How do you manage to blow your nose when you get a cold?'