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Lawmakers Are Telling People to Pull Up Their Pants
Saggy pants may be a fashion trend, but lawmakers and school officials around the U.S. say the fad is indecent and want it banned.
30-Second Summary
The Tupelo Public School District in Mississippi is making a fashion statement for its students: stop wearing baggy pants.
The clothing presents a safety issue, said Superintendent Randy McCoy, because it hinders movement and could allow for the “concealment of items” that violate school rules.
One school principal in the district said that while the clothes may be popular, “you have to have some rules and guidelines.”
The saggy pants issue is becoming more widespread across the country, as cities and states say some of today’s fashion choices bring matters of decency into question.
“The shorts are getting shorter, the tops are getting smaller, the cleavage is getting larger,” said a Louisiana senator who sponsored “fashion crime legislation” in the state. “When are we going to say, ‘Enough is enough?’”
One Florida town has successfully instituted a law against baggy pants, complete with fines against violators of the new rule. “It’s not our intent to get rich off of fines or lock people up in jail,” said the city mayor who supported the law. “It’s about a simple message: pull up your pants.”
While the fashion police may be successful in controlling those who wear baggy pants in some cities and schools, they may have a problem elsewhere. Some people argue that wearing your clothes the way you’d like is a right of self-expression protected by the First Amendment.
One man who said he likes wearing baggy pants didn’t see why the issue mattered to anyone. “Why should someone care how you wear your pants,” he asked. He said he’d just tell people “to mind their business and stop looking at my underwear.”
The clothing presents a safety issue, said Superintendent Randy McCoy, because it hinders movement and could allow for the “concealment of items” that violate school rules.
One school principal in the district said that while the clothes may be popular, “you have to have some rules and guidelines.”
The saggy pants issue is becoming more widespread across the country, as cities and states say some of today’s fashion choices bring matters of decency into question.
“The shorts are getting shorter, the tops are getting smaller, the cleavage is getting larger,” said a Louisiana senator who sponsored “fashion crime legislation” in the state. “When are we going to say, ‘Enough is enough?’”
One Florida town has successfully instituted a law against baggy pants, complete with fines against violators of the new rule. “It’s not our intent to get rich off of fines or lock people up in jail,” said the city mayor who supported the law. “It’s about a simple message: pull up your pants.”
While the fashion police may be successful in controlling those who wear baggy pants in some cities and schools, they may have a problem elsewhere. Some people argue that wearing your clothes the way you’d like is a right of self-expression protected by the First Amendment.
One man who said he likes wearing baggy pants didn’t see why the issue mattered to anyone. “Why should someone care how you wear your pants,” he asked. He said he’d just tell people “to mind their business and stop looking at my underwear.”
Headline Links: Fighting the saggy pants movement
School officials in Mississippi’s Tupelo Public School district will enforce a stricter dress code for the 2008–2009 school year by cracking down on kids who wear baggy pants. Girls aren’t excused from dress code rules either. “If their shirts and their pants don’t touch and their underwear is showing, that is just not permissible,” said Superintendent Randy McCoy.
Source: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
In March 2008, voters in Riviera Beach, Florida, approved a “saggy pants law” to encourage people to not to let their pants droop. The first violation of the law carries a $150 fine or community service time. The second offense will cost people $300 or more community service. Habitual offenders may go to jail.
Source: Palm Beach Post
Background: Where did baggy pants come from?
The baggy pants trend reportedly originated in prisons, where inmates aren’t given belts. Some rap and hip-hop artists have helped popularize the style.
Source: The St. Louis American
Opinion & Analysis: Are saggy pants part of free speech?
In early 2008, the Louisiana legislature was considering making it a crime to wear baggy pants. Whether such a move was appropriate, however, was questioned in an editorial by The Walla Walla Union-Bulletin. According to the paper, “it is not the place of government or law enforcement to serve as the fashion police. What people wear—even if it is an affront to our eyes—is a statement and can be considered a form of speech.”
Source: Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
“It’s an interesting question whether these laws would violate the First Amendment as currently understood,” says law professor Neil Richards. While lawmakers may look at saggy pants in terms of indecent exposure, they can also be a form of “expression of identity through clothing.” However, “given the murky government power to enact indecent exposure laws, I’d be hesitant to call all saggy pants laws categorically unconstitutional under current doctrine.”
Source: Washington University in St. Louis
Related Topics: Other fashion outrages
In 2006, the bikini celebrated its 60th anniversary. Swimsuits have caused their own fashion upheavals over the years. When the bikini was first revealed, the French fashion models who were supposed to wear it refused and a stripper was recruited to show off the creation. It took a few years for the bikini to gain a hold on the fashion market. Learn more about the history of the swimsuit from Slate.
Source: Slate
Body piercing is another fashion that’s raised eyebrows, yet has actually been around for centuries. The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology examines body piercing as both a cultural practice and a form of self-expression.
Source: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
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