Saggy Pants…What Do You Say?
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Saggy Pants
Saggy pants: is this a fad a nuisance or should it be banned all together. Several cities across the nation already have some form of ban on this controversial clothing style. Where did this trend...
Call it a kick in the pants. A fashion trend that began in prison has come full circle. Low-waist street-strutters with their saggy pants are already having run-ins with law. At some point, the low-rider may even wind up in the big house where it all started: jail. You see the so-called “offenders” everywhere. We caught up with a few in the Johnson City mall. They wear their pants below the belt, often showing a considerable amount of undergarment. .“It’s disgusting, it’s awful. I would never let my son go out in a pair of pants like that,” said Delonna Copas of Fallbranch. The question for many is whether the government should be allowed to ban something that others may find offensive. A number of cities and towns have classified wearing saggy pants as indecent exposure with fines up to $500 and possible jail time. Last month, the Flint Michigan police chief told officers in a memo they could arrest people wearing saggy pants, exposing their underwear or bare bottoms, under the city’s indecent exposure or disorderly conduct ordinances. So far, officers have only warned people about the practice. But at a forum this week, the ACLU threatened a lawsuit unless the department does away with its duel on dangling dungarees. It considers it a case of racial profiling. “The government shouldn’t have the power to do this cause’ then you get into people can’t wear weird piercings, can’t have tattoos, or even tight clothing,” said KD Bowen who used to own an urban clothing store in Johnson City Mall. Celebrities in music videos, television, and on the Internet have been known to promote the droopy drawers look. “You can get online and look at the Kanye West concert that happened two hours ago and you can see what he had on and then you can go to the mall and say hey can I look like Kanye West or Jay-Z,” said Lemuel Hollifield of Johnson City. This bare-your-britches fashion is believed to have started in prison where inmates are not allowed to wear belts. “When they locked up these men in LA county jails they had elastic pants on with no belt and some of the elastic was not working anymore so their pants would fall,” said Atlanta gang specialist Devon Harris. Even with the addition of a few high profile skate parks, and the media coverage, officials in the Tri-Cities region don’t feel the saggy pants trend is a problem here yet. City officials in Kingsport and Johnson City said they don’t intend to take action unless saggy pants become more of a problem. Until then, it will be tough to get to the bottom of this controversial issue. We want to know what you think. Should saggy pants be banned in the Tri-Cities region? Comment now on tricities.com, keyword: pants.
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Reader Reactions
For years I’ve seen these boys walk around our streets, Schools and Malls with saggy pants and I’m so sick of it and it’s about time someone put it to an end because there’s nothing cute about it what so ever I don’t know where it started and really could care.
Some might say it’s a fashion trend well I’m here to tell you that it’s nothing but boys doing what they see rap and hip hop singers doing that’s in no way a fashion trend if anything it’s so very disgusting. The city of Kingsport says they don’t have a problem with saggy pants well maybe the city leaders need to take there heads out of the sand and take a walk in the Fort Henry Mall, Dobyns Bennett or the streets then come back and say there aint a problem with it here.
I would support any law that would put an end to the sagging pants to bad they don’t have a law already it took long enough for someone to notice, how long will it take for law makers to deal with it ?
D. Collins
Yes there should be a ban on these saggy pants, they are realy unpleasant to look at. I don’t want to see their private parts. It’s bad enough to see some of them when they are covered up, so please keep the blubber covered. Thank you
Frances
I think its ridiculous and down right discrimination to tell someone they can’t wear something a certain way. We are now in 2008 and it disgusts me to think that government can now tell us what to wear and how to wear it. This is by no means a free country! And for those who think it should be banned, if you don’t like it .. look the other way! Next everyone will be banned from wearing batheing suits and taking their shirts off in the summer! Just wait!
Baggy Pants offensive? Yes to some. Disgusting Absolutley!! Do we need to ban them? No, I agree that no it is not nice to look at a man/boy wearing these sagging pants however what exactly is the difference in saggy pants and a woman wearing shorts up past her bottom or a shirt that shows to much? Or even people who dress in all black? NOTHING! Nobody is telling people with tattos all over there body or piercings that they cant have them anymore so why should we do that to clothing? There are many different styles that offend many people but don’t look if you don’t like it- Everyone express’ there self in different ways so let them be. Plus it gives you a great laugh sometimes!
I think that it is plain offensive and disgusting. This is totally a reflect on the teaching of the parents. If parents would take a more active interest in their children, this would stop asap. Parents have just let the childern take over.
I was told by a long time retired prison guard that droopy drawers has a origin in prison . The individual displaying his undergarments is supposedly wearing his “boyfriend’s” larger outer clothing which means he is someone’s “girlfriend”. What a statement you are making young man!!
I think that it is plain offensive and disgusting.
Should be punishable with a fine and jail time for indescent exposure
To me it is just a stupid look. People dress very wierd sometimes and that is their right I suppose. I have to laugh when I see a teenager with their pants about to fall off because it looks like they are wearing a dirty diaper and do not know how to change theirself.
let them keep wearing them,,,it lets us know who the idiots are a lot easier!
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