Legislatures across the country -- from Connecticut to Dallas -- are looking to punish "hip-hop" fashion mavens with penalties ranging from a $50 fine to a six month prison sentence. Supporters cite "public decency" concerns.
We think those people need to get a life.
While most of these laws have not progressed beyond the pulpit-pounding stage, an ordinance banning saggy pants was recently passed in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana . (The law also bans revealing bra straps, partial nudity, and clothing that is "not becoming" to one's sex.)
Though criticized as violative of the First Amendment, Lafourche Parish Council Member Lindel Toups has developed an ironclad "sag" test. Just have the wearer raise his or her arms, and if the pants fall, the law has been broken.
Some critics note that since this is a fashion trend which predominantly appeals to young, African-American men, the legislative response is racially motivated and will serve as a flimsy pretext for racial profiling by police officials.
A more practical criticism surrounds enforcement of such bans.
Louisiana police officers already have the dubious distinction of patrolling the second worst highways in the nation and investigating the second-highest number of alcohol-related accidents. And now, they can add to their list of duties, measuring the distance between a perp's bellybutton and waistband.
While we certainly don't relish gazing at someone else's undergarments, we think lawmakers' time and energy would be better spent addressing the economic recovery of that Katrina-devastated state, and improving its deteriorated infrastructure and failing education system.
Otherwise, at re-election time, many of those folks may find themselves with their pants down.
