Dead Pants Walking
There's a school nearby my apartment, but I generally never notice the children, because our schedules never coincide. Today was different. It was the first day of school, and I was walking by a row of classrooms, just as the school bell rang (denoting the end of the school day). Expecting to be greeted by a crowd of cheerful faces celebrating the conclusion of their first day, I surprisingly witnessed a parade of saggy pants before me. True, this should come as no surprise, considering that the saggy pants phenomenon has been around for years, a remnant of the gansta look, which gained popularity during the 90's. But even so, the sight was shocking - perhaps it was the sheer quantity of exposed underwear (and bottoms) that passed me by. This got me thinking: where did this "saggy pants" phenomenon originate?
Well, digging deeper into the issue (with the help of my trusty friend Google), I discovered there are several theories on the topic. These range from prisoners wearing "saggy pants" (aka "jailin") to signify relationship availability, to a better way for gangters to conceal weapons.
In any case, the apparent truth behind saggy pants was the result of ill-fitting clothes in the prison system. Prisoners were often times provided clothing a few sizes too large (due to resource constraints), and since they weren't given belts to hold up their pants (for fear they would use these straps to commit suicide), they had nothing to keep their pants up. This led to constant hitching, causing the wearer to saunter around in a "penguin-like" walk (funny, you never seem to see that in prison movies).
Anyway, eventually this seeped out of the prison system into mainstream society, and soon thereafter a new fashion statement was born. Rappers and gangsters everywhere adopted the style to show how tough they were.
The ironic part about saggy pants is this: the origin of the phenomenon was due to a lack of belts in the prison system, yet today's wearers need belts just to keep their pants wrapped around their knee caps. And practically speaking, rather than being a sign of toughness, low-hanging pants are probably somewhat of a hindrance (especially during a fight). It's hard to keep balance when your pants are so low, and the odds of tripping over yourself are that much greater. Just think how much faster you'd run from the police, with your pants hitched up high, rather than hanging from your knees...
I guess, in a way, the joke's on them. Talk about getting caught with your pants down!
Well, digging deeper into the issue (with the help of my trusty friend Google), I discovered there are several theories on the topic. These range from prisoners wearing "saggy pants" (aka "jailin") to signify relationship availability, to a better way for gangters to conceal weapons.
In any case, the apparent truth behind saggy pants was the result of ill-fitting clothes in the prison system. Prisoners were often times provided clothing a few sizes too large (due to resource constraints), and since they weren't given belts to hold up their pants (for fear they would use these straps to commit suicide), they had nothing to keep their pants up. This led to constant hitching, causing the wearer to saunter around in a "penguin-like" walk (funny, you never seem to see that in prison movies).
Anyway, eventually this seeped out of the prison system into mainstream society, and soon thereafter a new fashion statement was born. Rappers and gangsters everywhere adopted the style to show how tough they were.
The ironic part about saggy pants is this: the origin of the phenomenon was due to a lack of belts in the prison system, yet today's wearers need belts just to keep their pants wrapped around their knee caps. And practically speaking, rather than being a sign of toughness, low-hanging pants are probably somewhat of a hindrance (especially during a fight). It's hard to keep balance when your pants are so low, and the odds of tripping over yourself are that much greater. Just think how much faster you'd run from the police, with your pants hitched up high, rather than hanging from your knees...
I guess, in a way, the joke's on them. Talk about getting caught with your pants down!
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