Derogitory Clothing

Do people really know the meaning behind their clothing? Usually when you have a certain style of clothing people will put you in a category. Category meaning prep, nerd, goth, and all of the other types. The wife beater shirt and sagging jeans have negative meaning behind there styles. Gayle Rosenwald Smith wrote the essay, “The Wife Beater”, it is about the sleeveless undershirt men and women both wear and how its’ name has a connotative meaning. She stated how much she hates the name that is pinned to the shirt. She also says how it’s mostly people ages 25 and under who do not mind the name and think nothing of it. In the article, she stated that the Oxford Dictionary defines the term as “1. A man who physically abuses his wife and 2.tank style garment… based on the stereotype that physically abusive husbands wear that particular type of shirt.” She also stated that the fashion of the wife beater was popular in the 1980’s and how it has returned into the fashion world with a male dominance. At the end of the article she talked about statistics that there are over 4 million women as victims of male violence. Another item of clothing that people wear that has a derogitory meaning or look is sagging pants. The fashion term is sagging, when the pants are worn too big and past the waist.It is mostly associated with males in American hiphop culture and thought to come from the prison system. "...the practice of sagging is sometimes viewed in the U.S. as indicative of the potential for unlawful behavior." ("What is Sagging?") Some cities in the U.S. have passed laws about sagging pants. Someone wearing saggy pants in those cities can be fined for indecent exposure. There are a few comparisons about these two types of clothing. One being that they both have something to do with the law. The wife beater is known for husbands who beat their wives, which is domestic abuse. The sagging pants are known to be worn by people who are going to commit unlawful behavior.