Last year I wrote a column about young men and the lack of dressing well.It is clear I am not alone in my opinion. The pop culture fame of the song “Pants on The Ground” has fired the shot that we all need to think about. Why? Larry Platt was a Civil Rights Protestor with Martin Luther King Jr. Some of Platt’s past civil rights activities include working with the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Georgia, organizing sit-ins in the South and marching in the Bloody Sunday march from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery.
The songs lyrics are a definite conviction to exactly how many of us view the clothing style that has been popular for far too long. “Pants on the Ground/Pants on the ground Pants on the ground/ Lookin’ like a fool with you pants on the ground/ Gold in your mouth/ Hat turned sideways, pants hit the ground/ Call yourself a cool cat looking like a fool”
I have heard dozens of reasons why young men wear their pants in this fashion. This morning on my commute in I had the discussion with a few young men.
They told me:
Reason 1: “It started in jail with prison inmates and they started this and it *symbolized* that they were somebody’s “wife”
Reason 2: “It’s comfortable.”
Reason 3: “It’s what everyone else is wearing. They look good.”
I have a few reasons why you are really wearing them that way.
- Lack of parental guidance.
- Lack of self-esteem.
- Lack of appropriate role models.
- Lack of positive peer pressure.
- Lack of a full length mirror.
I really do not want to see your underwear.
{For more from Oretha Winston follow her on Twitter}
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