the company’s web site says, “We adore this fashion- forward silhouette with an extra-long cardigan and loads of accessories.” If J.Crew, a brand worshipped by conservative prep school girls in pearls, is telling its shoppers to say adieu to bottoms, the no-pants trend is here to stay. Not surpris- ingly, the J.Crew romper has sold out. In one part of the world, full-coverage trousers are considered


"Policing a woman's outfit is essen-


tially forcing her to conform to


gender norms of modesty, frailty, and femininity."


too sexy. In another, young women such as Gaga and Momsen shed their pants in lieu of scanty leotards, rompers, and at times, only underwear. Though certain situations have clear delineations as to what constitutes appropriate attire and what does not (hint: showing buttocks at your summer internship will always fall under the “not”), what is considered decent varies greatly from place to place, person to person, and cop to cop. When there aren’t laws in place to protect women, these subjective differences in opinion can prove extremely problematic. TheWashington Post reported that police arrested 40,000


Sudanese women on charges of violating public order laws in 2008. “A teacher caught raping a boy was sentenced to only one month in prison,” Hussein has said, “the same sentence a woman can get for wearing trousers.” The laws in our hemisphere are radically different. The California Government Code explicitly states in Section 12947.5: “(a) It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer to refuse to permit an employee to wear pants on account of the sex of the employee.” This is a step in the right direction, one leg at a time. Pants are embraced and rejected for various reasons—some


women seek to make a statement about gender inequality and gain admittance into a ‘man’s world,’ while others simply strive to feel sexy or comfortable. Though the pantsless trend is still go- ing strong, women should remember that wearing pants is not a freedom enjoyed by all. It takes a courageous woman to ignore the confusing cultural ideals of decency and make the decision to wear what she pleases. It takes a fearless woman, however, to wear what she wants in face of the law.


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