Melanie+and+Austin


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 * Abstract: In 1799, the Paris police declared that “any woman wishing to wear pants must seek special permission from the police”. Women needed approval to “expose their legs”. Because pants were said to be a sign of masculinity, and during the French Revolution rebel females wanted to prove their equality, the government instituted this law to try to set them in their place. The law remained until 2010 when Green Party lawmakers attempted to strike down the law, but the Paris Prefecture responded saying it wasn’t worth the effort to remove the law from the books. However, last week, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, France’s minister of women’s rights, repealed the law, stating the law is “i ncompatible with the principles of equality between women and men that are written into the Constitution and in France's European commitments”. So, it is finally legal for women in Paris to wear pants. **


 * Melanie’s response: I am glad that Najat Vallaud-Belkacem took a stand against this law. I think women should be able to wear what they want to without having to worry about breaking the law. In today’s society, pants are no longer a symbol of masculinity. Women should be able to express themselves through what they wear, and the law prevented this. If a woman wishes to dress in a manly fashion, there shouldn't be any laws preventing her from doing so. We are lucky to live in a country where women are granted the freedom to wear whatever they wish to. **

Austin's response: It is very interesting to read an article like this one. Having a government control everything - all the way to what people are not allowed to wear - is something that we take for granted here in the US. Women have (and should have) the right to wear whatever they want without being a convict for breaking the law. I guess I do not view pants as a form of masculinity because there are so many types of plants that are much more feminine. Also, I believe that an individual should have the freedom to wear whatever they wish. Nothing should prevent a man or woman from doing what they want. **Why would the government want to control what women wear?** **Is it okay for there to be laws regarding what people wear?** **Is cross dressing offensive or acceptable?** **Is what you wear a factor in your masculinity/femininity?**
 * Questions: **
 * Should this law have been removed? **

Kelis' Response: I believe this law should never had been a law in the first place. I think the government wanted to control what women wear because of power. I do not think it is okay for there to be laws concerning what people wear because choosing what clothes to wear is also like freedom of speech because it expresses how people feel and think. I think that it depends on where a person lives when cross dressing because in the United States it doesn't seem to matter, but in other countries it might be offensive, it also relates to social standards and assumptions.

Ashlei's Response: I think the law should have been repealed a long time ago, especially after the article in 1946 that was added to the French Constitution that gave women the same rights of men. But I understand that in order to preserve the symbol of masculinity in 1799, this law had to be created in order to stop women from becoming too much like men. I don't think a law regarding clothing should ever be implemented in any country because this allows people to chose how they want to express themselves. I think in some cases, cross dressing is acceptable, but in other situaitons, I don't think its okay. I think that what you wear does affect how masculine or feminine you look. Some things are created to look more boy-ish. Its all about what is "in" and with fashion, one day its in, and the next day, its out.

Mika's Response: I also believe that this law is absurd. I believe that the France is just trying to show that they have ultimate power over every little thing no matter what. They want to remind women that though they have rights, there can be endless boundaries and limitations to those rights. I do not think it is okay for them to have laws regarding what people wear because I think that what you wear is somewhat a type of freedom of speech and expression because what you wear gives people an impression of who you are. Many people have protested against laws by wearing specific garments, but in this case, pants are typical clothing that you find all across the world. I think cross dressing should not be a big issue and should not be offensive because people do not intentionally cross dress to make people upset, but cross dress to express themselves. I think that what you wear can have a factor in your masculinity and femininity because there are phrases such as "girly" and "tom boy", and also because in society we all have a common stereotype ingrained in our minds of the garments the different genders wear.

Madi's Response: I can’t believe this was even a law to begin with! It is so ridiculous. I do not think the government should be able to control what people should and should not wear. People should definitely have the right to choose their articles of clothing. Before this article, I never would have thought that women wearing pants were masculine. I think clothes do add to the factors of masculine and feminine but I think that women who wear jeans and dress pants are just as feminine as women who wear dresses and skirts. Describing a women’s clothes as masculine would maybe be if she wore a tux, but pants are so common its absurd to think women could never wear them until now in Paris!

Kristen P's Response: I think this law was meaningless and should have never been enforced in the first place. Asking permission from the government for women to wear pants is ridiculous because I believe that every female should have their own right to what they want to wear or not. The government should not be accountable to women's clothing because the women who choose to wear pants make their own decision to. I also don't agree with the government that pants is a sign of masculinity.