Here’s the situation: Mayor Ernest Troiana Jr. of Wildwood, New Jersey is taking action on the shore to clean up their look, and is starting with a proposed ban of pants riding 3 inches south of the hips. The city hears all kinds of complaints from visitors calling out inappropriate outfits on boardwalk, and tourism in the beach town is too crucial to ignore it. Also to be outlawed is walking shirtless and in barefeet: no shirt, no shoes, no shore.
The law, which it set to pass on Wednesday, will land you a fine anywhere between $25 to $100 if you’re caught in your saggy slacks. Repeated offence goes for $200. You could also be weighed down with 40 hours of community service.
Advocates for free-will and free-dress have come forward to call out the Wildwood’s strange attempt to clean up the beach. Ruthann Robson, author of Dressing Consitutionally says this is the very example of unconstutional dress codes. To people who say they have the right to dress how they want, the mayor butts in: “I have the right to not have to look at your [rear end].”
Touché, Troiana. Toronto’s not judging: we’re no stranger to weird bans, having recently made attempts to eliminate cute hedgehogs and the use of the superstitious number “4” for new addresses.
[via MetroNews]
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Farrah Khaled is an intern at the Toronto Standard. Follow her on twitter at @farkhaly.
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