so much discussion surrounds it!
intense discussion!
INCREDIBLE DISCUSSION!
no, it's not which came first, the chicken or the egg.
it is the question of...
ARE LEGGINGS PANTS?
i have a pretty solid answer to this question.
no. leggings are leggings.
duh.
but here arises another question: can we wear leggings as pants? is it socially acceptable?
in high school this wasn't such a big deal, but by the time i got to college it became a serious issue. i hadn't worn leggings in like, three years because when you're wearing something under a dress, in my humble opinion, it should be brightly coloured tights. my personal opnion anyway.
anywho, in my first year at alma people were like, omg is it socially acceptable to wear leggings as pants?!
i didn't know how to feel. i didn't wear leggings often enough to have a serious opinion.
so my opinion was kind of like...
"if you wanna do it go ahead, but i don't really plan on it any time soon, ya feel?"
there's some really intense judgement that comes with wearing leggings as pants. like, seriously.
there are people that love it and there are people that are like, OMG THOSE AREN'T PANTS WOW DO YOU HAVE ANY DECENCY AS A HUMAN BEING LIKE WOW
and all kinds of people in between.
i don't really mean to turn this into a feminist rant (oh but you know that i do), but i think the issue here is that the main part of this question isn't the "can we wear leggings as pants" but the whole "socially acceptable" part.
that leads us to gender norms and societal expectations of beauty and gender binary expectations.
GENDER ISN'T A BINARY SO LET'S JUST SMASH THAT OUTTA THE PARK RIGHT AWAY.
here is how i'm currently feeling about societal expectations and other expectations that are generally only imposed on women:
EFF THAT MAN DO WHAT YOU WANT.
here are some really good reasons to wear leggings as pants.
1. because you want to
2. they're super cute
3. because you want to
4. they make your legs look great no matter what size you are
5. because you want to
6. they're hella comfy
7. because you want to
8. they go with just about anything
9. BECAUSE YOU FUCKING WANT TO
... did i mention because you want to?
my transition into wearing leggings as pants was slow. i unearthed some leggings in january when i was really sick and didn't feel like wearing real pants. i wore my man friend's comfy oversized sweater and moped around my apartment feeling terrible. i was happy because the sweater covered my butt.
and i was like, man, these are comfy. but i don't leave my apartment wearing them. even if my butt is covered.
why did i think this?
because too many people had told me that it wasn't appropriate and societally acceptable and it was ingrained pretty deep within me.
like this.
like, PEOPLE WILL STARE AT MY BUTT. PEOPLE WILL THINK I'M A WHORE. PEOPLE WILL THINK I'M CHEAP.
people will think these things. but they're stupid.
people will stare at your butt. that's a fact of life that makes me upset but that i can't change, at least not right away and not by myself. if i could change the way that men think about women being pieces of meat in one fell swoop, believe me, i would, because there is almost nothing more humiliating than a guy conspiciously checking you out and making suggestive gestures at you.
I'M TALKING ABOUT YOU, CREEPY GUY AT TARGET THAT PRETENDED TO JERK OFF TO ME WHILE I GOT INTO MY MINIVAN.
continuing my leggings transition into feminist body ownership.
i started leaving my apartment with leggings on.
then i started wearing them to class.
then i was going out in public. like to the movies.
now i wear them all the time as pants when i come home from work.
because they're comfy and cute and they make my legs look amazing and my booty is ROCKIN' in them.
i have a soft pair, an out on the town pair, a patterned pair, and a painting pair. the painting pair are obviously covered in paint and are extra stretchy for maximum comfort while i engage in one of my favourite amateur activities.
wearing leggings as pants is amazing. i can't believe i didn't get into it sooner.
if you wanna wear it, wear it. rock it. love it. feel good about yourself. shove the middle finger up the asses of people who dehumanise you for wearing them.
love yourself and love what you wear. you deserve it.
leggings and all.
godspeed, my bootylicious ladies.
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