Indecent in Atlanta

I could be in trouble if the latest proposed amendment to Atlanta's indecency law gets passed. The AP reported today on the proposal.

Baggy pants that show boxer shorts or thongs would be illegal under a proposed amendment to Atlanta's indecency laws.

The amendment, sponsored by city councilman C.T. Martin, states that sagging pants are an "epidemic" that is becoming a "major concern" around the country.

"Little children see it and want to adopt it, thinking it's the in thing," Martin said Wednesday. "I don't want young people thinking that half-dressing is the way to go. I want them to think about their future."

The proposed ordinance would also bar women from showing the strap of a thong beneath their pants. They would also be prohibited from wearing jogging bras in public or show a bra strap, said Debbie Seagraves, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia.

When I was in grade school the doctor thought briefly that I might have scoliosis, because my left shoulder blade stuck out more than the right one. But then he checked my spine, and it was straight, so he said I just had muscles that weren't even on both sides.

But that unevenness makes things slide down my left shoulder. Bra straps, slip straps, the necklines of uncollared tops. They all start heading left sooner or later. And that means sometimes my bra strap shows, if it's the shirt I'm wearing that starts to slide. And if that happens when we're in Atlanta, I'll be on the wrong side of the law.

What if I try to apply for a job, and the application asks, "Have you ever been arrested?" and then tells me to explain? I'd have to say, "I was arrested for indecency, because my bra strap showed." Would they even read past the word, "indecency?" What hospital would hire an indecent woman? This law could ruin my future career.

Atlanta would not be the first city to take on sagging pants.

Let's hope they don't become the first city to take on bra straps.