TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) - Not everyone in Tupelo believes the new law that makes saggy pants illegal is a good idea.
The Tupelo City Council approved the ordinance Tuesday which specifically makes it against the law for anyone to expose one's body or undergarment in public by wearing pants three inches below the waist.
"This ordinance is not going to stop at just the saggy pants," said one person who did not want to be identified. "It will be something else next -- your hat, your hair, your shoes, the color of the clothes you wear."
Perhaps that's true, said one local pastor, who agreed the ordinance may have gone a little too far.
"I don't really believe in the sagging, but I don't believe in throwing our young men away, putting them down because they sag," said Pastor Willie Thornton of Victory Temple Church. "I believe in taking up time with them, trying to teach them that they could miss a lot of opportunities by sagging."
Another Tupelo man said that cracking down on sagging will lead to profiling by police officers.
"Its a good thing, but I think it targets black people," said Mack Turner. "If it's enforced, it's good, but if you just pick on black people for sagging, it's not right."
The law does not take effect for at least 30 days. City officials we talked to said they believe the measure will cut down on what many consider to be indecency.
Councilman Willie Jennings voted against the measure, and he expressed concern about the police taking up too much time chasing down people wearing sagging pants.
One local attorney said he believes the new law would be struck down in federal court if it was ever challenged.
