'Sagging' remains as fashion trends come and go

by Sapphire Snow, Jakyrah Harris and Oluwatosin Otabor

Men have been sagging for years, but many believe that the trend of sagging has become more drastic in today’s generation. The levels of sagging are getting lower and lower, even as far as to the knees. We set out to investigate why men continue to sag and where people believe sagging originates from.

In this story, Real Chi Youth reporters Sapphire Snow, Jakyrah Harris and Oluwatosin Otabor interviewed a variety of age groups for their opinions on the appeal of sagging. Gabby, a student at Columbia College, explained that she doesn’t totally agree with sagging but understands it as a fashion trend. She also spoke to Charles, a journalist at City Bureau, who use to sag in his younger years, but has since retired from the trend. Rico, a college student at Pinebuff, gave some insight as a young man who sags, simply because he doesn’t like the way belts look on him. Lastly, she sat down with Ruth, a nurse at Gatling Funeral Home who is completely against sagging.  

We found opinions on sagging tended to separate based on gender. On one side of the spectrum, Ruth and Gabby were not too fond of sagging, explaining that they don’t find it attractive, wouldn’t date anyone who sags, and wouldn’t let their child do so either. On the other side, Rico believes there is nothing wrong with the trend and that “not everyone who sags is a bad person”. But when it came to the origin of sagging, opinions were more difficult to predict. Rico and Ruth disagreed with the theory that sagging derives from jail, while Gabby and Charles believed that sagging does indeed derive from jail as well as rap/hip hop culture.