Athleisure wear is very popular nowadays.
From young women to even young men, everyone just throws on joggers, hoodies, and slides. That’s the basic look.
But what do we do when it’s summertime, and those young women are coming outside in Daisy Dukes that aren’t almost identical to boy shorts? We went from cycling pants to just straight up, trunks.
Are we too comfortable allowing ourselves to be manipulated into the concept of being too freely without boundaries?
Let’s Get Into It
Don’t police what women wear
The keyword in that phase is “women,” don’t police what women wear, not young girls who are still trying to figure themselves out, find their identity, and space in this society.
I don’t care what a grown woman wears, especially when she knows what she is wearing.
I don’t care what a young woman wears; however, I do believe there needs to be a boundary between showing too much and too little when you’re trying to find yourself in this world, especially at the shy age of 19 or 21.
Young women need to be told, “Hey, don’t wear that. You don’t have to have your butt out, cleavage showing, or the inappropriate skin-tight body suit that shows all your underdeveloped curves.”
Why, as a society, are we allowing the younger generations to fall victim to concepts and practices that our parents wouldn’t dare allow us to do?
Protect the youth
I am disappointed.
Why are you ranting? Why are you bringing this up on a fine Friday?
I went back to my college town and saw something. It was a trip to see my little cousin and her team play basketball, and see the young athletes shine with talent.
Very proud of them, congratulations on their accomplishments.
They are young athletes who wear athleisure wear because they play sports, so you’re going to see them in joggers, hoodies, and form-fitting tops because they’re in the gym, working out.
I took a stroll down campus like any alum. Looking for the new campus gems, buildings, reminiscing about going to class, laughing with my friends at the cafeterias, going to Louhas on my older nights, or taking trips to Target on the CATA.
There was this recurring scene. The weather was nice, but not that nice. Too warm for my leather crop jacket, but cool enough for my denim jeans.
Everyone around me had this common attire on, though.
Athleisure wear, but Daisy Dukes.
I have a kid walking along with me. Telling him about the campus, how cool it was to be in that building, how old that building was, the campus lore, but I am occasionally running into young girls with their cheeks out, making this a very uncomfortable situation.
I was that young girl before you grow out of it
I never wore Daisy Dukes on campus, but we have come a long way from just wearing the form-fitting leggings that hugged our curves, showed our butts, and made us look “slim thick” or just curvy.
Why did I wear it back then?
Let me take you down memory lane.
An 18-year-old Chandra was a girl trying to find herself, build an identity of who she was and who she wasn’t.
Growing up, my mom never allowed me to wear leggings without covering my behind. She always said, “Cover up.” I always saw her cover up.
When I got to college, watching my friends, the other girls around me, I threw that rule away.
I wanted to fit in and show the boys, too, “I got shape as well.”
Thank goodness I didn’t experience sticky situations, but it showed that my protection is bigger than me, and even if I did make that mistake, I can grow out of it.
I stopped wearing just leggings to class by my sophomore year. I developed my own style, my own look, and it made me feel more in control of myself and my interactions.
You can progress beyond Daisy Dukes
I can smell a confident woman a mile away, but an insecure one stenches reeks as soon as you step in her presence.
It’s in her essence.
Don’t let the unbreathable polyester and form-fitting spandex allow you to develop a stench.
Put some clothes on.
And this isn’t to bash you, but tell you – find you because an educated woman or person isn’t going to go to their corporate job in Daisy Dukes.
Even if you choose the build your own brand path, you can’t show up, or a better choice of words, shouldn’t show up as the woman in the Daisy Dukes.
Not because women should be policed, but being honest, you’re wearing less than one yard of fabric, and it looks cheap.
Don’t get me wrong, be sexy
But know when to be sexy and when to be a woman who’s in charge of her sexiness. A powerful woman can turn it on and off because she’s intelligent enough to know when it’s the right time and place.
A wayward woman has no sense of time and place; she’s unaware, craves attention, and sadly, oblivious.
You got time
This is coming from someone who was scared to show her arms in high school. Never wore miniskirts until after college because I felt comfortable showing my skin when I was ready.
Did I often show too much skin? Yes.
Have I learned to turn it down? Yes.
Not because society says so, but you grow up. You grow from being that woman who wants to prove her point, she only looks good because of her thighs, hips, and butt, and into a woman who embraces her femininity by how she strides into a room with no effort, her smile entices, and her personality blossoms.
Her presence does all the sexy work for her before she opens her mouth.
That’s power.
To that young woman
You’ve got time to be sexy. Your body will change. Your thoughts will change, you will change. No, actually improve for the better.
At 25, you will look at yourself and say, “Wait, I love me.”
And someone out there will love you, too.
I love you. That’s why I am saying, put some clothes on. You got time.
With love,
C.Alilijah