We may never know for sure why people decided to start wearing their pants lower and lower, eventually exposing their underwear and more. Some sources say it started as a trend from prison culture. Inmates aren’t allowed to have belts, and if their uniforms are too big, there’s nowhere for pants to go but down.

However it happened, the trend is now mainstream. Cities in Louisiana, and around the country, are trying to bring waistlines back up. It started when the small town of Delcambre in south Louisiana passed a city ordinance creating penalties for wearing pants that turn underwear into outerwear. Mansfield passed its own ban earlier this month. People cited for sagging starting on September 15 will have to pay a $150 fine and court costs, or spend up to 15 days in jail. Now Shreveport and Alexandria have also passed ordinances banning the big britches.

Atlanta, Georgia, has also passed an ordinance to outlaw the sagging pants, but legal experts there have said the rules would not hold up in court because telling someone how to dress violates the constitutional right to freedom of expression.

What do you think about the bans? What do you think about sagging pants?