I met a parent recently that would not allow her son to wear a hoodie. She said “hoodies for boys certainly are a bad idea”. She felt they promoted a negative attitude and even worse, rebellion. “Only criminal types put them on” she said. I didn’t agree of course, because I had worn them for years and don’t consider myself to be a “criminal type.”
I did so however recently read a British news article where a certain style of hoodie would be banned. It was a faceless hoodie, one that could be zipped up to completely cover the wearer’s face. It even had two transparent elliptical plastic eyes to look through! Security forces felt it was sinister and allowed wearers to totally conceal their identity. I have to admit it had been pretty wicked looking and reminded me of someone wearing a gas mask or a full-bodied hazmat suit. It had been camo colored and I simply knew the wearer had a concealed assault rifle somewhere!
This got me thinking about hoodies in general. After all, why are they so often associated with criminal behavior now days. It didn’t was previously that way. Didn’t folks from all backgrounds just wear them to be casual and stay warm at the same time. When I was a youngster we just called them sweat shirts with hoods and you also either wore a pullover or one that zipped up. I thought the pockets were what made them cool, one big one across the front you could lock your cold hands in. They even annoyed me at times when I’d lose the neck string inside the sweat shirt also it would take me hours to obtain it back!
I was thinking about all the famous or notorious personalities through history who wore hoodies. There was medieval monks, they wore sort ‘a corny looking dark pullover with hoods. And through the same time the common European peasant wore a hoodie like coat or blanket, right? What about Robin Hood? There was Little Red Riding Hood. The Seven Dwarfs and Snow White herself. Needless to say so did the wicked queen when she was a witch. In vlone of witches ware hoodies! What about Shrek… and Rocky? There is really a couple or hero types that wore a hoodies (and a beanie in Rocky’s case). What I’m saying is merely about every stereotype can be found wearing a hoodie at some point and time. Even the Mexican Serape could have a hood onto it if Sombreros weren’t so cool!
The point is that hoodies are for everyone even for boys, plus they don’t make anybody good or bad. We do that ourselves with or without the hoodie. Hoodies can be made with certain colors combinations or logos to recognize the wearer with a particular lifestyle or group and maybe that is were one needs to work with a little discernment or common sense but after that I believe it just boils right down to they’re comfortable, convenient and down right practical. So in the end I will continue to wear my hoodie and hopefully it generally does not upset anyone.