NYPD Tells South Slope Women to Avoid Shorts for Safety

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According to some Park Slope residents, local cops have responded to the wave of sexual attacks in the neighborhood by critiquing women's outfits. Twenty-five-year-old resident Lauren told the Wall Street Journal that she was walking home from the gym in a t-shirt and shorts when a police officer stopped her. "He pointed at my outfit and said, 'Don't you think your shorts are a little short?'" she says. The officer also stopped two women wearing dresses, saying that their clothing might make the suspect feel like he had "easy access."

Asked for comment by the WSJ, NYPD Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne said that the police were "simply pointing out that as part of the pattern involving one or more men that the assailant(s) have targeted women wearing skirts." Sadly, the paper didn't ask him what sort of clothing he thought women should wear to the gym in September. Or exactly how long, thick, or unflattering a skirt has to be before it's considered an effective assault-prevention device. Or why no other kind of crime involves such intense focus on clothing. ("If you didn't want to be enrolled in a Ponzi scheme, why were you wearing such a flashy wristwatch?") Jezebel has more thoughts on the topic, of course.
· A Thin Line on Skirts [WSJ]
· Brooklyn Cops Offer Helpful Anti-Rape Clothing Advice [Jezebel]