ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:
There's a place in France where women can finally wear pants: Paris.
AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:
Yes, in the fashion capital of the world, a two century-old law had banned women from wearing trousers. It was passed soon after the French Revolution when what sort of pants you wore could be a political statement. Wealthier people wore knee-length pants: culottes. The working man wore long pants. But for the women, no trousers allowed.
SIEGEL: Over the years, the rule was eased somewhat. Women were allowed to wear pantalons while riding une bicyclette, a bicycle, or un cheval, a horse. And as you can imagine, the rule was not strictly enforced.
CORNISH: Nonetheless, the anti-pants regulation has been a thorn in the inseam of women's rights activists for years. That's all over now. The French minister for women's rights has declared the ordinance incompatible with the principles of equality between women and men.
SIEGEL: And with that, la revolution is finally complete.
Copyright © 2013 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.