OK guys, tell an old white lady what the meaning of black males wearing long white t-shirts is. I've heard it was something racial and just wanted to be in the know
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Name : Cheri, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 50, City : Philly, State : PA Country : United States, Occupation : Programmer, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I'm not the most knowledgeable about current cultural trends, but I don't think there is anything racial about the long white t-shirts. Not that I've heard of. Just a bad fashion style.
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Name : Wayne-C24373, Gender : M, Race : Black/African American, Age : 44, City : Parsippany, State : NJ Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, White males, Hispanic males and Asian males wear long white t-shirts, too, and it's a style popular among all teen males, not just black ones.
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Name : Rhonda-P-Outlaw30017, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Lutheran, Age : 42, City : Laurelton, State : NY Country : United States, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I noticed that, too! Both here in Detroit and in Chicago. I thought it was some kind of 'white t-shirt club'. I asked my 14-year-old brother about it; he lives in an 'urban' area of Chicago. He has no idea what that's about, but it doesn't seem to be gang related. I've also noticed that black people (this theory probably extends to other classes and races, too) tend to purchase whatever clothing the neighborhood store sells, no matter how unusual it is. Maybe there's a special on extra-long white t-shirts?
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Name : Chandra, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 27, City : Detroit, State : MI Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, As an old black lady who's also not in the know, I asked my 16-year-old son about it. He says there's nothing 'racial' about it. The plain white shirts simply go with anything. He tells me white shoes are worn for the same reason.
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Name : ED25497, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 48, City : Kansas City, State : MO Country : United States, For the same reason everybody wears 'FUBU' shirts and such: because everybody else is wearing them. (By the way, FUBU stands for 'For Us, By Us')
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Name : Taz27457, Gender : M, Age : 33, City : Detroit, State : MI Country : United States, Social class : Middle class, Maybe you only notice the big white shirts more because they are big and white. Everything we wear is big, from t-shirts to jewelry to pants. We like the way it feels, it hangs, it looks and are not afraid to show it. There is no 'XXL White T-Shirt Gang' - it's just us black folk in comfortable clothes. Bad fashion is in the eye of the beholder.
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Name : Kwame, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Buddhist, Age : 19, City : Modesto, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Shipping, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Lower class, Here in L.A., many gang members, both black and Hispanic, wear oversized white t-shirts.
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Name : Sapphire, Gender : F, Age : 25, City : Los Angeles, State : CA Country : United States, If a young white male were to wear a long black t-shirt, would it be considered anything racial or racist? No. So why are young black youths being observed for wearing long white shirts? If the shirt were a different color, would it matter? Man, who thinks about that, anyway. It's just their fashion.
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Name : Stephanie27808, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Age : 21, City : New York, State : NY Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I have seen it too! I don't get it AT ALL! It looks so sloppy to me because it looks like they're wearing a nightshirt out in public. And there aren't any designs on it, no colors, no nothing -- just a stupid white t-shirt. I haven't heard about any racial motives behind wearing it though.
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Name : Nicole, Gender : F, Race : Black and White, Religion : Christian, Age : 27, City : Norfolk, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : Product Developer, Social class : Middle class, Most of the Black teenage boys in my apartment building wear the long white t-shirts. I think it's just an easy outfit to wear (i.e, goes with any pants or shorts) and it's a little anti-commercial and affordable. Most of the fashions targeted at the Black community are extremely expensive (e.g. Sean John, FUBU, Ecko) and the white t-shirts are a trend that middle-class and lower-class parents can afford for their sons. I don't think it's much more complicated than that. It concerns me that the first reason some Whites would think about a Black fashion is that it's gang-related.
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Name : Johnny29355, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Gay, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 25, City : Washington, State : DC Country : United States, Occupation : graduate student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, I dont think its racial, its more of a trend. Its a style that a lot of different races wear, and immitate. If you noticed on tv a lot of rappers white/black wear this.
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Name : Krystal, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 21, City : Swartz Creek, State : MI Country : United States, Occupation : student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, I teach in an urban, predominantly black high school. Many of our young men wear the HUGE white t-shirts, often over another shirt. My assistant principal maintains it is because they cannot afford anything nicer, but the guys tell me it's just comfortable. Personally, I want to know where they shop so I can get my tall husband some shirts whose tails might stay in!
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Name : J. Van, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : mobility-limited, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Presbyterian, Age : 56, City : Houston, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : teacher, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, This is a phenomenon I had not noticed, and I don't think it's indicative of any kind of trend or fad. Symbolically, however, it's provides a perfect example of how even minute things may be misinterpreted: you see, I wear a white t-shirt under my dress shirt in the office everyday; when I go home after work and change clothes, I tend to leave the white t-shirt on. Hence, I wear the white t-shirt when I step outside to water the grass, run an errand, etc. In short, I can be seen wearing a white t-shirt on a daily basis, but the cause is rooted in convenience and expediency, not fashion or cultural identity. To be honest, I'd never given it any thought before, but - in light of your comments - I suppose that if my neighbors (the majority of whom are White) noticed me wearing a white t-shirt everyday, they might possibly link it to cultural mores. (I suppose it doesn't help that another neighbor, who is black, also wears a white t-shirt when he works in his yard, although I've never thought to ask him why.) Hmm, it suddenly occurs to me that the question to ask in these types of situations is, 'What would I be thinking - would it seem unusual - if those people wearing the t-shirts were White (ie, the same race as me)?'
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Name : Kevin26335, Gender : M, Race : Black/African American, City : Houston, State : TX Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, It's not just up north. Seen the same thing here in Miami and it doesn't appear to have any real significance other than style.
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Name : Rob, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Bisexual, Race : White with Black Family, Religion : Personal Spiritual Philosophy, Age : 59, City : Miami Beach, State : FL Country : Venezuela, Occupation : Admin Assistant, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, 
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