[00:03.53]The Victory of Jeans
[00:06.35]A twenty year old immigrant, Levi Strauss,
[00:10.80]came to the United States in 1850 to seek his fortune
[00:14.36]in the gold fields. But strangely enough,
[00:17.65]this man made his fortune on heavy canvas
[00:20.21]that he found suitable for working clothes.
[00:22.55]Strauss' jeans were particularly
[00:25.61]good for prospectors and cowboys.
[00:27.81]In the early days of jeans,
[00:30.06]this man couldn't have guessed that his pants,
[00:32.80]made only for rough work, would become so popular
[00:36.01]at all levels of society. Yes, this is a fact:
[00:39.48]jeans have become fashionable in our society.
[00:42.73]Furthermore, these pants have come to
[00:45.20]symbolize changes in social attitude.
[00:47.28]In the last decade or two we have seen movements
[00:50.28]toward equality as well as defiance of authority.
[00:53.64]Jeans, now worn by everybody,
[00:56.14]can be said to symbolize these changes for the better.
[00:59.08]In the past, only men wore jeans,
[01:01.24]and these men were at the bottom-socially and economically.
[01:05.12]Jeans were worn by truck drivers, farm and factory workers.
[01:09.33]Today, jeans no longer are looked down upon.
[01:12.45]They are worn by both men and women,
[01:14.68]by both skilled and unskilled workers,
[01:17.14]by both employees and employers.
[01:19.92]This common way of dressing symbolizes
[01:22.57]respect for individuality,
[01:24.48]no matter what your occupation or sex.
[01:26.92]In the fight against authority,
[01:29.86]young people have been the leaders.
[01:31.31]So it is natural that the teenagers
[01:33.61]would defy parents and school administrators
[01:36.09]over the right to wear jeans to class—and win.
[01:39.08]Jeans are the typical dress of civil rights marchers,
[01:42.85]fans at rock concerts,
[01:44.56]“hippies” returning to nature,
[01:46.60]and serious college students.
[01:48.69]Because everyone can be comfortable in them,
[01:51.32]the blue-jeans invented for the use of workers
[01:53.78]are now accepted almost anywhere, anytime.
[01:56.66]This is true not only in the United States,
[01:59.23]but in many other countries in the world.
[02:01.99]I strongly agree with the following statement:
[02:04.78]“Old or new, glorified or plain,
[02:07.71]jeans are likely to be around for a long time to come.
[02:11.13]Already they have succeeded where statesmanship has failed.
[02:15.19]Although unable to speak the same language,
[02:17.86]the inhabitants of this embattled planet
[02:20.78]have at least agreed to wear the same pants.”
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