Sam Panda, a Professional Aerial Artist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was recently handcuffed by police officers for wearing a thong bikini.
Her encounter with the police has since gone viral and inspired an outcry of indignation among her fans.
But what really happened that day at Myrtle Beach?
The incident began when a woman called the cops on Sam Panda because she felt her outfit was offensive to her and inappropriate for her child to witness.
The woman apparently believed that Sam’s body should be something she should feel ashamed of and could be detained for displaying in public.
It is unclear why this woman chose to call the police on Sam instead of just asking her politely to cover up or move away from where other children may have been present.
Whatever the reasons were, it ultimately resulted in two police officers handcuffing Sam and telling her that wearing a thong bikini violates local ordinances against indecent exposure.
In response, the officers asked everyone involved to follow them to their patrol car where they read aloud part of the penal code which states “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in the nude on any public beach…or any public property in view of the public”.
This didn’t sit well with Sam who argued that wearing a thong isn’t considered nudity but rather swimwear attire which many people wear at beaches around the world without issue.
Despite this fact, she was still handcuffed and escorted off of beach while onlookers filmed it all as evidence.
Hopefully this incident can serve as a wake-up call for all those who engage in such shaming practices so we can start creating more spaces where everyone feels accepted no matter what they’re wearing.
