Would this be appropriate in this situation, or would it be seen as harassment?

[suzykm]

I was looking at photos of a recent Alexander McQueen fashion show. And one of the photos I came across was this one: https://imgur.com/a/r1Yjcu0

As you can see, this model is wearing low rise trousers. They are very low rise. Let's say that you're a worker and you're working behind the scenes at this fashion show. For example, you could be a cameraman or a hairdresser. And let's say that you don't have a personal relationship with this particular model, and you only have a professional workplace relationship with her. So would it be acceptable for you to ask this model if she's wearing any underwear underneath those trousers? I understand that this may seem like a weird thing to ask someone, but let's say that you're just curious because of how low rise her trousers are.

No, of course it wouldn’t be appropriate, OP.

Why don’t you tell us what happened? I presume you’re not actually an AMcQ model who was sexually harassed backstage by a cameraman?

Why on earth would a cameraman or a hairdresser ask about knickers?
My brother had a pair of those trousers and he wore them with no pants, no shirt and braces 😂😂

absolutely not acceptable

I can't see the photo but I'd be more ok with a woman asking if they want the trousers and want to know if it's possible to wear underwear with them - unless the tone suggests they're just being funny about it - but not a man.

I think if it’s a ‘how do you make those work, I’m keen to understand as it’s a style I’d like to consider but cant work it out’

then that’s a very different tone to ‘I want to know how many layers of fabric are between me and your ugly bits’.

But what if a man asked her that question? And what if the man isn't interested in wearing these clothes, but he's just curious about how she makes it work?

Why are you asking this question based on a photo you ‘just came across’? You just happened to find a photo of some Alexander McQueen trousers and you just happened to wonder how a hairdresser or photographer might ask about the model’s underwear if they wanted to know?

Why on earth is this odd and incredibly specific knickers-related, and entirely imagined, scenario so important to you?

(Your link doesn’t work for me but McQueen did ultra low rise ‘bumster’ trousers about 25 years ago; are you sure these are recent?)

Interesting first post.

It wouldn’t be acceptable to ask the question in most workplaces.

Backstage at a fashion show, where everyone works in fashion and the clothes and how they’re worn are the constant topic of conversation and people are running around panicking about tit tape and VPL etc and there is minimal privacy and the camera people and hairdressers are surrounded by models getting changed constantly, probably a lot more normal, provided the question isn’t asked in an obviously salacious way. In that environment it would probably just be considered an ordinary question about clothes between two people working in the fashion industry. But obviously there are a million other nuances that would make a difference. It’s a nonsensical scenario for a hypothesis to be honest.

Are you sure it wouldn't be appropriate? For example, what if someone's just curious and the question is asked in a non-creepy way?

It would still be none of that person’s business.

There is no non creepy way of asking someone at work if they're wearing knickers 🙄

Absolutely no-one else's business unless it's spoiling/altering the look of the clothes being flogged.

I think if it comes from a technical interest type angle and makes sense in the context then again - could potentially be ok.

Did your husband ask this model if she was wearing underwear and he ended up in trouble at work for it? Or is it you yourself who asked a stranger at work if they are wearing underwear?

You sound quite invested in coming up with “what ifs” that seem to want to create a scenario where posters will say it’s ok for a man ask about the underwear of a woman he works with. You sound a bit like those women who excuses their husbands creepy behaviour by pointing fingers at what the women wear. Sorry but that’s the vibe I get from reading your post.

I’d think a bloke asking a model that question was an absolute creep and if she has taken it that way then the best for the man to do is reflect and apologise. Maybe do some reading on why his behaviour was perceived as harassament.

Nope. Still creepy.

Just don’t ask people about their underwear. Use google if you’re actually curious, I’m sure there are loads of posts about what underwear to wear with low rise jeans.

Of course this is creepy and inappropriate