"When celebrities wear pajamas to an event, they are called fashionable. But when ordinary people wear pajamas to walk around on the streets, they are called uncivilized."

Someone wrote in Chinese social media, quoted in "Chinese City Uses Facial Recognition to Shame Pajama Wearers/Local officials apologized, but the crackdown on a common — and comfortable — practice has raised a rare outcry over privacy in a country accustomed to surveillance" (NYT).

When officials in an eastern Chinese city were told to root out “uncivilized behavior,” they were given a powerful tool to carry out their mission: facial recognition software.

Among their top targets? People wearing pajamas in public.... Public pajama wearing is common in China, particularly among older women, who tend toward bold colors and floral or cartoon patterns....

Public shaming is a common tactic. In theaters, laser pointers are used to shame audience members who play on their phones during shows. And in Shanghai, facial recognition systems have been installed at some crosswalks to single out jaywalkers.

After the online uproar on Monday, urban management officials in Suzhou quickly took down the original post and issued an apology....

The shamers were themselves shamed. Shame shaming works.

ADDED: If you look at the history of pajamas, you'll see that the original meaning is "leg clothing" and the reference is to loose, flowing pants worn in India, Pakistan, and Iran. When the style was first used by westerners, it "was associated with masquerade costume, actresses, and prostitution, not with respectable women" until feminists — in the mid-19th century — began wearing them under a knee-length skirt and calling them "bloomers." It was only later that pajamas became sleepwear too.

In the 20th century, various designers came up with "pajama" styles — for the beach and for evening wear ("palazzo pajamas"). The 70s designer Halston pushed glamorous "pajama" styles, and that caused women's magazines to suggest the economical alternative of simply buying things that are sold as lingerie.

Now, what these Chinese women are doing is different in that they're not choosing pajamas that most resemble things fashion designers present as street wear. They're choosing things that look especially like sleepwear — like bright pink flannel with printed cartoon images. This is not just about comfort. I'm seeing personal expression, a desire to be playful and fun.

If it were just comfort clothing, wouldn't it look like the "traditional Chinese workwear"? My link goes to a French on-line store that sells that style and says:

Here it is, the iconic 100% cotton uniform straight from China which has crossed revolutions and various continents to get to you....

Those who recognize a good cut beyond its historical symbolism include Yves Saint Laurent, naturally, and Michel Klein - who loves the Chinese work jacket so much that it took the lead at the Guy Laroche fashion show at the Ritz, and then Inès de la Fressange, who is always up to date when it comes to timeless basics.

The presence of the Chinese work uniform in the fashion world owes much to the young Maoists in a 1968 Paris, the advocates of the “Little Red Book” in Saint-Germain-des-Prés....