More than 300 people marched in their yoga pants in Barrington, Rhode Island on Sunday to protest a newspaper letter by one man who told women to stop wearing their Lululemons
Alan Sorrentino caused an uproar in the area after he said it was 'bizarre and disturbing' when adult women sported the tight athletic wear in a Letter to the Editor published in a local paper
Alan Sorrentino (pictured) says he has received death threats since the letter was published in The Barrington Times
'Yoga pants can be adorable on children and women who have the benefit of nature's blessing of youth, ' he continued.
'However, on mature adult women there is something bizarre and disturbing about the appearance they make in public.'
The scathing letter caught the attention of Jamie Patrice, of Providence, who blasted both Sorrentino and the paper and decided to organize the protest.
'So happy that with the national election, local election... and all the other serious s**t happening around us THIS s**t was given ink, ' she wrote on Facebook.
Ellen Taylor, one of the protesters, said she found the column especially derogatory in the wake of Donald Trump's lewd comments about women, she told the Providence Journal.
'Not since the mini-skirt has there been something worn by so many women who should never have it on in the first place, ' he wrote in the ill-received column
The column caught the attention of Jamie Patrice, of Providence, (pictured) who blasted both Sorrentino and the paper and decided to organize the protest
Sorrentino has since claimed that the column was supposed to be a joke, and that the response it received was 'over-the-top crazy'.
'To target somebody's home for a letter in the paper is disgusting, ' Sorrentino said.
'A joke is designed to fool people; those people were fooled.'
Sorrentino said he had 'assumed the character of a grumpy old man' for the letter, one who railed against what women wore because 'he was too tight to just relax and accept himself in his age and his own ways'.
The column specifically targeted older women, with Sorrentino writing that yoga pants 'do nothing to compliment a woman over 20 years old'.
'Maybe it's the unforgiving perspective they provide...or the specter (sp) of someone coping poorly with their weight or advancing age.'
'Do yourself a favor, grow up and stop wearing them in public, ' he added. 'I struggle with my own physicality as I age. I don't want to struggle with yours.'
Women at the protest argued that it wasn't just about Sorrentino, but also the anger they feel at being constantly told what to wear.
Jamie Burke, one of the parade's organizers, said 'women are fed up with the policing of our wardrobe' and that Sorrentino's words had struck her 'in the gut', she told the Providence Journal.
The group help up posters that read 'Love Yourself' and 'We Wear What We Want' as they walked by Sorrentino's house.
A sign with the words 'Free Speech' had been hung up in his yard.
Sorrentino has since claimed that the column was supposed to be a joke, and that the response it received was 'over the top crazy'
Sorrentino, who claims he has received death threats, said before the parade began that it was 'vicious and intimating' and should not be allowed to happen.
But the women argued they were well within their rights to stage the peaceful protest, which they said was meant to bring the community together.
Women who attended the march donated items to The Sojourner Home, a local shelter for victims of domestic violence.
The company Dear Kate also donated 100 yoga pants to the home and chief executive officer Hongjoo Sun attended the protest.
'Our brand is all about female empowerment, ' she told the paper.
Sorrentino said that at the end of the day he has no problem with yoga pants and even owns a pair himself.








