"Ugly laws” were a series of municipal ordinances enacted in various cities across the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They prohibited individuals who were deemed to be "unsightly" or "ugly from appearing in public spaces.

These laws targeted people with visible impairments or conditions that made them seem "deformed" or "out of place" in the dominant social order. They were about defining and maintaining a certain ideal of public beauty.