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Topfree Equal Rights Association (TERA)
(Association du droit égal aux seins nus)
Box 81128 FGPO
Ancaster, Ontario L9G 4X1, CanadaE-mail: topfree @ tera.ca OR topfree @ topfree.ca
tel.: (+1) 905 304 4836
The Topfree Equal Rights Association (TERA) helps women who encounter difficulty going without tops in public places in Canada and the USA, and informs the public on this issue.Statement of purpose and principles
Contents of this site
New on this site
Front page newsDirectors of TERA:
Co-ordinator
Dr. Paul Rapoport
e-mail: topfree @ tera.ca
voice: 905 304 4836
fax: 905 304 4837Director
temporarily vacantTreasurer
Mr. David Basford
e-mail: dvd @ hwcn.org
voice: 905 627 9935
fax: 905 627 8362Chief Advisor
Ms. Judy Williams
e-mail: judyw @ direct.ca
voice: 604 856 9598Some e-mail addresses are listed on this site with spaces. To use them, click on them and remove the spaces.
TERA requests news stories like those below: please send complete information or reports about topfree events, problems, or issues---or references to them.
TERA will also add you to its mailing list for special announcements and news items (once a month or less often). Just send us an e-mail message with your address and a request to be added to our mailing list.
RECENT TOPFREEDOM NEWS 2010 July 23. Coming soon: a topfreedom day of pride in Guelph, Ontario. Shortly after the day noted below, there will be a topfree event --- on Saturday, August 28 --- held in St. George's Square in downtown Guelph. Bands, speeches, and an open mic set are booked from 3 PM to 10 PM.
The event will begin in the Goldie Mill Ruins with a motivational talk and discussion with the women who may be going topfree in public for the first time. This will start at 2 PM. The organizers, Lindsay Ann and Andrea O'Malley, may be contacted via e-mail for more information!
2010 July 19. This 19th anniversay of Gwen Jacob's arrest in Guelph, Ontario brings the announcement of the annual "Go Topless" day organized and promoted by gotopless.org. Several cities are planned for topfree protests against women's inequality. This year's date is Sunday, August 22. Here are two photos from last year's event in New York City:
One point of demonstrating there is that even though topfreedom for women is legal in New York, they're still subject to harassment for it; and of course it isn't legal in many places --- which constitutes unjust discrimination against women.
We're pleased to see a striking increase in the past few years in legitimate interest in and understanding of the topfree equality issue. These demonstrations are clearly part of that.
2010 July 07. The city council in Asbury Park, New Jersey said "No" today to having a topfree beach there. In our view, that's the right decision. But of course it was made for the wrong reason: "It would scare away families who have recently started coming back to the once-famous resort." Even better is this ignorant comment: "This is a family town. It would be a disgrace to be out there with children on the boardwalk and have them looking at body parts that don't belong to them."
It's a disgrace that Americans think they are protecting children by denying women equal rights and by promulgating the insidious notion that women's breasts harm children.
2010 July 07. Here is a report on the topfree protest in Key West, Florida on July 4th. Most of the women covered their nipples most of the time, under threat of arrest by attending police. The article repeats the myth that breasts are sexual organs without so much as commenting on it.
2010 July 02. This article today is all about topfreedom at ComFest, the annual community festival in Columbus, Ohio held in late June. Although it contains good information and quotes Nadine Gary of gotopless.org extensively, one can't help feeling that ComFest is the exception that proves (tests) the rule on topfreedom in Ohio, despite the city allowing it or court cases in Ohio asserting women's topfree rights.
2010 July 02. In a letter today, Richard Mason, President of South Florida Free Beaches, points out that the planned topfree protest in Key West on the 4th is unconnected to the attempt to procure a clothing-optional beach there. He notes that Miami Beach has a policy, created by discussion, that allows women to be topfree on all its beaches, not just South Beach.
2010 June 30. There are many people who think women's breasts are sexual organs. That seems to include the police department of Madison, Wisconsin. This article tells how a woman was issued a ticket for not covering her breast "genitalia" in a recent demonstration there.
This video shows a woman being taken away in handcuffs for being without a top. (Go to 1:51 in the video. On her back is "Up with bikes, down with pants," although she's wearing a bottom.) The subsequent police interview in the video exudes self-congratulation. It's a whitewash and untrue from the point of view of riders --- especially those ticketed or arrested.
Police did stop topfree women. They are convinced that one complaint means that the women are guilty of "disorderly conduct." Where was the disorder in an orderly bike ride, except for what the police caused? Why do ignorant, prejudiced complaints make anyone but the complainer wrong?
Other reports exhibit the usual hand-wringing of "What about the children?"
2010 June 28. Partly in response to the story below from Delaware, where a few people with women's breasts weren't charged with violating laws because they were deemed men, Heather Cushman-Dowdee created the cartoon below. We've featured her wonderful work before, often about breastfeeding and topfreedom, in her series of Hathor the Cowgoddess.
Heather's been busy with her new site, on which this and many other funny and pithy commentaries may be found. Her work may also be found here.
2010 June 27. There's been a recent pitch to declare a beach in New Jersey topfree for women. In the multitudinous commentaries on this (including here and here) are the following assumptions:
-- a topfree woman is nude.
-- a topfree woman is inviting immoral sexual activity from others.
-- the sight of women's breasts harms children.
-- topfree women must be hidden away, unlike topfree men, because women or women's breasts are dangerous / second-class /disgusting / obscene / (pick one or more).All that is behind the proposal or would result from its acceptance. A specific area set aside by any government where women may be topfree is just another means to control them and deny them equality with men. There must be no legislated topfree beach in New Jersey. If women decide to congregate topfree voluntarily in one or more places, that's another matter. They must be lawfully free to be topfree just about anywhere, not in some legislated ghetto --- beach or other.
2010 June 24. The planned topfree protest in Key West next week is drawing wrong comments from law enforcement, such as this from a state attorney: "It's exposure of sexual organs." For an article that gets a lot wrong, try this.
2010 June 14. Here's a question we've often considered: would women participate in a topfree event to support breast cancer research? Recently a website asked that question and posted a few of the responses. Note that even the "best" answer thinks that women's breasts belong to men. Other responses refer to breasts as degrading and sex organs.America still doesn't get it.
Then there's this, from a few days ago, about raising money for breast cancer research. No comment from us, for a change.
2010 June 04. Sometimes in these struggles, it's hard to define what topfree is. In Delaware recently, it became clear that it's sometimes hard to define what female is.
At the end of May, a few transgendered persons (in this case, genitally defined males with enhanced, female-like breasts) decided to go topfree on a Delaware beach. Although they were reported, police stated that they broke no law against topfreedom for women because in law they were men. We won't discuss the sexological literature that helps define the sexes (male/female) or the various genders. What's clear here is that laws against topfreedom constitute unjust discrimination based on sex, which is unconstitutional in the USA and many other countries.
That conclusion is inescapable: the individuals in question had the same chest appearance as women, but only genitally defined women would be charged with breaking the law. It is obviously not the breasts that are the deciding factor, but the sex of the person. Men and women doing the same thing get women charged but not men. That is unacceptable!
2010 June 03. Tracy Leigh, planning a topfree protest in Key West, Florida on July 4, has written a cogent note about it here.
2010 May 25. There was a protest yesterday outside the Houston headquarters of British Petroleum. Code Pink women were topfree, although they may have been advised to cover their nipples. If such is required, this is effective for such an event:
2010 May 23. There will be a topfree equality demonstration in Key West, Florida on July 4. It's being organized by Tracy Leigh. For more information, write this address.
About ten months ago, Key West maverick Sloan Bashinsky wrote this letter to the city's police chief. In it, he explains why arresting topfree women there would be a singularly bad idea. That turns on the district's state attorney having said he would not prosecute such women on beaches.
2010 May 18. Thanks to Brent Danley, we have three photos from the April 3 topfree walk in Portland, Maine, organized by Ty MacDowell. They're found here.
2010 May 16. After the two topfree walks in Maine, "Topless Tuesdays" have sprung up in Keene (the only one we're aware of so far being May 4). It's no surprise that Cassidy Nicosia is involved. Here's an excerpt from what she wrote in response to the predictable objectors to this activity:
Society has perverted what women’s breasts are seen as to enforce puritanical thought processes. The idea that woman is inherently a temptress, and all actions by her are to lure in the unsuspecting, innocent male. That’s ridiculous. And we need to stop teaching our children this, enforcing these narrow-minded ideals, and using the gun of the government to get what we want. Anyone should be able to look at a woman topless in public and barely think about it, the same way it is with men. It happens, and it’s not a big deal.
2010 May 15. This is probably the best interview with Catharine Pierce about her recent fight with officials in Boulder, Colorado over her topfree gardening there.
2010 May 05. Thanks to Eric Taylor, a student at the University of Maine at Farmington (and a basketball player, he notes), we have a few uncensored photos of his from "the walk that went around the world" --- the topfree walk in Farmington on April 30 to demonstrate and assert women's topfree equality.
The blanket in the photo above centre appears to belong to Elaine Graham. A well-known conservative homophobe in the area, she walked with the topfree women trying to cover some with her blanket, claiming that their wish for equality was degrading. The photo above right has the walk's organizer, Andrea Simoneau, in its centre. Bravo, Andrea!
2010 May 03. Get a Load of This Department: the Attorney General of Virginia wants to replace the state seal with his specially made John Ashcroft-approved version, which covers an exposed breast. Someone called this "one big boob covering one little boob."
2010 April 30. The first report we have about the topfree walk in Farmington, Maine today is from the west coast! We like what Charles Jacques has to say about women's topfree equality: "Keep making a big deal about it until it's not a big deal."
Other, sometimes informative articles are from Portland, Bangor, Portland again, and Lewiston. Better analysis may be found in some blogs, such as this one.
2010 April 29. Maine's Andrea Simoneau is interviewed about her topfree demonstration tomorrow in Farmington. (You may have to scroll down.) Another interview is here, from television.
2010 April 28. Boobquake! Our hearty congratulations to Jennifer McCreight, who inadvertently became famous overnight (or at least "overweek") for suggesting a humorous but meaningful response to an Iranian cleric who blames women for natural disasters.
"It began Monday, April 19," noted Jennifer, "when I had just read the quote by Iranian cleric Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi. 'Many women who do not dress modestly . . . lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes,' he said in a Friday sermon in Tehran."
On her blog, on Facebook, and elsewhere, she suggested that women test this theory by showing as much of their breasts as they wished on April 26. Although she didn't ask for women to be topfree, she left that possibility open.
Attention to the event was worldwide, with participants in many cities. The range of participation may be indicated by this photo from the Vancouver Province in British Columbia:
2010 April 26. The next march in Maine for the social equality of women's topfreedom will take place at 13:00 (1 PM) in Farmington, at Meetinghouse Park (going to Abbott Park). As noted below (April 13), the event is under the direction of Andrea Simoneau, who's been out and about promoting it, topfree, of course!
Women and men welcome.
2010 April 14. A woman in Boulder, Colorado who has gardened for years without a top was threatened by the housing authority where she lives, who wanted to pass an ordinance against her. Today the housing authority gave up, citing a recent city ordinance that allows topfree women. Congratulations to Catharine Pierce, who never gave in.
Despite her victory and correctness throughout, some townspeople have treated her poorly.
2010 April 13. A second topfree event is coming to Maine, on April 30. Andrea Simoneau, a student at the University of Maine in Farmington, is organizing a topfree walk/march in Farmington. This news report describes her handing out flyers on April 11 for the event while topfree.
We read that the police were helpful. Then we read, "if rubber necking causes an accident because of the unusual sight, she may be held accountable." If a woman is doing something legal and someone else does something wrong, then the woman is responsible? Haven't we had enough of women being blamed for what others do? If she were wearing fancy, expensive clothes and there were a car accident because someone was looking at her, would she be responsible?
The police should not promote unconscionable ideas.
2010 April 12. Here is by far the best article we've encountered on the recent Portland, Maine topfree march. It's by Sarah Moon, of the University of Southern Maine. It deserves to be read by anyone interested in this general topic, or in the troubling aspects of the position of women and their bodies in America today.
And here's a reasonable article written by a man at the University of Northern Iowa. Although he doesn't go far enough with this or quite get the legal picture, it's worth reading.
2010 April 11. Ty MacDowell of Portland, Maine has responded well to criticism of her or the topfree walk she organized a little over a week ago.
2010 April 07. As expected, Boulder, Colorado adopted an anti-nudity ordinance last night that shows it cannot distinguish between the World Naked Bike Ride and a sexual threat. The ordinance does not criminalize women's breasts, which is obviously good.
2010 April 03. The topfree stroll mentioned below for Portland, Maine today went off as planned---more or less. The walkers/marchers were outnumbered by spectators, many with cameras. That was to be expected, given the advance publicity. The organizer, Ty MacDowell, was displeased with the ratio of participants to gawkers and some of the behavoiur of the latter. There were no arrests; the stroll was legal. In fact, police were present.
The photos above are by Brent Danley. The writing on the woman in the middle of the middle photo is "Freed boob."
One video for the event is here, also here. It raises obvious questions but does not invalidate the event. We don't know how representative this video is. The videos we've seen from news outlets are censored or expurgated. Because of that, they're inaccurate, misleading portrayals.
2010 April 02. In the past couple of months have been a few articles about the project "b for a cure." The well-known San Francisco photographer Peter Bruce is creating a book of anonymously pictured women's breasts to raise money to fight breast cancer. The website is here.
The project is still looking for subjects: "We are always looking for models of any size, shape, cup, or race, and volunteers across the country." The country is the USA. Only those 18 or older are wanted.
2010 March 25. A topfree stroll is planned for Portland, Maine on April 3. Both women and men are wanted, "to point out the inequality in the social acceptance of male toplessness as compared to female toplessness." A good start? (We don't know who is organizing this, although there's more here.)
2010 March 21. Last month, the City Council of Boulder Colorado was to debate a nudity ban. A few people, it seems, don't understand events like the World Naked Bike Ride and the Naked Pumpkin Run. In the end, the Council voted 5 to 3 to remove women's breasts from any such ordinance.
Speaking about the ordinance in mid-February at a Council meeting was Seth Brigham. He appeared topfree before the council. He had been assured by police that his appearance that way was legal. Despite that, he was arrested and removed from the meeting---after the Council had tried to interfere with his presentation by making noise in the PA system and then cutting off his sound entirely. With commentary, the video of that part of the meeting is here. More commentary (rather good, we think) on this whole matter is here.
Eventually, the charges against Brigham were dropped.
And then this month, people called police on a topfree woman who was gardening at her house (on March 17). The ignorant response reported was the usual "What about the children?" Despite the fact that the woman's behaviour is legal, the housing authority governing where she and her husband live wants to forbid it.
2010 March 19. A major defeat has occurred for a coercive former county prosecutor in Pennsylvania. A US federal circuit court has ruled in the case of three teen girls who were threatened with being charged with child pornography offences. Their "crime" was being pictured topfree or in bras---unless they agreed to attend the prosecutor's paternalistic, demeaning "education" program.
Congratulations are in order to the girls and their families, even though a year for this nonsense to go on is a year too long.
2010 March 14. For some reason, photos of Zia McCabe are making the rounds again. She's a founder of the rock band The Dandy Warhols and has often performed topfree, as this older photo suggests. Does the photo indicate something immoral?
2010 March 12. Whether it was fun or just silly, FM 96 in London, Ontario decided to stage its own version of the Braunlage, Germany topfree sledding race. It was the famous Tucker & Taz all the way as they found two intrepid topfree tobogganers to slide down a hill---not on toboggans, but who cares? The results were, shall we say, predictable! Go here for the topfree twosome's tumbling tournament.
We commend Tucker & Taz for choosing a man as well as a woman for this edifying event. No matter that they didn't quite get an audience of 14,000.
2010 March 11. Elizabeth Book held an eight-day protest with various others in Daytona Beach, Florida. She reports on it on her Facebook pages. Although we don't know what she did exactly, it obviously involved being topfree a good amount of the time. In contrast to other years', this series of events seems to have gone off with no or few problems.
Liz kindly sent us photos, a few of which we reprint here (Liz is on the right in the first two; it seems we're meant to ignore the date stamps):
Clearest of all is what Liz wrote before her week of protest:
This is my challenge to the world:
There are close to 6 1/2 billion human beings on Earth. I challenge you to find me even one child who has been harmed by the female breast.
Bill O'Reilly once threw that statement at me: "What about the children?" Yes, what about them. Find me just one, Bill. Good luck looking for that child. I doubt that you will ever find it.
I find it sad to see that there are women who have come to despise and curse their own breasts. They are shamed by that badge of femininity that rests on their chests. How sad, for they actually carry the most blessed fluid on Earth, within them.
It is societies that carry hate and prejudice. Ours has taught us to hold our very own bodies in contempt.
2010 March 05. Yesterday many women held a Breast Party at the University of Arizona in Tucson to make papier mâché moulds of their breasts "It's not as scary as I thought it was going to be," noted one student. "Getting in here and realizing I had to take my bra off in front of people . . . there was a moment of terror."
"It's great to feel comfortable around other women and to embrace our bodies," said another.
2010 February 21. What's been called a naked sledding event wasn't. In Braunlage, Germany yesterday, 30 topfree people took to colourful sleds and raced down a 100-metre hill in front of the town hall. The event was sponsored by a radio station.
Two notable aspects of this race: 1) According to reports, the participants were outnumbered by a mere 14,000 onlookers. 2) More significantly from our perspective, the sledders were 15 men and 15 women. Now that's topfree equality!
Yes, it snowed, and no, they didn't all stay on their sleds.
2010 February 11. One of the more important articles on Facebook's attitude towards breastfeeding mothers is here. Facebook routinely deletes from its site photos of breastfeeding. It has labelled them obscene and pornographic. It says that it has rules for what is allowed on its site, but its careless actions show it does not.
Facebook's clueless manner of censoring is not just pointless but harmful. There are other ways to deal with unwanted material than by immature, arrogant, and foolish removal of what one doesn't like, especially when photos of breastfeeding are claimed to harm children---a claim Facebook has made for years.
Below is a recent photo Facebook removed. Could Facebook have a bad case of nipplephobia? Is there a cure?
See also the following pages for more photos of breastfeeding deleted by Facebook as lewd, obscene, pornographic, etc.:
www.tera.ca/photos13.html
www.tera.ca/photos12.html
www.tera.ca/photos11.html
www.tera.ca/photos10.html
www.tera.ca/photos9.html
www.tera.ca/photos7.html
www.tera.ca/photos6.html2010 February 07. A few women in Kyïv (Kiev) protested today's Ukrainian election topfree, demanding democracy. They used tape to cover their nipples but appear to have been arrested.
The signs they held up say "Today the war begins!" (left); "Enough raping the country!" (not visible here); and "Help! Rape!" (right) --- plus the one in English (centre). Many photos and a few YouTube videos are here.
2010 February 03. Last night the city council of Boulder, Colorado removed women's topfreedom from illegal behaviour in its anti-nudity ordinance. That's the good news. The bad news is that it voted to move the altered ordinance forward. It's unnecessary and badly thought out, reflecting America's general body phobia and refusal to understand certain events, such as those mentioned below (in the January 29 news announcement). Nonetheless, that topic goes slightly beyond TERA's mandate.
The best analysis of the situation comes from the ACLU's Judd Golden. It is here.
2010 January 29. Boulder, Colorado is considering adopting an anti-nudity ordinance that would make it illegal for women to be topfree in public. Unwilling to allow the significance or fun of the World Naked Bike Ride or the Naked Pumpkin Run, and believing that exposed skin always brings public disorder, it thinks that to discriminate unjustly against women is part of the way to deal with matters it could easily deal with in other ways.
The ACLU in the area would agree with TERA. Among other things, it's concerned that the proposed law will violate Boulder's non-discrimination laws and criminalize protected behaviour.
2010 January 25. Shannon Claire, a woman in Auckland, New Zealand, wants to campaign for topfree rights there. Although the written report from TV3 News is slight, the accompanying video is good. It doesn't get into deeper issues but does quote many people.
Shannon Claire is breaking no law. Therefore, no "authority" should approach her to complain. Note all the "What about the children?" statements. These people need educating, although for some, their ideology, which they attempt to hide, precludes such a possibility. The person dressed in black (below, right) seems as an excellent example (from what she says).
Before the beach part of the video, from which come the above screen shots, the announcer says simply, "If you don't want to see breasts, look away." Although he was casual, better than alarmist American newscasts on this subject, he could have done better yet by issuing no warning.
2010 January 22. This from England's Daily Mail. The BBC has ordered a painting at an auction hidden because of a visible nipple.
For once, we have no comment.
2009 December 30. A mural in Las Vegas showing topfree women was required to have pasties added to it. The question centred around whether the mural was a sign or a work of art. Its location was at the Erotic Heritage Museum, which takes it outside TERA's usual interest.
Still, there's a lesson here. The figures themselves suggest little of their context or purpose; but the eyes, on a head or not, suggest voyeurism. The question: If it's in a sexual context, how could the addition of pasties make this a more acceptable mural?
Regardless, it's clear that in Las Vegas, women's breasts/nipples are allowed to be visible only if the viewer pays. That point, true in many places, is one reason TERA exists: to defeat the negative commodification of women's breasts.
2009 December 23. A woman in West Virginia was fired as cheerleader and cook at two schools for having been in a hot tub clothed with some topfree female students. She posted a photo on MySpace of the group fully clothed, although news media originally got that part wrong and reported the girls were topfree in the photo. In the photo in question, the girls covered their breasts. It was taken with their permission.
The woman won reinstatement as cook only, but her school board is appealing that decision.
2009 November 27. Yesterday in Victoria, British Columbia three women staged a topfree protest over cuts to the arts by the B.C. government. They claimed that the cuts amounted to 92% in some cases and so removed about 92% of their clothing. They also painted themselves green.
The organizer, Dianne Searle, said that one of the conditions imposed on the event by the authorities was that it be "trouble free." That makes no sense for a protest in a free society. Also making no sense is the CBC headline, which starts with "Nude protesters."
2009 November 25. Yesterday, the student newspaper at Portland State University in Oregon published an engaging article about women's topfreedom by Meaghan Daniels. It makes the case calmly, mentioning an experiment conducted on a Portland street by a women's studies student at PSU.
2009 November 24. Earlier this month, the Michigan Court of Appeals rejected a guilty verdict for Ed Stross. He had painted the word love and a biblical scene including a barebreasted Eve (after Michelangelo) on an outdoor mural in Roseville.
The court ordered a new trial. Because this is the appeal court's second ruling in favour of Stross, we think it's time to dump this one. The city of Roseville should stop wasting money and looking foolish.
2009 November 11. A week ago, artwork of breast cancer survivors was removed from an exhibition in Waikiki, Hawai'i. Rita Coury's five large photographic prints are of five women in different stages of breast cancer, including mastectomies and reconstruction. The bank café that had initially agreed to the exhibition said, "All art must be appropriate for all audiences and age groups."
2009 October 30. The second segment on breast self-examinations is broadcast by WJLA (see the October 29 item, below), with another full breast shown as a woman is taught the technique.
This woman refused to be identified, which unfortunately gives the impression that someone thinks she is doing something wrong and immoral. And the comments WJLA makes outside the news item itself are still too much. "Viewer discretion is advised," for example, is a stock, patronizing euphemism by now.
The news segment itself, like the one from the previous day, is good. Not to be missed are the interviews with two well-known women with breast cancer: Elizabeth Edwards (October 29) and Tanya Snyder (October 30). So overall, we congratulate WJLA and hope it successfully repels the immature and ignorant comments.
Can American broadcasting now tolerate breasts in connection with disease and disease prevention? How about a program or two about breastfeeding, usually a cheerier subject, and just as important? The proper latch is something that must often be demonstrated to mothers of newborns.
2009 October 29. A SIGNIFICANT AMERICAN TV NEWS SEGMENT IS BROADCAST, and it isn't even about topfreedom. ABC affiliate WJLA in Washington D.C. broadcasts an important few minutes about breast self-examinations for women in which two entire breasts make their appearance, in the late afternoon, even.
We think Lauren Albright, the subject in the video, did a great thing, and we empathize fully with her in this situation. Thousands, perhaps millions, of women are prepared to do the same. If they haven't done so, it's only because of a monstrously foolish Federal Communications Commission that has put repressive ideology before the public good in declaring the glimpse of women's nipples harmful and to be removed from all basic network broadcasts under threat of huge fines.
WJLA produced a good broadcast that was nonetheless marred by claiming it was adult material, containing "revealing," "graphic" images of someone "unclothed." In case viewers didn't understand what a "full breast examination" meant, they were advised that Albright took "the extraordinary step of baring herself."
That's false and sensationalist. So is the headline on this nonetheless useful Washington Post report. It notes that the FCC can't fine a station for indecency in a news broadcast. ABC's own Good Morning America website, however, reported on all this by saying it wouldn't show "any full nudity," claiming that women's breasts are "private," and putting white bars over Lauren Albright's breasts and nipples. It falsified WJLA's news broadcast with distracting condescension.
The USA is still in official denial about bodies. Its official attitude towards women's breasts constitutes mass manipulative madness, with harmful results that we and many others have noted.
Despite appearing in a poisonous broadcast environment, WJLA's segment should do some good. Maybe it will lead to every station declaring itself to have 24-hour news broadcasts. Let's hope it leads instead to broadcasts in which women's breasts and nipples are seen to be doing nothing on a variety of programs, and to the immediate removal from the FCC of its unwarranted and unconstitutional censorship.
2009 October 27.
On Hallowe'en (October 31), New York City artist Andy Golub will have some of his topfree bodypainted models in a parade in Greenwich Village.
After he began painting in Times Square, police challenged him. So he contacted a lawyer to find out that topfreedom for women has been legal in New York State since 1992. Whom did he contact? Spencer Tunick's early lawyer, Ron Kuby.
Check out an engaging video of Andy in action here. There are more still photos here.
2009 October 10. Fortunately, it's not every day that you can call 911. Robin Whitten, however, seems to have enjoyed being the hero when she spotted what she saw was a topfree woman standing outside a coffee shop in Washington State. Although we have no comment on the shop, we must commend Ms. Whitten for her alertness in phoning 911 and tying up an emergency line that's needed for reporting abuse, heart attacks, car accidents, and natural disasters.
Megan Lenn, an employee of the coffee shop, was arrested for indecent exposure. She had small bits of black tape over her nipples on a "Pasty Wednesday."
"You could see boobs," Ms. Whitten explains. Well, we sure know who the boob is in this one. Thanks, Robin, for nippling that one in the Bud.
TERA does not generally go in for corny pasties.
2009 October 10. A few days ago, the case of Emily Gillette of New Mexico came back in the news. She had been removed from a Delta Airlines flight in Vermont for not covering herself while breastfeeding. That was in 2006. Because Delta or its partners refused to compensate her properly, she is now suing in a federal court in Burlington, Vermont.
"Delta fully supports a mother’s right to breast-feed." Except when it doesn't.
2009 October 06. Two major statements on breast cancer: which is better? Here they are:
1. A video for an event called the Boobyball (which has been around for seven years), in aid of a charity called Rethink Breast Cancer.
2. A magazine production from the French Marie Claire.
Is there really a comparison? Here's a perceptive article about the first, from Erin Chapman, a student at Indiana University.
In the second, the magazine has had ten famous French women pose topfree to promote mammography and other breast cancer detection. The photo below is of Rachida Brakni, a French actor known from many movies. The French words say: "I had a mammogram before my pregnancy. I will continue to be vigilant. It goes with my responsibility as a mother."
2009 September 29. The magazine Pink Ribbon has launched its version in The Netherlands. It's a unique"charity glossy" whose sale proceeds go to the Pink Ribbon Foundation, for breast cancer awareness and research. The magazine's campaign uses several still images, of which one is the following.
Many English-language web locations mentioning the magazine crop the breasts out of the photos or don't show photos at all. Some provide links and decry them patronizingly as NSFW.
Pink Ribbon also produced a short video with equally simple lines about breasts spoken (in English) rather than printed, and many images like the one above. The first and last images in the video follow.
2009 September 20. We don't generally post examples of topfree women that aren't what we're interested in. This is an exception. The photo below is of a woman who is merely standing outside. But the context of this is different.
Naomi McDonald stood and sat topfree on the fourth plinth in London's Trafalgar Square today from 12:00 to 13:00 (London time) as part of Antony Gormley's artwork One and Other. It involves members of the British public being on the plinth for an hour each, 24 hours a day for 100 consecutive days. The divergence, from TERA's point of view, is that Naomi McDonald describes herself as "a professional model/dancer and streaking addict" and a "natural born exhibitionist." That is not what topfree equal rights are about.
Her performance, a mild version of what she probably does professionally, reinforced the automatic association of women's topfreedom with sexual display, which we have to get rid of.
2009 September 09. This article analyzes the decision to drop charges against Cassidy Nicosia (see the next item below). It suggests that either the police didn't know the law or knew it but arrested her regardless. It also suggests that the decision not to proceed was made mainly for a political reason: to prevent removal of an overbroad law. TERA is not surprised.
2009 September 03. The charges against Cassidy Nicosia are reported dropped. She had been arrested in a topfree demonstration in Keene, New Hampshire on August 23, and faced arraignment on September 9, for a charge of "indecent exposure and lewdness."
photos by Mike Barskey
Note the topfree men, who were of course not arrested. Also note that the referenced letter was unsigned and sent to Oklahoma! Do the Keene police have a clue? Surely they do; but some appear not familiar enough with New Hampshire law. They had responded to a complaint or two about Cassidy on the national "Go Topless" day; politically, it seems they felt they had to arrest her, when they should merely have explained to the complainants that there was no problem with what she was doing.
Cassidy was prepared to fight this, and stated that this body equality was important to her. TERA advised her but is glad its advice is probably not going to have to be used.
We congratulate Cassidy on her position and the result.
2009 August 29. This recent article is a lively, funny, well-written account by a woman who decided to go topfree in New York's Central Park. Only one problem: who's the nut who told her it wasn't legal to walk that way?
2009 August 24. The Go Topless demonstrations took place as scheduled yesterday in several US cities. There were good-sized crowds of participants and observers in some. Many videos are on YouTube.
Here is a text report from New York. And here a photo:
Women in Central Park, New York City, handing out gotopless.org cards for the event
photo by centralpark2009One of the demonstrations' useful components was men wearing bra-like breast coverings: an ideal adjunct to topfree women, to demonstrate the illogicality of the usual restriction on women and girls.
In some locations, women wore pasties over their nipples. In our view, that defeats the purpose of the protest, rather like protesting racial inequality by painting blacks almost white. (That women's nipples aren't obscene is obvious; that they're not illegal in this situation is likely, even if women may not want to spend time and money proving that.) Paint, however, is a longstanding element of these demonstrations that makes some sense, especially in this photo from Chicago's demonstration (left) or the one from Columbus (right):
Left: Amanda Springborn and Doug Hickok with a poster in Chicago
Right: Body painting in Columbus (photo by Chet Kresiak)Many news reports mentioned that the protests were organized by Raëlians. That was a distraction. One headline in particular suggests that American news media weren't taking this event seriously: "UFO Cult Would Like To See Your Breasts."
In using every artful dodge in their photos to hide women's nipples, they also implied that topfree equality is wrong. Why should the media be allowed to present news in a slanted manner?
Unfortunately, in Keene, New Hampshire, a woman was arrested. TERA is involved in her defence.
2009 August 12. On August 23, the second annual "Go topless" day will take place in several American cities, to promote topfree equality. For the rationale and a list of cities where demonstrations and other activities are planned, go to the site of Go Topless. (Although we know some of the people involved, this is not a TERA event.) It seems that in New York City, Jordan Matter will be present, with his fantastic new photographic book, Uncovered. More about his book will appear here.
2009 August 02. This is the big one for the play The Strong Breast Revolution! The finest representation of what topfreedom is about, this 50-minute "cult hit just waiting to be released into the world" runs every day at 14:45 from August 7 to 29 (except Sundays) in the mother of all fringe festivals, the Edinburgh Fringe. Anyone within reach of southeastern Scotland must see this!
This is the third incarnation of TSBR by Vicki Hambley, co-created by the cast and co-director Tanith Lindon.
top: Alice Fernbank; left: Linda Mathis; centre: Jennie Barbrook; right: Suni La
2009 July 20. In Australia, teenagers in a Melbourne school had to get parental permission to see a demonstration of breastfeeding. This is inconsistent with a generally more benevolent attitude in Australia towards breastfeeding.
The school principal said he had to be sensitive to various nationalities in the school. With that attitude, he should disallow teaching anything about Australian history or culture. If the goal is not to offend anyone, how can he justify having any school?
2009 July 04. We've received so much material from and about the recent ComFest! That's the annual Community Festival in Columbus, Ohio. So we put a couple of photos here (by Lauren Damon) and tell much more of the story, with eleven more photos, on a special page. The connection between topfreedom and breastfeeding has never been closer. Read on.
Lauren Damon
feeding her daughter
at ComFest 2009
in Columbus, Ohio
There's another fine article on the whole matter here, with Lauren Damon on the cover!
2009 July 02. A major article on topfreedom by Laura Roberts is here. She writes about it very well!
Earlier topfreedom news is here (April 2001 to December 2006) and here (January 2007 to June 2009).
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Thanks to a generous donor, TERA is a sponsor of an important calendar: Breast of Canada 2003 to 2007. The calendars deal with total breast health, from prevention of disease to topfreedom!
NEW ON THIS SITE
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE AND PRINCIPLES The Topfree Equal Rights Association (TERA) helps women who encounter difficulty going without tops in public places in Canada and the USA, and informs the public on this issue.
This website is intended as an information resource. It should interest women (and men) who understand---or want to understand---that women's breasts are just fine, and in no way indecent, obscene, dangerous, or some other version of bad, any more than men's are.
In most jurisdictions in North America, explicit sexual activity in public view is illegal. That is not involved here! If men may decide to have exposed breasts without it, so may women.
If women act on this understanding by innocuously having uncovered breasts in public, they are usually criticized, ridiculed, and hassled, and may be fined or jailed. Their experiences tell quite the story, which is gradually unfolding on this site and similar ones.
Our basic claim is that women deserve equal rights. We do not suggest that women or men should go about with bare breasts. That is every individual's decision. We do believe that since men may choose to do so in many situations, women must also be able to at least in the same situations. Without penalty of any kind.
Women pay severely for North America's leering punishment of their breasts. Many find themselves the object of unwanted and unwarranted attention from men in positions of power over them. Many have debilitating body image problems, hating the breasts on their own, unique bodies. Many undergo hazardous cosmetic surgery to conform to some non-existent standard. To please others, many wear bras that confine and hurt and may be harmful. Many are afraid to breastfeed, especially with others present.
Why do many women want to let their breasts out of the prison our society has put them in? They want to be comfortable. They want the convenience. They want to further their well-being. They want ownership and control of their own breasts.
They deserve equal treatment under the law.
If you think that the issue of exposed breasts is trivial, or you disagree with the above, have a look around this site. You may change your mind.
(More about TERA's purpose with reference to feminist theory is contained here.)
From time to time, people ask whether there is any place on this site to post messages and discuss issues. There isn't. However, we are willing to mention sites that enable that, without comment about them. You will find them on our links page. Those wanting to be linked in that way should notify us.
TERA does not often post to these sites because, quite honestly, we are busy! That does not preclude involvement; and as always, TERA welcomes items (positive, negative, or other) to post on this site on our articles, comments, and quotes pages, not to mention photos!
We are willing to establish a separate area about breastfeeding in public, if the material relates to topfreedom. (There are other sites for this topic which handle it very well.)
If you like what you find on this site, please go here.
CONTENTS OF THIS SITE
(a work in progress)
Items and areas you may visit on this site
Misunderstandings about women and bare breasts
Frequently asked questionsPhotos, page 1
Photos, page 2
Photos, page 3
Photos, page 4
Photos, page 5
Photos, page 6: banned by Facebook!Articles, talks, and the like
not as boring as you thinkA "topfree herstory"
the start of something ...Judicial opinions (and more)
the decisions that have made historyVisitors' comments
from light to really livelyInspiring quotations
from all over the placeRecent news
funny, ridiculous, sad, uplifting,
or some combinationNews releases
a samplingLinks
to others promoting topfree equal rights
We acknowledge with thanks the continual assistance of Artie Bigley of Columbus, Ohio
in the preparation of some of the news stories on this page.
ALL MATERIAL ON THIS SITE IS COPYRIGHT 1997-2010 BY THE TOPFREE EQUAL RIGHTS ASSOCIATION. Material may not be printed or posted elsewhere except by explicit permission of TERA. However, links to this site and material on it are encouraged, if the aim is consistent with TERA's.
NOTE: TERA strives for the highest level of accuracy and credibility in its site, its other messages, and its actions. However, no comments, statements, opinions, suggestions, admonitions, or other communications on this site or in any messages from TERA are intended or are to be construed as legal advice. Neither TERA nor any of its board members, affiliates, or associates is in any way responsible for direct or indirect, immediate or delayed consequences of acceptance, rejection, interpretation, or indeed any use whatever of material found on this site or on any site linked from or to it, or of material in TERA's messages or any proper or improper transmission or retransmission of them.
TERA needs donations to support women. If you like what you find on this site, please go here. Latest update: 2010 July 23, 18:30 EDT
CONTENTS OF THIS SITE
