Protest To Aim At Equal Topless Rights

WFTV ^ | 1:07 pm EST March 2, 2004 | not specified

[Hodar]

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- There's a topless protest being planned this weekend in Daytona Beach, at the end of Bike Week.

Liz Book of Ormond Beach is among the organizers. She hopes to lead a thousand "top-free" women and men along a half-mile of Main Street from the pier to the bridge. The goal is to add Daytona Beach to the small but growing list of places that allow women to show their breasts openly, just like men.

Even if only two people join her protest, she plans to still go through with it. City officials and police are mostly taking a wait-and-see approach, in part because the city's ordinance allows nudity when it is clothed in political protest.

Book's husband, Robert Van Winkle, bailed her out in 1998 when she was arrested for baring her breasts inside the Full Moon Saloon. A group of women in Brevard County, known as the "Topfree Ten" have filed a federal lawsuit seeking the right to go shirtless in non-sexual contexts wherever men do, during such outside activities as beachgoing or gardening.

[Hodar]

I really don't see what the big deal is. I'm a guy, and I have larger boobs than some women. I'm not especially attractive, yet I seldom go shirtless because I don't want to make the spectators throw up. However, I see no reason why a woman who does exactly the same thing I do; not only has people gawk at her, but also faces fines and possible imprisionment.

[observer5]

Wait until the Taliban finds out...

[Mr. Jeeves]

The problem is, the women who lead these protests tend to be the very ones that no one wants to actually have to see topless.

[Constitution Day]

duplicate

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1089176/posts

[End Times Sentinel]

Already posted here, http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1089176/posts

And you didn't come up with any photos either!  Can't you read the by laws???

Owl_Eagle

" WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
DIVERSITY IS STRENGTH"

[Hodar]

Please remove, someone beat me; thus this post is a duplicate.

Thanks

[Lokibob]

Doing a search for a webcam. lol

[Hodar]

yeah, they posted about 30 seconds before me....

Working on getting this one yanked.

[goldstategop]

One is hard pressed to explain to kids why women's boobs are okay in National Geographic but it corrupts their childhood innocence if they see a centerfold's naked breasts in Playboy.

[Constitution Day]

I bet the women who are pushing for this are just NASTY.

[HEY4QDEMS]

City officials and police are mostly taking a wait-and-see approach

I'll bet they are.

[Hodar]

I live in Austin, TX. It's a really great place, IMHO. Anyway, we have a natural spring-fed swimming hole called Barton Springs in the center of town, in Zilker Park. The pool is very clean, deep and more than a tad bit nippy.

It's not unusual to see topless co-eds swimming and sunning there. I have had visitors who commented how the park is nice, clean, nicely maintained; yet would not believe that young and old alike sun and swim topless.

Having been there a few times, you may notice a young woman getting out of the water, or heading down to the pool without her top on. And you know what? After about 15 seconds of getting your eyes full; you simply don't care. It's not a big deal.

Why can a 500 lb hairy man may go around without a shirt in the 100+ degree days without a comment, but should a woman dare do anything without a shirt; she is not only subject to crude remarks, she may also be arrested? To me, this makes very little sense.

[Callahan]

That's impressive honesty Hodar. Don't let others opinions deprive you of a day at the beach.