Is an Equal Rights Ban on Topless Men Fair?

Jun 8, 2011
Sara McGrath

Topless Man - anemoneprojectors

Women have long been subject to cover-up laws and penalties, but men in some places are sharing the experience.

I grew up in one of the handful of U.S. cities where women can and do legally go topless. Perhaps for this reason, the idea of a ban on topless men, let alone women, is perplexing to me.

Organizations including GoTopless and Topfree Equal Rights Association address the equality of topless issues and laws.

Topless Issues and Laws Around the World

Some Barnes & Noble and Borders bookstores in the U.S. recently censored the latest cover of Dossier Journal featuring topless androgynous male model Andrej Pejic, saying some customers might mistake the model for a female because of the makeup and curlers in his hair.

The British Isle of Wight has renewed its island-wide ban on topless overweight men. Head Warden Martin Adams explained, "We will be assessing the size of individual’s man boobs – known as ‘moobs’ within medical circles – for size and weight." Transgressors receive fines.

Transgendered men with enhanced breasts, however, are not--at least not yet--subject to the shirtless ban at Rehoboth Beach in Delaware, just two hours from Washington, D.C.

This week, Barcelona officials passed a ban on bikinis in public. “A number of people who live here disturbed by the tourists back and forth on the street wearing only bikinis, or shirtless men,” said Assumption Escarp, the Barcelona board members who pushed to pass the ban.

Twenty-four percent of Runner's World magazine poll respondents think it's never okay to run shirtless. Another ten percent think it's acceptable, but only on a hot day.

What About Breastfeeding Topless?

In my current city, there's no public beach dress code nor any nude beaches. As with most places around the U.S., breastfeeding is exempt from indecent exposure laws. Breastfeeding mothers can legally bare their breasts to nurse their babies. That doesn't mean people won't complain or even make nudity complaints to the police, as I have experienced.

Interestingly, even for the non-lactating public, indecent exposure is only criminal if a "victim" complains. According to "Seattle 911," a Seattle P-I police blog, "If someone runs naked across a street and only an officer sees the person, for example, the streaker will likely be warned, but not charged with indecent exposure. If someone sees the naked person and complains -- the person who complains would technically be the victim -- the case could go forward."

I miss my topless-accepting city. I grew up seeing bare chest of all kinds and never developed a discomfort with the sight. I've certainly never felt like a victim of someone's nudity. I've never been particularly exhibitionist myself, but I would enjoy the comfort of less clothing on a hot day and the freedom to nurse my breastfed children without the discomfort of covering up. People who feel uncomfortable can easily look away.

Sources:

Moss, Hilary. "Dossier's Andrej Pejic Cover Censored by Barnes & Noble, Borders." HuffingtonPost.com, May 26, 2011.
Author Jp1885. "Local Council Extends Topless Sunbathing Ban to Overweight Men." NewsBuscuit.com, June 2011.
"Running the Numbers." Runner's World. Rodale, July 2011.
Stanglin, Douglas. "Topless Ban at Beach Doesn't Apply to Transgendered Men with Enhanced Breasts." USA Today, June 4, 2011.
Apriyanti, Nintin. "Barcelona Bikini Ban." Strodong.com, June 1, 2011.

Sara McGrath - Sara is a veteran homeschool mom of three, Usborne consultant, and the author of Unschooling: A Lifestyle of Learning.

Comments

Jun 11, 2011 1:01 PM

KELLY GIBBS :

I have always felt that women should be able to go topless just like men. After all we wear clothes with cleavage to show off our breasts, so men obviously know that they are there. We therefore have no need to hide them when at a beach. However, I do believe that at topless beaches, girls should have more discretion on what they wear on the bottom. If we are able to go topless like men, there is no reason for us to wear string bikinis on the bottom. Sometimes I wonder why girls wear anything on the bottom with only those strings attached. We might as well go naked on the bottom as well.

However, since men must cover their penis and balls, women should also have to cover their bottom, so no hair or slit is showing. It seems that many young girls cover their breasts, but not their groin which is really wrong.

Aug 13, 2011 1:18 AM

Guest :

I have seen several National Geographic programs about remote tribes in several different parts of the world. From Africa to South American and the islands in the Pacific, one thing was common. The males were totally naked but the women although topless, did wear skirts. Some of these programs did blur out the women's breast but they did not blur out the male genitals even though they had a few close ups of the men. Often the males had a string holding their penis up which also resulted in being able to see their testicles very well.

On one program, they showed the males in mock combat and because they were totally naked, you could see their penis flopping as they fought. It appears all the women in the village were watching this mock combat too.

Even though I am a male, I do appreciate it when they blur out the women's breast as I do think women need to have more modesty. The fact that women throughout the world have their genitals covered while the males fully expose theres show that the women's being able to see naked males should be no big deal but it also shows males should not be able to view a woman's genitals. I would go along with that even if it happend all over the world. I would rather have the males be naked than to have women expose themselves.

Aug 26, 2011 1:32 AM

Guest :

A ban to keep men from going topless too? Why? As a woman, I do not care how much males want to show. They can all go naked for all I care. It would help our young girls to know what males look like before some pervert exposes his penis to them to scare them.

Sep 25, 2011 1:44 AM

Guest :

Discover Magazine had an article in 1972 that compares the fates of Donner Party males and females irrespective of age. Most of the males (30 out of 53) died; most of the females (24 out of 34) survived. The 57 percent death rate among males was nearly double the 29 percent death rate among females.

By looking at the effects of age and sex simultaneously, the advantage the women had over the men becomes even more striking. Most of the female deaths were among the youngest and oldest, who were already doomed by their age. Among those party members aged 5 to 39–the ones whose ages left them some reasonable chance of survival–half the men but only 5 percent of the women died.

The dates of death provide deeper insight. Of the 35 unfortunates who died after reaching the lake, 14 men but not a single woman had died by the end of January. Only in February did women begin to buckle under. From February onward the death toll was essentially equal by sex–11 men, 10 women. The differences in dates of death simply underscore the lesson of the death rates themselves: the Donner Party women were far hardier than the men.

Thus, sex and age considered together account for much of the luck of the survivors. Most of those who died (39 of the 40 victims) had the misfortune to be of the wrong sex, or the wrong age, or both. Just as on the Titanic, the #1 reason someone died is because they were MALE. Being MALE is the most common reason people die in auto accidents. Males do not survive the same trama women easily do. What most women do survive, kills most males. It is a good thing males can not have babies because the pain would kill most males.

There is much more in the link above to show that the male is the weaker sex and it also points out that several of the males died because of the old fact that males kill more often and when they kill, they most often kill other males.

I contend that this is solid proof of the fact that women are superior to males and that males are by far the weaker sex.

Oct 8, 2011 12:34 AM

Guest :

Ban males from being topless because women are not allowed to do so? Why?

There are a lot of other festivals and rites of passages in which the males and only the males are totally nude and many encourage women to attend these rites of passages but the women can not remove anything although the males are totally naked.

Many college fraternities and guilds also have a long standing tradition of involving sister sororities in initiation ceremonies of the young men. Often times these rituals dictate that the young male pledges strip and conduct silly activities such as calisthenics, playing games or perform a ritualistic activity. It is common these pledges are blindfolded and do not realize that they are being watched closely by as many as 70 young coeds as they dance around or play silly games completely naked

Nollningen is a Swedish college initiation ritual in which the entire school participates, including faculty. During the initiation the Nolls (freshmen) play games and have ceremonies in which many of them are forced to strip completely naked, much to the delight of the girls present. To the chagrin of the guys, although the girls participate they never strip naked but may sometimes undress down to panties and bras. (although I do not think the girls should remove ANTYHING although the males are totally naked and the women should be able to touch ANYTHING that is exposed on the males)

The entire student body along with faculty surrounding these new male students and being quite amused, including many female faculty members and coeds. No secrets are being kept from these women by these young males!

One of the best known events of Nollningen is the game "Kladstrek", which we understand to mean "clothesline". This game involves the teams competing to make the longest line laying end to end. The line is extended through adding any clothes one is wearing; thus, a lot of pressure is put on the freshman to take off everything (even wallets are added to the length). Although the female freshmen play as well, custom dictates that they never undress more than bras and panties (again the women should not remove ANYTHING, let it be only the males who are naked)

Based upon the numerous times Nollningen has been held, it is obvious that Kladstek is designed to get all male freshmen completely naked prior to other events and drinking games. After viewing hundreds of photos taken over the past several years, it appears every male in the freshman class ends up totally nude. Evidently, the male freshman often stay naked through subsequent games and rituals, much to the amusement of the coeds in attendance.

As a result of one of these events when I was in college, I now attend the CFNM events anytime there is one in my area along with several of the women in my neighborhood and several female co-workers. Oh when we go to these events, I am one of the ones who is naked.

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Is an Equal Rights Ban on Topless Men Fair?

Topless Issues and Laws Around the World

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What About Breastfeeding Topless?

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