Go Topless on August 24 has prompted many protests and events nationwide, but the Austin, Texas go topless march is less about gender discrimination and more about guns and the Second Amendment . Women in several Texas towns are planning on letting it all hang out in an effort to prove that breasts are less dangerous than guns and should be viewed as “family friendly.”
Excerpt from a Texas Go Topless Facebook post:
“The 2nd amendment is very popular in TX ‘the right to bear arms’ to protect one’s family is one argument but baring breasts is illegal also ‘to protect the children.’ Texas women, affirm your right to bare your breasts!!! If breasts are more dangerous to children than weapons, then something is truly wrong with our society!”
Ranking Constitutional rights and freedoms by popularity is not a common practice, but apparently one which suits the women participating in the Texas Go Topless Day event. Second Amendment advocates are quick to point out that guns are indeed family friendly and allow Americans to protect their children. A mother’s breast can offer both nourishment and a soft place to rest a little one’s head when receiving a comforting hug but cannot be used to defend the family from armed robbers and others seeking to do harm.
Texas state law does not specifically prohibit women from going topless in public, actually, most states do not have laws on the books addressing female bare breasts as a crime. But, several cities, including San Antonio where Go Topless Day event is slated to take place, do make it illegal for women to stroll down the streets sans shirt and bra. Whether or not a town or state has a law which directly address women being topless in public, police officers have still ordered arrests under disorderly conduct statutes. In San Antonio, topless women can be arrested for disorderly conduct, indecent exposure, and public lewdness.
Some “A” cup women have made the argument that the breasts they possess are far smaller than those of hefty men pumping gas while shirtless, therefore laws allowing only one gender to appear in public topless are tantamount to gender discrimination.
Last month, topless women and open carry gun advocates clashed in Austin, Texas. The city is home to the only official nude beach in the state – Hippie Hollow Park. The international Go Topless group is Las Vegas-based and plans to hold August 24 events at 36 separate locations.
What do you think about Texas Go Topless day comparing the desire to show bare breasts with Second Amendment rights? If men can go shirtless in public, should women be able to do so as well?
[Image Via: Facebook ]