Expression in its Rawest Form
By Devin Trubey
San Francisco, one America’s most liberal cities, has decided to take the hard line on the nudity issue after the Scott Weiner scandal. City Supervisor Weiner himself now supports the new city ordinance that forbids people to be naked in eateries and that a nudist must cover a chair with a towel before sitting down. There will be exceptions made for events like Bay to Breakers and Folsom Street Fair. The ban was approved by the Board of Supervisors and is scheduled to take effect Feb 1 with the consequence of a $100 fine for first time offenders and $200 for a second. Anybody who breaks the rules more than three times faces a $1,000 dollar fine and up to a year in prison.
In protest of this new ban on nudity Gypsy Taub, host of a public access television show called “My Naked Truth,” disrobed at Board of Supervisor meeting on November 6th. The woman is now organizing a nude-in at the upcoming city hall meeting. Film producer Jan Dalchow plans to film a documentary on San Francisco’s nudity laws and the 1,000 bodies project, which reminds people that our bodies are our own and we can do with them what we want.
The constitutional issue at hand is whether or not the first Amendment protects expression in this revealing form. The freedom of expression protects any seeking, receiving and imparting ideas, regardless of the medium used. Concurrently, Article nineteen of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”Opponents argue that their medium is public nudity and that their rights should be protected no matter what.
pc: thegreatamericandisconnect.blog
