NUDITY
THE RIGHT TO BARE ALL: Should Nudity be allowed at pride?
The never-ending debate on letting it all hang out continues on By Bobby Box
In honour of IN Magazine’s Pride issue, we are revisiting the debate of nudity at Pride, asking individuals in our community where they stand so we can better understand…and perhaps settle things once and for all. The issue really blew up in 2014, after Toronto District School Board (TDSB) trustee Sam Sotiropoulos led a motion requesting that police enforce the city’s public nudity laws at Toronto Pride. “[Pride] is supposed to be a family-friendly event. If you went to any other ward in the city on that day and paraded around naked, you would likely be arrested,” Sotiropoulos argued at the time. The controversial request threatened the very tradition of Pride, and was covered by the nation’s most reputable news sources. According to them, Sotiropoulos, a “strong believer in traditional family values,” said he had “no problem participating with Pride,” but could not endorse an event “where the laws against public nudity are being flouted.”
JULY / AUGUST 2020
His request, supported by two fellow trustees, was ultimately defeated by the TDSB by a vote of 16 to 6, whereas an opposing motion calling on the board to express support for Pride passed by a vote of 17 to 3.
could be considered a more relaxed approach and will turn a blind eye. This means, more or less, you can be naked as long as you’re conducting yourself in a responsible manner. “In my professional experience working with Pride, nudity has never been an issue with the committee,” Phil Villeneuve, co-programming director at Pride Toronto and editor of Yohomo.ca, tells IN. “Folks naked in the parade or walking down Church Street have always been part of the expression and freedom of that big weekend.” Most agree with Villeneuve. In a poll I published on Twitter, 69 per cent of the nearly 300 votes said they believe people should be allowed to strut their stuff in the buff. Though, admittedly, my social channels draw mainly a queer crowd. A CBC poll, which is likely to attract a more diverse voting sample, found 62 per cent of people think there should be no nudity at Pride. The biggest argument against – both among their sample and mine – is that children shouldn’t be exposed to naked people at a family-friendly event that attracts nearly 6,000 children.
Chris, 44, who used to run a queer youth centre, questions whether nudity is the most reasonable way to demonstrate sexual liberation. “Is that even the message they would take away from the experience?” Maria Rodrigues, the trustee who presented the opposing bill, he asks. “Or does the sexualization of Pride make it an unwelcome argued that nudity at Pride is rooted in our history – namely, the environment for them?” Stonewall Riots in 1969, which are largely considered the birth of Dave, 33, agrees, explaining there are better ways to show pride. the gay rights movement. “In my opinion, those who insist on being completely nude are just Because Sotiropoulos identifies as a heterosexual male, his argument doing it for the thrill and attention,” he says. “It’s a shame because never sat well with the LGBTQ+ community. As such, we denounced most people, regardless of orientation, don’t want to be confronted his views as homophobic; in response, he accused the community with someone’s naked body in public.” of “homosexism,” which he defined as discrimination towards the heterosexual community by the LGBT community. His tweet read: Kat, 33, is a new mother and regular Pride-goer. “I love Pride and “One of the most divisive influences in Canada today is #homosexism I’ve always wanted to bring my kid when I had one,” she shares. “But now that I have one, my mind has changed – there are way it’s disseminators are maliciously rabid.” too many naked men there. For my young daughter’s sake, I wish Now, back to today. We should address whether nudity at Pride the full frontal would not exist. I know it’s not a kids’ street party, is even legal – which, in most cases, would be a big no. But on but I want her to go out and support these things without being Pride, as is similar with Mardi Gras, law enforcement has what uncomfortable.” 34
IN MAGAZINE
