On October 3, the Honolulu, Hawaii police dropped the charges against GoTopless protesters who had been fined for not having a permit during a protest for equal topless rights in Waikiki on the 4th annual National GoTopless Day held on August 21, 2011.
On October 3, the Honolulu, Hawaii police dropped the charges against GoTopless protesters who had been fined for not having a permit during a protest for equal topless rights in Waikiki on the 4th annual National GoTopless Day held on August 21, 2011.
As a reminder, Gotopless.org is a U.S.-based organization founded in 2007 by spiritual leader Rael. The non-profit association claims that women have the same constitutional right that men have to go bare-chested in public and organizes annual topless protests in late August in the US and around the world.
Last August's Waikiki GoTopless legal case saw the involvement of both the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) and First Amendment attorney Matt Winter who were concerned that a civil right had been violated.
ACLU attorney Laurie Temple explains the police violation of Tess and Jamie Meier’s civil rights during the GoTopless protest: "What the current law prohibits is any two people going to the park with a message they'd like to express. In this case Honolulu police officers did not like the Meier's message and chose to shut down their protest under an unlawful ordinance." (http://www.kitv.com/news/29236379/detail.html)
Indeed, the Hawaii police monitored the two GoTopless events of August 21, both on the North Shore and at the famous tourist area of Waikiki but their presence was more intimidating than protective of the protestors' civil rights. (Note that it is legal to go topless in Hawaii.)
The officers on site warned the GoTopless Day partakers that people were calling in to complain about the females' breasts being exposed in public, or rather “almost” exposed since both male and female participants had covered their nipples with red tape to emphasize unconstitutional censorship of this female body part. Finally, the police intervened and cited Tess and Jamie on a technical permit issue but dropped the charges a month and a half later.
“We want to sincerely thank the ACLU and Mr. Winter for their legal support said Donna Grabow, leader of GoTopless Hawaii. We hope that the resolve of this case of civil rights violation sets a precedent for all First Amendment demonstrations on the Hawaiian Islands. That includes our fully Go Topless protest next year on Aug 26, 2012 as we also celebrate Women’s Equality Day”. Grabow added “GoTopless Day is a perfect opportunity for the people of Hawaii to overcome their taboos on nudity forced on many of them by the missionaries who desecrated their body-positive culture.”
In states like Hawaii, New York, North Carolina, Maine and Oregon where going topless is already legal for both genders, the GoTopless Day protest becomes a topless awareness day that encourages the local populations to exercise their duly topless right while explaining the healthful benefits of embracing one's nudity. On August 26, 2012, a large GoTopless civil rights demonstration will be organized in Washington DC to demand women's constitutional equal right to go topless in public in all the US states that deny women that right.