sxnahm@bbncca.ARPA (Steve Nahm) (07/11/84)
(From THE CAPITAL SUN, Volume 5, Number 4)
The Naturist Movement
by Turner Stokes
The other day I found myself, for the first time, speaking to a fellow
naturist about "the movement". It was only then that I really knew what THE
CAPITOL SUN was all about and I've been publishing and editing it for over two
years. We've lost ten miles of clothes optional beach at Assateague, Virginia
and the task of reclaiming it is not going to be a simple one. In my family,
it has been a tradition not to give up until a task is completed. My
grandfather, while doing research into the cause of parrot fever, was only
interrupted in his endeavor by succumbing to the object of his research. My
father took a case against the pohibition admendment to the Supreme Court. It
is in this tradition that we will proceed. We *shall*, using every legal and
political means at our disposal, have our beach back. And before we;re
through, we *shall* have even more clothing optional recreation sites all over
the country. This is what "the naturist movement" is all about.
Perhaps this would be a good time to spell out a change that must be made
in our attitude if we are to prevail. What we must do is to come out from what
I call, quite bluntly, our "cloak of shame". There is no way we can even begin
to succeed if we cannot admit openly and with candor, who we are. If all the
general public can see is a few "front people" that are willing to act as
spokespersons, with no real evidence that there are the thirty million of us,
as we might claim according to the Gallup poll, then we can have no credibility
as a political movement. And it is only as a viable political movement that we
can attain our goals.
A good way to come out in the open and let your family, friends and
business associates know what we are all about would be to contrast the images
of those self-righteous, self-styled moralists at the anti-nudity ordinance
hearing in Accomak County, Virginia, who claimed that we are to be likened to
pornographers, child-molesters, rattlesnakes and agents of the devil, with the
image of reasonable naturist men, women and children asking for tolerance and
understanding. All we *insist on* is to be allowed to practice our form of
recreation and life style *without being interfered with* and without
interfering with anyone else.
This should serve notice to both federal and local government officials
that we expect to be treated as the first-class citizens that we are. It's
time federal and state parks and recreation bureaucrats stop pretending that we
are some minor "special interest group" that has no legitimate needs. We have
heard these words much too often. We mean to have our place on the beach and
the sooner they get used to the idea, the easier life will be for them. If
they don't, we will develop legal and political methods to force them to.
NOW A MESSAGE TO OUR SPONSOR, YOU!
Help keep our legal fight a reality! Buy a "BARE ASSateague" T-shirt.
It's a one of a kind white on green design that will show how you really feel.
Checks for $6.00 (plus $2.00 shipping per order), along with sizes desired
(Adult S,M,L,XL & Kid's S,M,L), to NCN, PO Box 3122, Fairfax, VA 22038
Transcribed by:
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Steve Nahm
BBN Communications, Arlington, Virginia
sxnahm@bbn-unix.arpa (ARPA)
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