NAC Blasts AANR Over San Onofre

Any regular reader of this blog knows that I have repeatedly supported the Naturist Action Committee and their efforts to save the clothing-optional status of San Onofre State Beach in California, while at the same time being aghast at AANR's appeasement of the California Parks and Recreation and refusal to join in on the NAC lawsuit.

In the latest issue of the NAC newsletter, edited by Bob Morton, an article proclaims that a total of ten dismissals and no convictions for defendants cited for nudity have been achieved with the help of defense attorney and NAC Board member Allen Baylis, who has insisted on jury trials for his clients. In each case, the San Diego County District has been unwilling to proceed to trial.

The NAC is to be commended for standing up for naturists at San Onofre, thus showing that they truly represent nude rights and are not merely presenting meaningless words on paper.

In the same article, AANR comes under fire.

NAC invited AANR to sign the petition for designation, but AANR refused. Forgetting AANR's own history of litigation on behalf of nudists, and overlooking the fact that AANR-West had donated thousands of dollars to support NAC's lawsuit, former AANR Executive Director Erich Schuttauf declared publicly that he didn't wish to be seen as "signing on to a petition presented by an organization associated with legal confrontation."

The California Department of Parks and Recreation desperately needs a nudist organization to endorse its fraudulent crime statistics and accept the shameful fact that nudists and naturists at San Onofre State Beach have been thrown under the bus. AANR is positioning itself to be the nudist partner that unquestioningly endorses the Department's manufactured crime statistics, while it quite noticeably turns its back on the naturists and nudists at San Onofre.

Meanwhile, the Naturist Action Committee is defending those who have been cited for nudity at San Onofre - and is winning those cases. Proactively, NAC is pursuing a petition that would result in statewide designation of clothing-optional areas in California state parks.

AANR's Government Affairs Chair Dave Graber wrote recently: "The Naturist Society and the Naturist Action Committee have a different philosophy than AANR and its Government Affairs Team."

That much is obviously true.

I've said many times that naturists at San Onofre have been "thrown under the bus" by AANR, but it's still a bit surprising to hear naturist leaders using the same language.

This does illustrate quite pointedly the deepening rift between the two major American nudist/naturist organizations, and the lessening likelihood that they will ever see eye to eye on major issues like that at San Onofre.

The Nude and Natural Newsletter May 2011 pdf

Allen Baylis Reports No Citations at San Onofre in Four Months

From the Friends of San Onofre News:

To the best of our knowledge no citations for nudity have been issued since the Cahill/Harrison Policy has been revoked. We really can’t anticipate that the Parks Dept. has in mind for the summer, but you can be certain that if we don’t keep going to the beach and continue the long tradition of nude sunbathing, skinny-dipping and naked volleyball, the tradition will be lost. We must continue to show the government that we are not going to simply go away.

Be sure to read the entire report here.

State of California Spent $42,000 Fighting Nudity at San Onofre Beach

Public records show the State of California has spent $42,000 fighting the Naturist Action Committee over the issue of nudity at San Onofre Beach, and that the Parks Department took action against nudists over only two written complaints, according to a story today in the Orange County Register.

Ken Kramer, district superintendent of the Orange Coast District, said the money spent was well worth it.

"Our approach to this issue transcends dollars and cents," Kramer said. "This is money well spent to make sure we address these concerns. We have the duty to make sure that with this type of increased popularity and visitation that we have a park where all visitors feel welcome and that there is lawful activity occurring."

When asked about the shockingly low number of written complaints, Kramer said that the majority of the complaints were verbal, yet there is no documentation of those, and no explanation as to why records were not kept. Kramer also would not directly blame the nudists as the source of the complaints, yet showed his own bias by claiming that there was a "correlation between the two" without presenting any actual proof.

Kramer also indicated that if people did not comply with the San Onofre nudity ban, that his department would be "forced to take it to the next level."

It's abundantly clear that the California Department of Parks and Recreation, which is cash strapped to begin with, has done something overwhelmingly unpopular by banning nudity at San Onofre. Read the comments on the article and take the poll - the vast majority of respondents already feel that this is all a complete waste of taxpayer money and resources.

NAC might have lost the battle, but stands to win the war by taking a stand for naturist and nudist rights against out-of-control parks management. As more details emerge, AANR appears to be more and more in the wrong on this issue. It's hard to fathom an organization like AANR, which professes to represent nudists and their rights to be clothes-free in designated areas, would actually cave in on such an important case, and cede the loss of San Onofre as something acceptable in appeasing parks officials, who have shown time and time again that they cannot be trusted.

Thanks must go to Cindy Carcamo of the OC Register for researching and reporting this story. These new revelations should open the door for a new strategy to restore nudity at San Onofre. The question is: will AANR finally admit that it has been tragically wrong on this particular issue and unite with the NAC and the Friends of San Onofre to finally present a united front against those who would further erode our civil liberties and natural rights?

USA Today Covers the California Nude Beach Story

USA Today picked up on the banning of nudity at California's San Onofre Beach, and both Bob Morton and Allen Baylis are quoted. It's noteworthy that AANR was not interviewed for the article.

Park Superintendent Richard Haydon warns:

"We are going to be moving forward with starting to enforce the nudity statute down at San Onofre, and basically returning that portion of the beach to all people who want to go down there without fear of running into something they didn't think they would," Haydon said. "People should very well be under notice."

I really despise this so-called "rationale". How can you exclaim that you are returning the beach to "all" people by banning those who most frequent the area? This is clear discrimination. All that needs to be done is put up a sign or two warning about nude sunbathers so people don't have to live in "fear" of seeing too much flesh.

Most of the article is retread material, but Baylis does note that people are ready to be arrested in order to bring the matter before the criminal courts as a matter of civil disobedience. Unfortunately, with a government intent on robbing people of basic freedoms, sometimes that's the only way. I only hope that Baylis has the numbers of people necessary to make such a protest effective.

More Than 100 Protest at San Onofre

The Orange County Register reports that over 100 nude protesters gathered today at California's San Onofre Beach, and no citations were issued.

The rally comes nearly a week after officials started enforcing a ban on nudity. For more than a year, the state Department of Parks and Recreation said they would start citing nude sunbathers after Labor Day weekend at the traditionally clothing-optional beach.

The state's move came after more than a year of legal wrangling and an appellate court ruling in its favor. The nudists have appealed to the state's Supreme Court, asking the court for a hearing.

More than a hundred people gathered on the beach Sunday with signs denouncing the state's crackdown on public nudity at Trail 6.

When asked whether the protest may make an impact, the group's leader answered.
"It shows the Parks Department that we're not willing to go away," said Allen Baylis, who is a Huntington Beach attorney.

So You Think You Can Trust the California Department of Parks and Recreation?

State park officials intend to ticket nude sunbathers at San Onofre Beach even though the case is currently under appeal. Spokesperson Roy Stearns disagrees with Huntington Beach attorney Allen Baylis that the original court ruling still stands.

"(The Supreme Court appeal) doesn't stop us from taking action,'' he said. "As far as we're concerned Cahill has been removed.''

The obliteration of the Cahill Policy essentially means that park rangers no longer need to receive a private citizen complaint before citing someone for nudity at the beach.

No word yet from the NAC or AANR.

NAC Appeals San Onofre to California Supreme Court

Story here.

"We're pretty hopeful," said Huntington Beach attorney Allen Baylis of the Naturist Action Committee. "Things are going back and forth, but we're pounding away on it." The Supreme Court has up to 90 days to decide whether they want to hear the case. Until then, Baylis said, the appellate ruling is on hold.

Update on San Onofre

Allen Baylis of Friends of San Onofre reports that he spoke with Ken Kramer, California State Park District Superintendent for the Orange Coast District, and he reports that no citations for nudity will be issued for the remainder of the summer; however, the department intends to replace the "nudity prohibited" signs and conduct a public educational campaign for enforcement next year.

It seems to me that this is the time for TNS, the NAC and AANR to all get on the same page here and organize a massive display of support for San Onofre Beach. On July 12 there will be a beach cleanup and barbecue, and people are encouraged to attend and show support for proper behavior.

If San Onofre is to be saved, it will be from a groundswell of support, and not from further court action. While I supported the NAC in its efforts to keep San Onofre open, which basically bought naturists two more seasons of freedom, it appears the time has come to pursue other means of fighting the battle.

The Sunday Newds 11/23/08

• A dance concert at Macalester College in Minnesota features nudity.

  "I started with nudity as the subject matter itself rather than the effect of some other concept, because I was-and continue to be-interested in it as a social experiment," (Emily) Gastineau said. "It's been very specific to the context of Macalester, because in some places a naked dance would be totally unremarkable and in others it just wouldn't be done, but we're somewhere in the middle."

• A couple of radio hosts did their show in the nude in honor of Australian Nudist Federation's National Nude Week.
• The Chicago Tribune features two stories on nude recreation here and here.

  Some people who haven't tried nudity say, "I wouldn't want to see that person naked on the beach." I overcame that attitude. Most people are flawed, but nudists don't care what size or shape bodies come in, so the experience equalizes fat and skinny, old and young, gorgeous and not so gorgeous. Everyone's just there to have fun, to tan, to chat or to relax. Since I could forgive them their supposed flaws, I forgave myself my own. My confidence blossomed in all areas of my life. My appreciation of people for all their differences expanded.

• An Illinois man was cleared on 5 counts of creating child pornography.

  The former manager of the Discover More! Store at the Children's Discovery Museum in Normal was charged because of photos of five naked boys he took at a 2006 birthday party for his son at his home.
  
  While Shoemaker admitted in court that taking the photos was inappropriate, he denied directing the boys. He also said didn't think the six photos were lewd, just young boys displaying locker room-type behavior.
  
  The appellate court agreed, saying in its ruling "the photos ... appear to be examples of nudity without lewdness and not child pornography."

• An article in the Cape Cod Times equates nude sunbathing and streaking with public masturbation and sexual intercourse as problems being faced by local police.
• More nude calendar stories here and here.
• Body painting is part of the Taboo Naughty but Nice Sex Show, but artists and models claim it's less about sex than it is about art.

  "You're a canvas for someone's art and we get the pleasure of wearing someone's art," said the professional model.
  
  "We don't want to walk around and say, 'Hey, we're naked.' We want people to look at how well these people can do their job."

• Three nightclubs at the nudist community Cap d'Agde in France have been destroyed by fire, and investigators suspect arson resulting from mounting tensions between traditional nudists (naturists) and those who want to live a swingers lifestyle (échangistes).

  “We don’t want to put the échangiste places out of business,” said Gilles Beaumont, a naturist and regular at Cap d’Agde. “It’s true that we don’t like being mixed up with the swingers. But we respect other people and their right to behave as they please.”

• A couple is suing McDonald's because they left a cell phone with nude photos of the woman at an Arkansas restaurant, and the images ended up on the Internet.
• Lawsuits have been filed in Seattle against a school district over nude photos of cheerleaders distributed by cell phone.

  Both lawsuits, filed Monday in King County Superior Court, accuse school administrators of violating the girls' due process rights, needlessly sharing the photos with other school staff members and failing to promptly report the matter to police as possible child pornography.

• Naturist activist and attorney Allen Baylis will be lecturing at California Polytechnic State University on "Recreational Nudity - With Impunity".

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

Are We Less Tolerant?

Regarding the San Onofre nude beach struggle, the Los Angeles Times editorializes:

Sad to acknowledge, the gentler era of the live-and-let-live Cahill Policy seems to have passed us by. We're more crowded together. We annoy each other more. We leave less room for one anothers' idiosyncrasies because there is less room to leave. Tolerant rules that differentiate between mild naughtiness and rude, outrageous behavior are tested to the limit. One side reacts and the other side sues. Even if the Cahill Policy stayed in place, anti-nudist vigilantes would almost certainly make a point of patrolling Trail 6 and filing regular complaints. And if all else fails, both sides could gather signatures for competing state initiatives.

You mean after the Civil Rights struggles of the 50s and 60s, the women's movement, and the bringing together of peoples in the Information Age, we actually less tolerant of each other?

Is nude sunbathing "outrageous" behavior? Is it even "mild naughtiness"? Or is it simply the most natural thing in the world? After a person has gone nude swimming and sunbathing, the thought of putting on a swimsuit seems "outrageous".

The idea that "anti-nudist vigilantes" will patrol the beach just to file complaints is an abuse of the system. And just where is the evidence that such a movement even exists? As Allen Baylis points out, any complaints about nudism on the beach are unfounded because it was not illegal activity. The state is punishing the naturists because of some illegal public sexual activity at the south end of the parking lot. The fact that the beach is clothing-optional has nothing to do with people cruising for sex, which has been known to occur at rest stops, public bathrooms, and parks all across America.

The Los Angeles Times really need to get its facts straight before offering an opinion. Obviously whoever wrote this particular editorial just decided to pull it out of his or her own ass.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked