Bareback torsos, breasts with colored tape covered nipples and men in bikini tops gathered in Overton Park on Sunday afternoon.
Young and old — men and women soaked in the sun while they played Frisbee and walked their dogs.
A poster for the film Free The Nipple hung from a blue tarp where Kelly Busch, Memphian and Facebook coordinator for the rally, sat among friends.
“If we remove the objectification and the sexual stigma that’s attached to our breasts,” Busch said. “It might go a long way to stop a lot of the issues of women in society being sexually objectified and harassed.”
The movement to go topless is as much about desexualizing the female breast as it is about equal rights, said Jackquelin Johnson, 19, Neuroscience major at The University of Memphis.
“You shouldn’t have to put a blanket over your baby’s head or have to sit in a disgusting bathroom stall to feed your baby because it offends other people,” Johnson said.
Johnson draped a cloth over her head and torso to put silver tape on her areolas before removing her top.
“Our generation should thrive on making change for the better,” Johnson said.
Matthew Craig, 26, said he heard about the event on TV and put on a stripped orange and white bikini top to show his support. Several men used black tape to mark “X” over their nipples.
“I believe in the equality of it. It’s kind of ridiculous, the onesidedness,” Craig said. Aug. 23 was declared International Go-Topless Day by GoTopless.org as a part of their movement to demand equality for women. Memphis was one of 60 cities worldwide to take a stand.
“Guys can pull their tops off on an insanely hot day like this, be comfortable, and it’s okay. But women can’t do the same,” Busch said.
Aside from breast-feeding, it is illegal for a women to publicly expose her breast in Memphis, according to city ordinance. According to a Memphis Municipal code, “with the exception of nursing mothers feeding their babies, it is unlawful for any live female to appear in a public place so costumed or dressed that one or both breast are wholly or substantially exposed … as it pertains to breasts, means … with less than a fully opaque covering of any portion of the areola.”
In other states, women are able to be fully topless in public, including their areolas, as a part of this protest without fear of arrest or fines.
“Slut shaming is at an all-time high because of media,” Johnson said. “But we should be teaching each other you shouldn’t be ashamed of your body, male or female.”
Callie Compton contributed to this story.
Buss McCormick, 61 wears his late wife’s Victoria’s Secret bra while protesting with a handmade sign. “Some friends of my adult daughters shared the event on Facebook and I decided to come,” McCormick said. “I’m just trying to promote change in our conservative city.”
