Everyone has that grandparent, parent, or other family member who says, “I feel bad for your generation.” Well, in my opinion, the Free the Nipple Campaign gives your grandma a very good reason to say this. Supporters of the campaign claim that just as men are free to take off their shirts in public, women should also be able to do so freely. Basically, the essence of their argument is that female toplessness should be legal in the US because it is a double standard.
I can think of a million ways that I struggle because of my gender, but wearing a shirt every day is not one of them. If you asked me if I wanted to see my female friends with their breasts out in the open, I would definitely pass on that opportunity.
The campaign asserts that their larger goal is to rid society of its habit to sexualize the female body, and ultimately empower women in our fight for complete gender equality. However, stripping me of my clothes does not empower me. In fact, I would argue that it degrades me.
Every night I bike back from work at 9:30 pm. There is always this young man, certainly a UC Davis college student, running with his shirt off. Regardless of whether I think his bare chest is attractive or repulsive, it gives me the opportunity to judge him. Now let’s imagine that the runner was a topless woman. What do you think would happen? Like her male counterpart, I think she would be pointed at and her body judged. “Her breasts are too small,” some would say. Others would claim, “one is bigger than the other.” I know our society is becoming more progressive, but we’re still too conditioned. We’ve been taught to perceive breasts as sex symbols, and therefore, we expect them to look a very specific way. We idealize large, “perky” breasts, and deem women with small, “saggy” breasts as abnormal or unattractive. I don’t think normalizing female toplessness in public is going to change that. Speaking as a woman, I feel that there is enough pressure on me to have the perfect body, and being able to run, eat, or shop topless would only increase this pressure.
Don’t get me wrong, I think breasts are beautiful. Anyone who doesn’t rids the female body of one of its greatests assets. However, I truly believe that in order to give our breasts the love and respect they deserve, they need to be kept private. Those who are dedicated to gender equality should spend their time creating programs that teach women and girls to love and respect their bodies. All women and girls should know that they don’t have to be perfect, and that beauty comes from the inside.
Look, Free the Nipple campaign, I have no desire to take my top off publicly. I find the idea absolutely humiliating. The only people that this movement empowers are heterosexual men and non-heterosexual women who want to see their “objects of desire” with their tops off. It’s time we rethink how this movement is affecting gender equality. If you ask me, it’s counterproductive.
The author has chosen to express her personal opinion in this article. This should not reflect on Her Campus as a whole.