Nudists march in San Francisco streets for Valentine's parade

Participants in the Nude Valentine's Day Parade walk down Market St. in San Francisco on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Participants in the Nude Valentine's Day Parade walk down Market St. in San Francisco on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017. Photo: Courtesy / Steve Hellman Photo: Courtesy / Steve Hellman Image 1 of / 28 Caption Close Nudists march in San Francisco streets for Valentine's parade 1 / 28 Back to Gallery

The sunny weather worked in favor of a group of nudists who took to the streets on Sunday for the second annual Nude Valentine's Day Parade.

The parade began at noon in the Castro District, with the crowd making its way from Jane Warner Plaza to City Hall.

Nude activist Gypsy Taub released a statement inviting fellow nudists to join in the parade. Taub stated that during this current "climate of hate" the parade is the time to "demand freedom on all levels of human existence":

We want to show the world that we are not afraid, that we are united in the name of love and that we have nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of. We want our naked bodies to demonstrate that we don't fight with weapons nor violence, but with our hearts and minds using the power of our spirit and the power of love. We don't hide under military camouflage, nor do we cover our faces nor our bodies out of fear. We are not afraid to just be ourselves in the name of love, in the name of freedom.

The group also prepared some chants for the event, many centering around the theme of acceptance and stopping body shaming.

"Clothes are boring, clothes are lame! Let's say 'No' to body shame!" went one chant.

"We got skin, you got skin. Love your body — ain't no sin!" goes another chant.

Taub has organized similar events in the past, along with the inaugural Nude Valentine's Day parade that began last year. She also instigated the nude "Summer of Love" parade last August, which saw two dozen people walk from the Castro district to Haight-Ashbury in the buff.

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Taub's activism has led to run-ins with city government, particularly over a ban on public nudity in San Francisco enacted in 2013 (with the exception of events where proper permits are obtained). In 2015, a federal judge ordered that the city grant a permit to Taub and other nudists, after the city sought to block the group from holding a "Nude-In March."