Nudist Volunteers Make a Difference

By Sharon McLeod

It was a dark and stormy night as a half dozen nudists converged to attend an Oregon Forestry Lands hearing regarding proposed rules, changes which included, a prohibition on nudity.

Why did they leave their families and homes for such an event?

These volunteers are the “boots on the ground,” watching for and dealing with local changes that could reduce our opportunities for nude activities. In this case, the volunteers also included many nudists that provided feedback via postal and electronic mail.

Those at the meeting asked questions and provided statements that became part of the public record. They learned that all input would be reviewed, the rules revised, then presented to the Oregon Forestry Land Board on March 9th for approval.

We waited impatiently to see the revised rules, preparing to attend the board meeting with more feedback. At last, revisions were posted on the organization’s website.

It appears that our tax dollars paid for a thorough analysis: nine proposed rule changes received feedback. Generally, each received one or two comments with a peak of five comments for changes relating to gun usage. In contrast, proposed rules that would prohibit nudity received an incredible 175 comments against the change, with absolutely no comments in favor. But we, as nudists, can talk all we want and those prohibitions could still be implemented, right?

To our surprise and delight, the recommendation of the Forestry Lands staff was that “…the prohibition and definition are not adopted in the final rule.” The staff also observed that, “Opponents to the proposed restriction on nudity in designated recreation areas are concerned that the definition being used is sexist and confuses nudity and obscenity, and would lead to unintended consequences such as making it illegal to breast-feed.” A look at the revised Rules shows all material related to the prohibition on nudity is now crossed out for deletion.

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Happy endings such as this are possible only when nudists alert one another when issues like this one surface. AANR is an established network through which the news travels; local nudists get the job done.

How can you help? Be alert to changes in your community. Anytime an issue surfaces, contact your club or region’s Government Affairs person, or call the AANR office at 1-800-TRY-NUDE (1-800-879-6833).

Note: A TNS member, was one of the half dozen nudists at the hearing, and other TNS members were among the nudists that forwarded their comments via postal and electronic mail.