Naturism
The meanings of naturism and nudism are very similar, and refer to a cultural and political movement practicing, advocating and defending social
nudity in private and
public spaces. Several other terms have been proposed as a replacement of these terms, but none has yet found the same wide-spread acceptance as the older terms naturism and nudism.
The movement includes a large range of variants including "naturism", "nudism", "", the "
free beach movement" as well as generalized "public lands/
public nudity" advocacy.
Encyclopedia
The meanings of
naturism and
nudism are very similar, and refer to a cultural and political movement practicing, advocating and defending social
nudity in private and
public spaces. Several other terms have been proposed as a replacement of these terms, but none has yet found the same wide-spread acceptance as the older terms naturism and nudism.
The movement includes a large range of variants including "naturism", "nudism", "", the "
free beach movement" as well as generalized "public lands/
public nudity" advocacy. While there is a large amount of shared history and common themes, issues and philosophy, differences between these separate movements are sometimes contentious. The usage of these terms varies geographically; people in the US often prefer the term nudism, while people in Europe more often than not refer to themselves as naturists. He also began the American Sunbathing Association , which, according to a decision in
Roberts v. Clement, posted on the Naturist Education Foundation site, was organized in 1939 as a successor to the ALPC. Boone created his idea of a family atmosphere by prohibiting
alcohol at all member clubs. According to the Federation of Canadian Naturists history and the Lupin Naturist Club history, Boone was toppled in 1951 by members dissatisfied with his autocratic style.
This, together with Boone's desire to open a new club closer to NYC than others had wanted, led him to form the National Nudist Council.
Elsewhere in the USA, a 1935 advertisement claims Sea Island Sanctuary,
South Carolina, was the "largest and oldest"
resort where nudism could be practiced year-round. Rock Lodge Club, in Stockholm, New Jersey, about 40 miles from New York City, started in 1932 and is still in operation today. Nudism first began appearing on the west coast of the U.S. and
Canada about 1939. In that year, the first club in Canada, the Van Tan Club, formed and continues today in North Vancouver, BC. Kaniksu Ranch, about 45 miles north of
Spokane, Washington, opened the same year and is still in operation.
In 1995, the ASA renamed itself, becoming the American Association for Nude Recreation .
In 1980
The Naturist Society was founded by Lee Baxandall as a successor to the
Free Beach Movement. The emphasis of TNS is on nudity in public locations rather than on private premises.
In
Canada, individuals around the country became interested in nudism, skinny-dipping, and physical culture in the early part of the 20th century. After 1940 they had their own Canadian magazine,
Sunbathing & Health, which occasionally carried local news. Canadians had scattered groups in several cities during the
1930s and
1940s, and some of these groups attracted enough interest to form clubs on private land. The most significant clubs were the Van Tan Club and, in Ontario, the Sun Air Club.
Canadians who served in the military during the Second World War met like-minded souls from across the country, and often visited clubs while in Europe. They were a ready pool of recruits for post-war organizers. A few years later the wave of post-war immigration brought many Europeans with their own extensive experience, and they not only swelled the ranks of membership, but often formed their own clubs, helping to expand nudism from coast to coast.
Most of those clubs united in the Canadian Sunbathing Association, which affiliated with the American Sunbathing Association in 1954. Several disagreements between eastern and western members of the CSA resulted in the breakup of CSA into the Western Canadian Sunbathing Association and the Eastern Canadian Sunbathing Association in 1960. The ECSA endured much in-fighting over the next decade and a half, leading to its official demise in 1978. The WCSA continues today as the Western Canadian Association for Nude Recreation , a region of the American Association for Nude Recreation which itself was formerly known as the ASA.
In 1977 the Fédération québécoise de naturisme was founded in Québec. In 1986 the Federation of Canadian Naturists was formed with the support of the FQN. The FQN and FCN joined to be the official Canadian representatives in the International Naturist Federation .
Issues in social nudity
- See Issues in social nudity
Politics
- The Sex Party of British Columbia promotes normalization of all parts of the human body and destigmatizing human sexual organs. It would pass legislation requiring all public parks and beaches larger than one hectare to designate areas reserved for nudists.
- The Dutch party Naastenliefde, Vrijheid en Diversiteit would pass legislation to make public nudity legal everywhere, provided that a towel is used when sitting on a public bench.
- The in NSW, Australia "aims to bring naturism fully into the public eye, with view to getting an equitable allocation of public resources to those who support the naturist lifestyle".
Footnotes
References
- Story, Marilyn "Comparisons of Body Self-Concept between Social Nudists & Nonnudists" Journal of Psychology 118
- Story, Marilyn "Factors Associated w/More Positive Body Self-Concepts in Preschool children" Jour. of Social Psychology 108 49-56 56
- Story, Marilyn "A Comparison of Social Nudists & Non-nudists on Experience w/Various Sexual Outlets" Journ. of Sex Research 23 No. 2 p197-211,
- Robin Lewis & Louis Janda "The Relationship Between Adult Sexual Adjustment & Childhood Experiences Regarding Exposure to Nudity, Sleeping in the Parental Bed, Parental Attitudes Toward Sexuality" Arch. of Sexual Behavior 17 No.4
- Mary S. Calderone, M.D. in "The Family Book About Sexuality" ISBN 0-397-01377-9
- Information from
- Nude & Natural , Beyond Safe Havens: Oregon's Terri Sue Webb, By Daniel Johnson Issue 21.3, Spring 2002 .
Further reading
- Lee Baxandall's World Guide to Nude Beaches & Resorts: New for the '90s ISBN 0934106215
- Naked Places, A Guide for Gay Men to Nude Recreation and Travel ISBN 0965608948
- The Canadian Guide to Naturist Resorts & Beaches ISBN 0968233228
- North American Guide to Nude Recreation ISBN 1882033094
- Bare Beaches ISBN 0954476719
- Naturisme, The INF World Handbook ISBN 9050620809
- Jones, Jerome Yo soy un Nudist
- Storey, Mark Social Nudity, Sexual Attraction, and Respect Nude & Natural magazine, 24.3 Spring 2005.
- Storey, Mark Children, Social Nudity and Academic Research Nude & Natural magazine, 23.4 Summer 2004.
- Jim Hamm Productions Limited Spirit Wrestlers, a 2002 documentary video and DVD about the Russian Christian sect called Freedomite Doukhobors, which is mentioned above in Historical era.
See also
External links
- an online naturist magazine
- - General naturist information, links directory, naturist blog
Organization and landed site directories
- - An extensive list of naturist campsites worldwide
- - A guide to naturist holidays around the world
- - A guide to the world's nudist beaches
Other
- -
- - Family nudism article
- - Articles about pedophiles in the naturist community, and criticism
- Article about young adults
