When we are born, the only person we know is our mother. She grew, nourished, and housed us for nine months, carrying us in her womb, and then went through the pain of giving birth to us. Naturally, we’re drawn to her.
This pull is amplified when our tiny baby subconscious realizes that this person is going to feed us as well, and with her own body! How amazing. And regardless of how you feel about breast-fed versus bottle-fed, the fact that a woman’s breast can sustain such a new and fragile life is amazing.
So when we’re born, boobs are great. In fact, they’re more than great. They’re vital. They keep us alive. And as a mother, how intoxicating it must be that you can do something like that for someone you love so much. But after that moment, where does this sense of pride, wonder, amazement, and functionality go? Why is there suddenly so much shame?
The Free The Nipple movement is a coalition started by Lina Esco that seeks to end that shame. Along with many other brave, beautiful, and forward-thinking women, Lina seeks to end the injustice and taboo that surrounds female breasts. Free The Nipples demands to know why women have to remain covered when men can go topless, and points out that the female form is nothing to be ashamed of.
In addition to the movement gaining explosive momentum in the last few years by way of tagging, celebrity endorsement, as well as pure blood, sweat, and tears, the movie, “Free The Nipple,” has gone absolutely viral, and can be watched on various internet streaming sites (including Netflix).
Before watching this film, I knew next to nothing about any of the Free The Nipple and Go Topless movements that are sweeping the nation. After watching the film, I decided that I have to endorse the movement encourage everyone to watch the movie, because it is so monumentally important that we talk about this. It is so huge that we must create a dialogue that demands answers where there are none.
The very same people who will shame mothers who don’t breastfeed their children will turn around and shame another mother for breastfeeding in a public place. To them, it is as if feeding your child and not having the luxury of doing it from your own home is a massive travesty.
This isn’t about women wanting to be able to walk around the workplace, or school, without shirts on. It’s about having the opportunity to go topless in the same situations that men do, in the same way that men can, without being stared at and shamed as if our bodies are something crude and meant to be kept hidden for fear of public corruption.
According to Free The Nipple’s website, there are 35 American states where it is illegal for a woman to be topless, and this includes the act of a woman breastfeeding her child. None of these states have such laws pertaining to men. Obviously.
People are so afraid of the sexual nature of female breasts because the only images presented to the public of the nude female form are hypersexualized. You can’t search the internet too long, or flip through a magazine, without seeing a somehow over-sexualized woman. Yet as a woman, you can’t take your shirt off when it’s too hot at the beach because it’s inappropriate. As a woman, you can’t even breastfeed in public when it’s time for your baby to eat because it’s lewd. What does that tell young girls about their bodies? What are the images in the media of female nudity demanding of their bodies?
It’s not just about wanting to take our shirts off when it’s hot at the beach. It’s about not wanting every generation of girls that comes after us to feel ashamed of their bodies. It’s about a deep-seated, instinctual desire to be proud of our bodies, to love them, and to show the world that a topless woman is not inappropriate, or scandalous. She is natural, she is beautiful, and she is no different from any man without a shirt. This is not a bunch of hippie girls who want to walk around naked and show off their boobs. These are women who are tired of being told that their bodies are something to hide. These are citizens who want their voices to be heard because they are screaming for equality.
Learn more about the Free The Nipple movement by visiting their website, Twitter, Instagram, and as well as founder Lina Esco’s Twitter.
