The areola controversy On March 2, 1993, five women were arrested for committing an indecent act by remaining topless during a non-erotic demonstration in a public park. The judge who heard their case made history by ruling that their behavior fell within “community standards of tolerance,” which led to men and women being treated equally under the law (“Topless Women” ). It wasn't until the 1930s that men could go topless in public, but it is still illegal for a woman to do so (“Topless Women”). Although men and women share the same anatomy when it comes to breasts, some people have strong arguments as to why or why not a woman should have the same rights as a man to be topless in public. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay “Free the Nipple” is a campaign started in 2012 by Lina Esco. The campaign has sparked controversy across the nation, prompting women to become activists running topless through the streets of New York City. Esco chose the campaign title because it is engaging and fun, and gets people interested in having a serious discussion about gender equality. Gender equality is defined as the state in which access to rights or opportunities is not influenced by gender (Esco). Since both men and women have the basic human structure of an areola and a nipple, it is said to be confusing why men are allowed to go topless in public, but women are not. The areola is the ring of pigmented skin surrounding the nipple (Esco). So, why can men go topless in public without consequences and women can't, even if they have the same body part? This is an example of the opposite of gender equality. If toplessness were normalized, it could remove some of the cultural power over women's bodies and their sexuality. Esco says: “Being topless was what we needed to do to start a real dialogue about equality. It's not about being topless; it's about equality; it's about having that choice” (Bussel). The campaign has its own Netflix documentary titled Free the Nipple. The film itself is not about nipples or running down the street topless, but about equality and feminism. Men and women share the same anatomy when it comes to the nipple, but women are sexualized and don't have to show it due to our society today. Liberating the nipple is part of a larger mission to reclaim women's bodies, sexuality and safety at a time when that's all women know. To say that women should not have the same right as men to go topless is to place the burden of women's rights and the well-being of society on women's breasts. It's almost as if the audience is simply too delicate to handle the sight of nipples (Bussel). Normalizing nipples will take time, just like normalizing topless men and women showing their ankles. It wasn't until the 1930s that men went topless publicly, and they fought to do so (Esco). If it became legal for women to show their nipples in public, some people believe it would result in all women running around the streets topless. Other people realize that this is not the case and that the law will simply provide the choice to do so. For decades you have been able to pay to see topless women in porn videos and strip clubs. Yet it is still considered an indecent act when topless occurs in public. The indecent act isdefined as not conforming to generally accepted standards of behavior (Free the Nipple). Believe it or not, there was a time when it wasn't socially acceptable for men to walk around shirtless in public. In the late 1910s, it was a rule in public swimming pools that men could not wear swimsuits that were too tight or exposed too much skin. Sometimes, in order to swim in the public pool, it was necessary to wear skirts over the men's bathing suits. It wasn't long before actors in films began to be shirtless, which led to a movement for men off-screen to do the same. There were also petitions on local beaches from men going shirtless to gain them the right to go topless in public. New York was the first state to lift the ban, followed by many states. However, it was still deemed inappropriate for women's nipples to be exposed due to the way flesh is rendered, gender, and moralization as a result. Those who oppose the freedom for women to bare their chests in public believe it is simply not modest. They see women's breasts as sexual objects, therefore not to be shown to the public. Modesty is practiced by many women, religious and non-religious, because they see it as respect for themselves and their bodies. They don't believe they should be visible to anyone. Furthermore, it is considered inappropriate for children to encounter a topless woman. Children learn from an early age that breasts should not be shown on the street, but in magazines and on the Internet... in private. If a family is on vacation and the child yells “Look mom!” while pointing to a topless woman, it could be anything from awkward to embarrassing. Those who believe that women should not publicly go topless believe it is out of modesty and for the sake of children. Some are concerned that the Free the Nipple campaign is defeating gender equality by encouraging women to be objectified as sex objects. Issues such as wage inequality and lack of paid maternity leave appear to be more important than the choice to bare one's nipples in public (Milan). While this campaign directly takes a stand for feminism, it may not convey the full or correct message to the people testifying. Discussions about whether breasts serve a purpose in female sexuality range from yes to no, only regarding the context in which the woman intends them to be displayed. Alyssa Milano, an actress and breastfeeding advocate, said it would be difficult to teach her son not to objectify a woman's body but to respect and appreciate it (Milano). That said, the campaign could defeat gender equality by being objectified as a sexual object in the eyes of some people. The right to be topless doesn't have to be about a larger cause. The hard facts should be enough to give you the choice. The entire campaign itself inspired designs such as bikini tops with nipples (Bussel). This gives women the look and feel of being topless while technically being clothed. These designs were deemed inappropriate, even though they were still actual items of clothing. There is a difference between the actresses in the movie Free the Nipple walking confidently through the streets of New York City and the way breasts are often used in advertising (Free the Nipple). Actresses expose themselves for a legitimate cause, while publicity is used to attract customers. By normalizing toplessness, the cultural power that women's breasts can only be sexual symbols is completely destroyed. The kind of.