FREE THE NIPPLE

Let's get undressed for the Free the Nipple Campaign

This movement started with a movie of Lina Esco. And then celebrities fought for it, helped by hashtags and pictures on websites and social networks.

But the "showing breast" problem is a very old one. In the early 1900s, lots of men were arrested for not wearing the right bathing suit... And a few 100 years later, same thing happens to women.

Quick reminder, men's bathing suits looked like this:

But women's breasts have always been more "taboo", always hidden or not much unveiled - even if some women dared topless on the beach - certainly because it's related to breast feeding and because they're bigger than men's... The worldwide religions legacy has probably something to do with it too.

Whatever, the thing is: women's breasts are still perceived as something awkward. 

But only because that's what we - and by "we" I mean society - were told and raised with this perception, so nobody even tried to think about how absurd it could be. (And we also probably should question a certain amount of our "common perceptions", but that's not today's topic...).

Some people might say it is too excessive to ask for a gender equality regarding breasts, but I don't know what you think about that but to me, it goes way beyond equality. It's a matter of rational thinking and logic.

Women's breasts are prohibited, related to breast feeding and if not, to sexuality (look for the hashtag #FreetheNipple on Instagram, for example, you'll understand what I mean). Most of the time, they do are related to something sexual, something desirable, something that excites. 

Although when you're a woman, you just consider it as a part of your body that is indeed practical if you want to feed your own baby. Otherwise you're just like "seriously, it's just breasts, no need to get crazy about it". They are symbols of our feminity, so what ? So are our lashes ! 

Sorry for this comparison but we tend to have longer lashes than men, as we tend to have more "prominent" boobs ! And nobody makes a big deal out of it !

Well, it can be a silly thing to say but maybe we should consider this way of thinking to change perspectives.

The fact that it's taboo to see women's nipples/breasts has become a great opportunity for maketers. The fact that we suggest nudity, by showing part of breast but not the entire breast heighten its mysterious-desirable side. And it attracts people. Because they are symbols of feminity and especially because we are animals and also because when something is forbidden or prohibited it appeals you even more. How twisted are we ?!

The fact that they are taboo supports the sexualization of women. It's a mean to promote goods and to maintain women as objects of desire.

The world goes upside down ! We are able to see and watch violence and terrible scenes in videos of people being killed: Charlie Hebdo's attack in january 2015, people killed in Pakistan, Iran, mistreated people or animals, and the list can go on and on and on.

But breast feeding and pictures of breast are automatically censured ?! And in Desperate Housewives when Susan Mayer gets wet because of the water jets in her yard, the episode becomes scandalous because we can see her nipples through her shirt because she gets cold ? And then the whole scene has to be touched up !!

We should definitely be able to make a difference between pictures where breast nudity is just natural and pictures where breast nudity is used as a sexual tool !

If we could change our vision of women's breast, I guess even the most obscene picture of breasts wouldn't be noticed. As it sounds completely absurd to imagine a picture of a man showing his nipples in an obscene kind of way...

What do you guys think about it ?!

Anyway, it's 2015 and we still have a lot of work regarding evolution ! But let's fight for it and make part of history like our grandmas did with the right to vote: let's Free the Nipple !

Find more about it HERE.