Mastodawn

Bruce Lawson ✅ (quiet time)

At the weekend, a group of trans women protested topless at the Scottish Parliament about the recent Supreme Court ruling that the Equality Act defines women as "biological women". The police couldn't arrest them, because to arrest them for showing their breasts would be to define them as women (it's not illegal for men to be topless). And, of course, the right-wing press that reported on it censored their breasts, thereby making their point for them.

Stéphane Deschamps May 22

@brucelawson 🤯

Dread Pirate John Scab🚫May 22

I love the irony

Dread Pirate John Scab🚫May 22

@brucelawson one of my great memories stewarding trans pride a few years ago was the people proudly displaying their top surgery scars.

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@brucelawson hold on. It illegal for women to be topless in Scotland?

Bruce Lawson ✅ (quiet time)May 22

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast Dunno; I think it could be considered "indecent exposure", which is against the law. One protester said “If the Supreme Court can see these woman legally as men, then they’ll have zero issue with them going tops off.” https://www.thepinknews.com/2025/05/17/scottish-parliament-holyrood-trans-protest-supreme-court/

Topless trans protest outside Holyrood a ‘public act of grief, resistance and solidarity’

Trans women staged a topless protest outside of the Scottish parliament to condemn the UK Supreme Court's ruling on the definition of 'sex'.

PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@brucelawson it's bonkers that women topless is considered indecent but men aren't. Yet another example of inequality.

doboprobodyne May 22

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson
@jebantyk

I am told, by wiser people than I, that in #England & #Wales, the #crime of indecent exposure requires an "indecent" component. Merely walking about as your Deity/mother nature made you is not - in and of itself - a criminal act. One's accuser must explain to the judge's satisfaction why your exposure was indecent (maybe you needlessly jiggled something about, for example).

They went on to tell me that this is not the case in #Scotland, where one may be detained simply for rambling naked. They did not know whether or not one would successfully be prosecuted in the Scottish #court, but they thought it probable. It was not their area of expertise.

I did thank them for their advice, and put my clothes back on ;)

#law #lawfare #UK #God #nudity #art #policing #police #courts #rambling

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@doboprobodyne @brucelawson @jebantyk@mastodon.cloud I would be fine with whatever legislation is in place as long as it applies in the same way to everyone. Women don't have a choice in how their brests grow but they shouldn't be treated as if this part of their body is obscene.

compost_funeral May 22

@doboprobodyne @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson @jebantyk I went and found the Scotland-specific legal guide written up by British Naturism, it seems that they could have been fully in the buff and there would not have been anything inherently illegal about it. If they swore at someone who told them to put a top on though, it might be! Police sometimes detain naked ramblers anyway, but this is in spite of the law. https://www.bn.org.uk/files/file/739-legal-guides-public-place-naturism//

Legal Guides - Public Place Naturism

There are three legal guides; one for Scotland, one for England and Wales and one for Northern Ireland. Please ensure that you download the correct version. Here in the UK we are lucky enough to have a legal system that we believe can be relied upon to maintain order and to support us in times of...

British Naturism

doboprobodyne May 22

@compost_funeral @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson @jebantyk

I am much obliged; thank you!

doboprobodyne May 22

@compost_funeral @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson @jebantyk

Further, I must caution readers to great care in how they interpret this thoughtful and excellently written guidance. I note this 2011 article on the re-arrest of the Naked Rambler in Scotland: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-14649394

Being convicted of a crime, however egregiously wrongful the conviction, can be terribly inconvenient.

At any rate; the manner of protest of these ladies is tremendously elegant.

#law #lawfare #nudity #crime #police #policing

'Naked rambler' Steven Gough jailed again

Naked Rambler Stephen Gough has been jailed for another 657 days after enjoying less than 60 seconds of freedom.

BBC News

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@doboprobodyne @compost_funeral @brucelawson @jebantyk@mastodon.cloud the enforcement of these norms is less about the act itself (a woman being topless) and more about controlling public reaction—especially from men. This essentially punishes women for the potential inability of others to behave appropriately, which is deeply problematic from a gender equality and human rights perspective.

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@doboprobodyne @compost_funeral @brucelawson
This kind of logic reinforces several troubling ideas:
1. That women's bodies are inherently sexual, even when they're not being presented in a sexual way.
2. That men cannot or will not control themselves, which is insulting to men and infantilisng.
3. That public space is implicitly male by default, and women must modify their behavior to avoid provoking a reaction.

Ken M Sweeney May 22

@doboprobodyne @compost_funeral @brucelawson
Laws and social norms based on this kind of thinking contribute to a broader culture of victim-blaming and control over women's autonomy. Instead of teaching and expecting men (and everyone) to behave with respect and self-control, society too often shifts the burden onto women to avoid being seen or "provocative."

embracetheruin May 22

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @doboprobodyne @compost_funeral @brucelawson that men are heterosexual

Ken M Sweeney May 23

@livinghell @doboprobodyne @compost_funeral @brucelawson excellent point.

HighlandLawyer May 22

@doboprobodyne @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson @jebantyk@mastodon.cloud
"Rambling naked" will be a reference to the (in)famous naked rambler. Exposing ones genitals in public "in a sexual manner" is an offence, but merely being naked (with no sexual intent) is not.
However prudish PFs took objection to the Naked Rambler's expeditions, arrested him for breach of the peace, then when he attended court he was ordered to dress; he refused, so was done for contempt of court

doboprobodyne May 22

@HighlandLawyer @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson

Thank you! I did wonder. I should say the court is probably deserving of contempt, if it cannot stomach the human form, although I'm sure the court would disagree.

#law #lawfare #nudity #police #policing

@doboprobodyne @blogdiva @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson @jebantyk 😁

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson Especially men with breasts bigger than most women... Or massive belly they flaunt around so proudly. That's pretty indecent yet just allowed.

Cairo Braga [gts]May 22

@rejzor @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson there's no need to be fatphobic to make a point in this matter, tho.

🇨🇦🇩🇪🇨🇳张殿李🇨🇳🇩🇪🇨🇦May 23

@cairobraga @rejzor @TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson Oh look. The reason why the left in the west is toothless in a microcosm.

Bruce Lawson ✅ (quiet time)May 23

@ZDL The West is "toothless"? Who do you want to be biting? I'm quite a fan of living a peaceful life, personally. @cairobraga @rejzor @TheComfortableSpotPodcast

🇨🇦🇩🇪🇨🇳张殿李🇨🇳🇩🇪🇨🇦May 23

@brucelawson @cairobraga @rejzor @TheComfortableSpotPodcast Yes. That's exactly what I said and you're not even being slightly disingenuous with that reading despite carefully editing out two key words.

Fuck off, you mendacious twat!

HighlandLawyer May 22

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson
No, not in and of itself. If in public it might be part of another offence.

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson Im pretty sure its illegal in many european countries, or at least you can get fined for it.

Bitnapper 🏳️‍🌈⁣🇪🇺⁣🦕 ⁣🐈 ⁣May 23

@TheComfortableSpotPodcast @brucelawson same in many countries. In Germany exibitionism (§ 183 StGB) can only be committed by men.

Jocelynephiliac

@brucelawson @janl and then Glinner further proved their point by trying to claim that several of them are cis women because they clearly don’t look like men 😆

Patrick H. Lauke May 22

@brucelawson waiting for Joanne to turn up, wave a magic wand... "BREASTUS DISAPPEARUS"

Mer-fOKxTOwl May 22

@patrick_h_lauke @brucelawson thanks now i can not get the image of JK Terfling with one of these in their hand out of my head.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clitoral_vibrator#/media/File%3AHitachi-magic-wand.jpg

Clitoral vibrator - Wikipedia

Patrick H. Lauke May 22

@glowl @brucelawson ah, a trusty sonic screwdriver...

wortezimmer May 22

@brucelawson
This is brilliant!

Oregon Wine Woman May 22

@brucelawson
👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼😆😆😆

@brucelawson Did anyone have the courage to report it *without* censoring the pic? Though it's a piss-poor job of censoring 🙂

Bruce Lawson ✅ (quiet time)May 22

@kauer I don't know. Trawling through all the press in the UK would be a deeply dispiriting process.

Rachel Lawson May 22

@brucelawson It’s a glorious bit of demonstration

Play Ball and Fight Fascists May 22

@brucelawson
Brilliant and brave.

elala@nrw.social May 22

@brucelawson
What a world: we are bombarded day and night with images of deported, starving, drowning, abused, mangled bodies, but nipples ... nipples are the final enemy for the shitty, bigoted pack -,-

David 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️NB he/they May 22

@brucelawson I applaud the tenacity of these women. Catching the system at its own game is brilliant!

@brucelawson that is brilliant

Spoons Forever May 22

@brucelawson
Brilliant just brilliant.❤️

Bob Blaskiewicz 🇺🇦 🇨🇦 🇬🇱May 22

@brucelawson the irony is painful

@brucelawson I already said this elsewhere: cis women need to join in and make them utterly lose their shit.

nannnsss🌱🏴May 22

@brucelawson Brave, wonderful women. Hell yes.

@brucelawson genius

Matt McIrvin May 22

@brucelawson Female toplessness is actually legal in large chunks of the US (it's a patchwork of local laws and rulings) but frequently the police aren't really aware of the legal situation, so I wouldn't recommend trying unless you're attempting to make a point by getting arrested.

Morgan ⚧️May 23

@mattmcirvin @brucelawson this was in Scotland, which is not a part of the US

🇺🇦🇵🇸♾️May 22

@brucelawson I was at this. Bloody good protest!

Uthman A Aldahook May 22

@brucelawson
1-2
I don't know what's going on in this situation; but I know that everyone's life matters. Everyone deserves to be treated: with dignity, and decency. We are all one.
Regardless of the labels the people use to self-identify with, all this is really irrelevant, what is really relevant is: ‘nature’ - as it is our point of reference. I still didn't finish from writing about 'sex' and 'gender', stay tuned, as soon I will write more about it, too.

Uthman A Aldahook May 22

@brucelawson
2-2
For now, I will just share with you the following, for reference:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12124-024-09868-2
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/governing-behavior/202204/animal-biology-is-not-binary
https://nautil.us/no-animals-do-not-have-genders-237938/

Rethinking Gender: Beyond the Binary and into the Unknown - Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science

Our present and evolved understanding has challenged the previously synonymous use of the terms ‘sex’ and ‘gender’. We have moved beyond the binary categorization towards proliferation of gender identities. Thus, raising questions whether certain identities are traits or gender identities. This complexity of the issue is exacerbated by the cultural relativity of gender identity and by lack of a standardized list. Adopting a balanced approach, the article touches upon the prejudices against the gender minorities. Additionally, it touches upon the controversies surrounding gender identities and their development to ensure that the individuals can make more informed choices and engage in more meaningful discourse. It addresses issues of politicised debates, linguistic diversity, and the role of pharma industry in the sex-change procedures. The paradigm of gender has transcended the binary constructs in the contemporary discourse. However, it has ventured into unchartered territories revealing several unexplored facets that await scholarly investigation. The present paper critiques the concept of gender identities and the sociopolitical landscape surrounding it through the lens of Critical Theory. In conclusion, our understanding of gender is still limited and evolving. There is a need for adopting a more nuanced and informed approach to challenge the issues posed by this era of evolving gender expression and identities. The article concludes with policy recommendations based on insights gained from the article and suggestions for future research.

SpringerLink

Jasper Sikken May 22

@brucelawson In Europe the faces would be blurred, not the nipples, silly Americans

⁂Krafty⁂ #NoKings May 24

@jrsikken @brucelawson didn't realize the Scottish parliament was located in the Americas

Laurie Kay May 22

@brucelawson In Ontario Canada, Gwen Jacob was charged with indecency when she took her top off on a hot day. That led to a legal fight that eventually granted women the right to be topless in Ontario, since 1996.

Alan Langford 🇨🇦🧤🧊摏 May 23

@lauriekay9 @brucelawson And if a woman goes topless in Ontario, she receives cat-calls and harassment (except in a Pride parade), while police do nothing. Net change: virtually nil.

Laurie Kay May 23

@alan @brucelawson That is 💯correct. Women have the legal right to be topless in Ontario, but it will be a long time before the collective maturity exists to cope with it.

Howard Lane May 22

@brucelawson As far as I know public nudity of any kind is not illegal, providing you are not "causing distress or alarm". So the police can't arrest women for simply being topless.

Howard Lane May 22

@brucelawson In Scotland you have to be "offending public decency" but simply being naked is not illegal.