Hey Tim, the problem that most clubs in Australia face is we only have 3-4 good months of weather a year. In that time they have to make enough to get them through the 8 lean months, unless they have a sideline like farming for example.
Young people are what we need running clubs but no one will take that on when they are struggling to make ends meet.
Also most clubs in Aus will take day visitors, singles ect
One of the most interesting and insightful articles I’ve read on the dwindling participation, aging out of naturism, and generational approaches. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Timothy, Thanks so much for sharing this. I always appreciate your writing and this was informative and clear. I agree with a lot of it...and I also have a question.
When you mention advocacy and things that are intersectional, my thoughts go to how conflict could be created and what the reaction to this might be. Something like Hanlan's was a good step forward. Yet when I think about where other points of intersection lie, those causes may represent split opinions in the naturist community. For example, advocating for abortion as health care and for LGBTQ+ rights.
Although I'd like to believe the community is more liberal in its values, I've had conversations with people who have said they are not. So how would this kind of intersectional support work from a more intentional approach? Would there be a deliberate steering away from controversial issues, even if they are the most in need? Would leadership put out a firm statement of support even if it is a divided issue?
I'm not asking you to have all the answers, but I wonder if these conversations have taken place and what the thinking is. From an ally perspective, I would not want to show up in opportunistic ways only.
Hi! I appreciate your thoughts as always! Your question about advocating for abortion as healthcare and LGBTQ rights, among other potentially intersecting issues and causes, is a good one because, as you’ve already pointed out, many naturists are not in agreement. It’s a very broad community with political and social opinions that are all over the map (which we could probably be using more to our advantage than we are).
I’ve caught myself very frustrated by a lack of support for those causes, or even a willingness to recognize and embrace LGBTQ members, for example, by the larger nudist and naturist organizations who act cautiously to not risk losing any of their already dwindling membership. In my opinion, that hesitancy to be openly inclusive of marginalized groups is part of the reason their numbers are not *growing*, but it is also a good reminder that our organizations are very valuable but are not the only pathway for the nudist and naturist community to be involved and intersectional.
Cases like Hanlan’s and Seattle are examples of people coming together to rally around queer clothing optional spaces, embracing that intersectionality, without much assistance or need for assistance from the organizations. Those are causes that the orgs very well should have taken up, but it is a good reminder that there are other channels of advocacy at play. I think that platforms like Planet Nude are doing a great job of presenting the issues in front of us, the diversity of our community and its intersectionality with other causes, and educating not just non-nudists about nudism, but also nudists about their own complex and threatened community.
I think we do need to support the organizations who advocate for nudist interests and connect the nudist community, but we also should focus on the grassroots groups and local clubs (or create new ones!) that take a more intersectional approach and understand how body rights connect with other ongoing struggles. The orgs can’t be our only way to make change in the community. For example, the WNBR isn’t even a nudist cause, it’s a climate cause that some nudists have joined either because they actually care about the environment but because they just want to join in the naked fun, but WNBR arguably has had a larger impact on public awareness of nudity, nudism, and climate change initiatives than our nudist and naturist organizations have. We need more of that.
Yes, I was thinking about WNBR, too, and all the climate change deniers I've encountered. It really is a full spectrum of opinions and they are not necessarily "mixed and matched" on a political ideology spectrum nor a social change spectrum. I agree Planet Nude is doing a good job, giving voice to all, and for the most part, the people who contribute to the conversations are respectful, caring and seeking to learn more.
I think every clubhouse should have a rainbow flag at this point not just to show inclusiveness but also because we owe the LGBTQ+ community so much already. It feels to me like bodily autonomy is inherently linked to nudity, and I personally don't understand how others wouldn't also make that connection, except through fear of losing membership.
But if clubs or associations won't take a stand because of potential fractures and the alternative is that more associations are created, are we moving ahead? I worry the numbers are so small already. 😕 Perhaps there are small guerrilla-type tactics that would work, but those are usually driven by key people which is risky when they step away.
What might it look like to have the support of the existing organizations without it symbolizing everyone's agreement? To play it bigger instead of shirking, but have people do the work to settle fractures before they grow large?
The frustrating solution to discontent with how the organizations handle these issues is that they need more people in their membership ranks and in their committees and in their boards who see those connections or can at least take a forward-thinking approach to how we engage with intersecting communities. That is sorely lacking, but is why I keep encouraging people to join and get involved with the organizations. Without those voices, the organizations will only be hearing from the folks who either are firmly conservative in their views or who are too concerned about appearing political that they fail to hold the organizations to account.
But I also don’t think that having more groups advocating in different ways is a bad thing. Social change does happen when activists and grassroots groups push hard against social norms even while established organizations present a stable, balanced, and non-threatening face. We need both, and I have seen the organizations take leads and inspiration from smaller groups.
Bro this is a clarion call! Well written and honestly inspiring.
Hey Tim, the problem that most clubs in Australia face is we only have 3-4 good months of weather a year. In that time they have to make enough to get them through the 8 lean months, unless they have a sideline like farming for example.
Young people are what we need running clubs but no one will take that on when they are struggling to make ends meet.
Also most clubs in Aus will take day visitors, singles ect
Great article BTW
One of the most interesting and insightful articles I’ve read on the dwindling participation, aging out of naturism, and generational approaches. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Timothy, Thanks so much for sharing this. I always appreciate your writing and this was informative and clear. I agree with a lot of it...and I also have a question.
When you mention advocacy and things that are intersectional, my thoughts go to how conflict could be created and what the reaction to this might be. Something like Hanlan's was a good step forward. Yet when I think about where other points of intersection lie, those causes may represent split opinions in the naturist community. For example, advocating for abortion as health care and for LGBTQ+ rights.
Although I'd like to believe the community is more liberal in its values, I've had conversations with people who have said they are not. So how would this kind of intersectional support work from a more intentional approach? Would there be a deliberate steering away from controversial issues, even if they are the most in need? Would leadership put out a firm statement of support even if it is a divided issue?
I'm not asking you to have all the answers, but I wonder if these conversations have taken place and what the thinking is. From an ally perspective, I would not want to show up in opportunistic ways only.
Hi! I appreciate your thoughts as always! Your question about advocating for abortion as healthcare and LGBTQ rights, among other potentially intersecting issues and causes, is a good one because, as you’ve already pointed out, many naturists are not in agreement. It’s a very broad community with political and social opinions that are all over the map (which we could probably be using more to our advantage than we are).
I’ve caught myself very frustrated by a lack of support for those causes, or even a willingness to recognize and embrace LGBTQ members, for example, by the larger nudist and naturist organizations who act cautiously to not risk losing any of their already dwindling membership. In my opinion, that hesitancy to be openly inclusive of marginalized groups is part of the reason their numbers are not *growing*, but it is also a good reminder that our organizations are very valuable but are not the only pathway for the nudist and naturist community to be involved and intersectional.
Cases like Hanlan’s and Seattle are examples of people coming together to rally around queer clothing optional spaces, embracing that intersectionality, without much assistance or need for assistance from the organizations. Those are causes that the orgs very well should have taken up, but it is a good reminder that there are other channels of advocacy at play. I think that platforms like Planet Nude are doing a great job of presenting the issues in front of us, the diversity of our community and its intersectionality with other causes, and educating not just non-nudists about nudism, but also nudists about their own complex and threatened community.
I think we do need to support the organizations who advocate for nudist interests and connect the nudist community, but we also should focus on the grassroots groups and local clubs (or create new ones!) that take a more intersectional approach and understand how body rights connect with other ongoing struggles. The orgs can’t be our only way to make change in the community. For example, the WNBR isn’t even a nudist cause, it’s a climate cause that some nudists have joined either because they actually care about the environment but because they just want to join in the naked fun, but WNBR arguably has had a larger impact on public awareness of nudity, nudism, and climate change initiatives than our nudist and naturist organizations have. We need more of that.
Yes, I was thinking about WNBR, too, and all the climate change deniers I've encountered. It really is a full spectrum of opinions and they are not necessarily "mixed and matched" on a political ideology spectrum nor a social change spectrum. I agree Planet Nude is doing a good job, giving voice to all, and for the most part, the people who contribute to the conversations are respectful, caring and seeking to learn more.
I think every clubhouse should have a rainbow flag at this point not just to show inclusiveness but also because we owe the LGBTQ+ community so much already. It feels to me like bodily autonomy is inherently linked to nudity, and I personally don't understand how others wouldn't also make that connection, except through fear of losing membership.
But if clubs or associations won't take a stand because of potential fractures and the alternative is that more associations are created, are we moving ahead? I worry the numbers are so small already. 😕 Perhaps there are small guerrilla-type tactics that would work, but those are usually driven by key people which is risky when they step away.
What might it look like to have the support of the existing organizations without it symbolizing everyone's agreement? To play it bigger instead of shirking, but have people do the work to settle fractures before they grow large?
The frustrating solution to discontent with how the organizations handle these issues is that they need more people in their membership ranks and in their committees and in their boards who see those connections or can at least take a forward-thinking approach to how we engage with intersecting communities. That is sorely lacking, but is why I keep encouraging people to join and get involved with the organizations. Without those voices, the organizations will only be hearing from the folks who either are firmly conservative in their views or who are too concerned about appearing political that they fail to hold the organizations to account.
But I also don’t think that having more groups advocating in different ways is a bad thing. Social change does happen when activists and grassroots groups push hard against social norms even while established organizations present a stable, balanced, and non-threatening face. We need both, and I have seen the organizations take leads and inspiration from smaller groups.