I admit to some minor perplexity. I am fairly certain that it is not against the law in New York to be topless on the street. I've been at and in a number of parades where female nipples made their appearance, the police were in attendance in large numbers, and nothing happened. There are some public lewdness laws, but that requires a bit more than just standing there or walking around.

So, what exactly was going on in those clips with police manhandling people is not clear to me. Anyone know?

Can anyone explain why women wearing bikini tops or sports bras is such a limitation? To me, the #FreeTheNipple is based on false equivalency between men and women's chests. Biologically speaking, women's breasts are an anomaly. In all other primates, female breasts are swollen only during periods of fertility and lactation, while women's swell during puberty and never return to a prepubescent size. One possible explanation for this is that by being permanently swollen, it is impossible for men to know when a woman is in fact fertile, ergo it is never clear exactly when sex will lead to pregnancy. Women's nipples are more sensitive then men and more erotically entwined, hence the ability of some women to experience orgasm from nipple stimulation alone. In pre-historic societies. women's breasts were prominent in statues and art related to fertility. Finally, even in areas like Europe and Australia where women go topless on beaches, they look on being topless as being comparable to wearing a bikini top. Off the beach, being topless is considered exhibitionism.

We do need new stories, as the trailer said, but I am not sure that this is the new story we need. I'm not against the story, but I don't think it's as urgent as they seem to think it is. (especially because, as an earlier comment noted, it's legal for women to be topless in NYC, so I'm not clear why those women were running away from cops)

I think there's a law in Austin, TX that women can be topless anywhere men can be topless. There's a swimming place where a few women go topless. Once people see it, they realize it's really not a big deal.

@3: Why does it bug you if women don't want to wear bikini tops or sports bras? Lots of men enjoy nipple play. Why are you threatened by breasts?

I believe laws need to make sense. The restriction against showing the female nipple is clearly nonsensical given that there is no such restriction on the male nipple. And then the idea that it's okay if you have a pasty on is just ridiculous. We really should just stop criminalizing nudity and be done with it.

@1 It is my understanding that being topless is legal in NYC but if the police think that a woman is topless in an inappropriate place ("won't someone think of the children!") they will ask a woman to cover up.

Can we make it a law that everyone has to wear a shirt in public? That gets my vote. A thin layer of cotton is not going make you burst into flames people. Please spare me your sweaty chest in my face. And don't even get me started on those shorts where your ass cheeks hang out. DO. NOT. WANT.

I don't know - a thin layer of cotton just MIGHT make be burst into flames! But really, it is not about the nipple - its about freedom. No government has the authority or right to dictate what you wear, how much you wear or if you wear anything at all. These censorship laws are just hangovers from religious fanatics trying to force their beliefs on everyone else. The worst religions force women to completely cover up, or to cover their heads in case they "offend" some divine being. Complete nonsense. There is no acceptable form of censorship. Period.