Excellent! Thank you for this thorough and vital comparative analysis of these philosophies and how they can, and should, interact for a better future for all.
Very well written and well said. I have noticed that the Naturist Society Foundation's magazine is much more inclusive that that of AANR. In fact, I find the AANR magazine to be alarmingly full of all white contributors and pictures. Of course this could just be a reflection of the demographics of the naturist community, in which case, all the more reason for outreach to enhance diversity.
This is a very well thought out article. I couldn't agree more. Thank you! Well worth the read on this important day of remembrance. One of my favorite quotes from Dr. King was "We must learn to live together as brothers and sisters, or perish together as fools."
This led me to think of a lot of stuff that didn't necessarily cohere, but... Reading Nudist Society, the 1970 study by Hartman, Fithian, and Johnson, I learned that, back then, there was a strong racist cohort within nudism. They didn't want black members. They shouldn't have worried. It's hard for me to imagine wanting, if I were black, to hang out, in my vulnerable nakedness, with a bunch of uptight white folks. This made me think of female reluctance to socialize in the nude. (I have had this conversation with my wife, a tolerant and understanding woman, who has tried and rejected nudism.) In both cases, racial and gender, nudists should definitely be welcoming, but the important change has to come in the larger context, so that African- and Gyno-Americans are comfortable enough to join us white dudes nude.
It's a joke. Gyno is a prefix, originating in Greek, referring to female sex organs (including those of plants, but plants aren't part of the joke), or to women themselves. A GYNOcologist, for example, is a physician who specializes in women's genital health. The point of the joke was to satirize the overly careful tendency to refer to marginalized populations by compound words that combine modifiers like "African" and "native" and the nominalized adjective "American." Hence, "gyno-American" is synonymous with "woman." Jokes, it is said, suffer from explanation.
I've been a nudist for more than half a century. I have never seen any racial discrimination at any of the nudist clubs I have participated in or visited.
During the same time, I have seen "diversity and inclusion training" and other "diversity" programs are always implemented in ways that were very racist. The whole rhetoric about "diversity" always excludes and discriminates against a large portion of the population. This whole article smacks of a racist bias that would seem to contradict what King always advocated.
Like you, I have not noticed racial discrimination first-hand. However, I hardly think that’s surprising given that we are both white men in a white-dominant culture. But I would hesitate to say that, just because I haven’t noticed it, it isn’t there. I have to trust those who live into the fact that discrimination is real, whether overt or indirect, insidious or unintended. To do that means, of course, setting aside my conviction that I can determine Truth solely from my own perspectives and experiences. And I believe doing so, as the article recommends, actually aligns quite well with what Martin Luther King, Jr. advocated.
"given that we are both white men in a white-dominant culture"
That kind of racial identification and prejudice is exactly the kind of racism that nudists out to avoid, and that MLK opposed. Judge people by their character, not by the color of their skin.
Excellent! Thank you for this thorough and vital comparative analysis of these philosophies and how they can, and should, interact for a better future for all.
Very, VERY well said. Naturism MUST be all-inclusive.
Very well written and well said. I have noticed that the Naturist Society Foundation's magazine is much more inclusive that that of AANR. In fact, I find the AANR magazine to be alarmingly full of all white contributors and pictures. Of course this could just be a reflection of the demographics of the naturist community, in which case, all the more reason for outreach to enhance diversity.
This is a very well thought out article. I couldn't agree more. Thank you! Well worth the read on this important day of remembrance. One of my favorite quotes from Dr. King was "We must learn to live together as brothers and sisters, or perish together as fools."
This led me to think of a lot of stuff that didn't necessarily cohere, but... Reading Nudist Society, the 1970 study by Hartman, Fithian, and Johnson, I learned that, back then, there was a strong racist cohort within nudism. They didn't want black members. They shouldn't have worried. It's hard for me to imagine wanting, if I were black, to hang out, in my vulnerable nakedness, with a bunch of uptight white folks. This made me think of female reluctance to socialize in the nude. (I have had this conversation with my wife, a tolerant and understanding woman, who has tried and rejected nudism.) In both cases, racial and gender, nudists should definitely be welcoming, but the important change has to come in the larger context, so that African- and Gyno-Americans are comfortable enough to join us white dudes nude.
Sorry if I’m being dense but respectfully, would you please describe what’s a gyno-American? I can’t say I’ve ever heard this term before.
It's a joke. Gyno is a prefix, originating in Greek, referring to female sex organs (including those of plants, but plants aren't part of the joke), or to women themselves. A GYNOcologist, for example, is a physician who specializes in women's genital health. The point of the joke was to satirize the overly careful tendency to refer to marginalized populations by compound words that combine modifiers like "African" and "native" and the nominalized adjective "American." Hence, "gyno-American" is synonymous with "woman." Jokes, it is said, suffer from explanation.
I've been a nudist for more than half a century. I have never seen any racial discrimination at any of the nudist clubs I have participated in or visited.
During the same time, I have seen "diversity and inclusion training" and other "diversity" programs are always implemented in ways that were very racist. The whole rhetoric about "diversity" always excludes and discriminates against a large portion of the population. This whole article smacks of a racist bias that would seem to contradict what King always advocated.
Like you, I have not noticed racial discrimination first-hand. However, I hardly think that’s surprising given that we are both white men in a white-dominant culture. But I would hesitate to say that, just because I haven’t noticed it, it isn’t there. I have to trust those who live into the fact that discrimination is real, whether overt or indirect, insidious or unintended. To do that means, of course, setting aside my conviction that I can determine Truth solely from my own perspectives and experiences. And I believe doing so, as the article recommends, actually aligns quite well with what Martin Luther King, Jr. advocated.
"given that we are both white men in a white-dominant culture"
That kind of racial identification and prejudice is exactly the kind of racism that nudists out to avoid, and that MLK opposed. Judge people by their character, not by the color of their skin.