Fun fact: While my parents will tell you the hardest part about raising me was keeping clothes on me, finding the TNT!MEN website back in the day is what opened my mind to the possibility of being naked everywhere. And that a clothing-optional world could actually be a possibility.
I recall in the early days of the internet finding the TNT!MEN and being fascinated by their determination to achieve freedom for public nudity. The gay nudist community owes a lot to the TNT!MEN and their story can still embolden all naturists to fight for the right to be naked everywhere.
Quite an article. Although I disapprove of certain groups of what I call "the alphabet people", I must say that those of the original founding group certainly did get SOME ordinances changed. Not living in Canada, I am quite amazed that there is as much legal nudity as there is. In Alaska there most definitely ISN'T anything of the sort. Even if there wasn't total freedom to be nude in public, which I completely believe is best, just to have certain events allowing nudity would be wonderful. So, what I am seeing is that nudity is somewhat allowed at events featuring people with certain sexual preferences, but STILL plain nudists are discriminated against and harassed!!! The man who practices family nudism usually has his job security, and possible separation from his children, to consider before challenging laws against public nudity. Sad but true.
As the story of TNT!MEN shows, it wasn't just "the alaphabet people," as you derisively call us, who benefited from the victories that this group achieved. EVERYONE in Canada can enjoy the same freedoms as queer nudists. At several critical points along the way, the mainstream naturist groups recognized this and joined in the fight - as in the campaign to win clothing-optional status for Hanlan's Point Beach and during the liquor licence controversy. TNT!MEN was never about just fighting for itself or the gay community alone. Another example, look to the World Naked Bike Ride, which is by no means simply an "alphabet people" event. Further proof will be seen on Sunday this weekend, when groups like the Federation of Canadian Naturists and the Skinnydippers Club (which are not exclusively LGBTQ groups) will be out on the streets of downtown Toronto au naturel. In fact, they'll probably outnumber the ranks of TNT!MEN. So, what discrimination and harassment is there against "plain nudists," by which I assume you mean straight ones, that isn't also faced by queer ones? In Canada, a few battles against anti-nudity laws have been fought and won; there are still more to be had. The same is true in the U.S.; every jurisdiction is at a different place. Finally, I would ask you to think very hard before assuming that LGBTQ people get special rights that straight people don't. That is never the case - anytime, anywhere.
Gerald, TNT!MEN never inquired about the sexual orientation of our members, and was expressly open to ALL men who enjoy socializing naked with other men. Although most TNT!MEN members identified as gay, some identified as bisexual, and there were even some who were married to women and who had children. Most members were wary of marching in our contingent for the reasons you identified, and because of body shame. So, in Toronto's Pride Parade, we welcomed men of good will who wanted to march with us, regardless of whether they were members and regardless of their sexual orientation. Each year several non-members visiting from the U.S. would join us in the Parade, and some of those would return year after year. Typically our Parade contingent would include a few straight-identified non-members-- typically men in their 20s committed to naturism and comfortable around people of every sexual orientation, who figured it would be fun to walk the route with us.
As someone who also lives in Alaska, I can tell you right now, if you really want our state to be more nude-friendly in public, then look in the mirror and start there. As TNT!MEN clearly demonstrated, we have to put aside our differences and work together to move forward. The only way any state, anywhere, can be more accepting of us is for us to be more accepting of each other.
It also really helps when the people who are leading the effort know how to deal with those men (mostly) who feel that their ego and their conservative values must always be represented. It amazes me how controlling and offensive some str8 naturists are re what kind of jewelry or tattoos are acceptable, for example.
Some str8 naturists who join in the Pride parade specifically ask to be placed far from TNT to express their conservative values. Which is ridiculous because the conservative textiled onlookers think of them as radical leftists who should be jailed just as much as they do TNT.
In TNT, the conservative men self-selected away from our political efforts because they were too public and too challenging. Many of our members did not support us participating in Pride specifically because of that, and most of the people who join us in the Pride parade are not local members.
And if you let that get in the way by trying to appeal to them, they will happily prevent all progress simply by being themselves, and won’t even notice what they have done.
FR -- people and clubs that throw comments at piercings and tats while promoting nudity are hilarious. Or those who think family values and Pride don't intersect. The naturist community should feel honoured to walk with TNT.
Gerald: What you imagine you are seeing is an expression of your own ignorance and privilege.
What you are ACTUALLY seeing is that the horrible homosexuals that you so clearly despise and wish to continue oppressing have fought for and won equality rights that benefit EVERYONE, not just themselves!
Like a few of the other commenters here, I was once a teenager in the early 2000’s scouring the internet for information about nudism, and TNT!MEN was one of the first resources I found that made me feel like I might belong here. I think it’s safe to say that the group has made a lasting impact for gay nudists, well beyond its legal victories in Toronto and Canada, just by being visible and outspoken at a time when access to nudist and naturist information on the internet was very limited.
Like you, I also discovered TNT!MEN’s website years ago, long before I moved to Toronto. (That wasn’t even on my radar at the time.) I didn’t realize until after writing this article that there are so many of us spread out far beyond Toronto or Canada who benefited from this organization’s existence and its online presence all those years ago. We owe David Drascic a debt for being an internet pioneer and steadfastly recording and promoting TNT!MEN’s actions and events at a time when the World Wide Web was truly in its infancy.
Fun fact: While my parents will tell you the hardest part about raising me was keeping clothes on me, finding the TNT!MEN website back in the day is what opened my mind to the possibility of being naked everywhere. And that a clothing-optional world could actually be a possibility.
I recall in the early days of the internet finding the TNT!MEN and being fascinated by their determination to achieve freedom for public nudity. The gay nudist community owes a lot to the TNT!MEN and their story can still embolden all naturists to fight for the right to be naked everywhere.
What an incredible amount of care, thought, research and skill went into writing this. Thank you, Curtis! 👏👏👏
Proud of this history and the people who worked so hard. We stand on the shoulders of giants.
Quite an article. Although I disapprove of certain groups of what I call "the alphabet people", I must say that those of the original founding group certainly did get SOME ordinances changed. Not living in Canada, I am quite amazed that there is as much legal nudity as there is. In Alaska there most definitely ISN'T anything of the sort. Even if there wasn't total freedom to be nude in public, which I completely believe is best, just to have certain events allowing nudity would be wonderful. So, what I am seeing is that nudity is somewhat allowed at events featuring people with certain sexual preferences, but STILL plain nudists are discriminated against and harassed!!! The man who practices family nudism usually has his job security, and possible separation from his children, to consider before challenging laws against public nudity. Sad but true.
As the story of TNT!MEN shows, it wasn't just "the alaphabet people," as you derisively call us, who benefited from the victories that this group achieved. EVERYONE in Canada can enjoy the same freedoms as queer nudists. At several critical points along the way, the mainstream naturist groups recognized this and joined in the fight - as in the campaign to win clothing-optional status for Hanlan's Point Beach and during the liquor licence controversy. TNT!MEN was never about just fighting for itself or the gay community alone. Another example, look to the World Naked Bike Ride, which is by no means simply an "alphabet people" event. Further proof will be seen on Sunday this weekend, when groups like the Federation of Canadian Naturists and the Skinnydippers Club (which are not exclusively LGBTQ groups) will be out on the streets of downtown Toronto au naturel. In fact, they'll probably outnumber the ranks of TNT!MEN. So, what discrimination and harassment is there against "plain nudists," by which I assume you mean straight ones, that isn't also faced by queer ones? In Canada, a few battles against anti-nudity laws have been fought and won; there are still more to be had. The same is true in the U.S.; every jurisdiction is at a different place. Finally, I would ask you to think very hard before assuming that LGBTQ people get special rights that straight people don't. That is never the case - anytime, anywhere.
Thank you for this reply Curtis. The ignorance still out there is stunning.
🔥🔥🔥
Gerald, TNT!MEN never inquired about the sexual orientation of our members, and was expressly open to ALL men who enjoy socializing naked with other men. Although most TNT!MEN members identified as gay, some identified as bisexual, and there were even some who were married to women and who had children. Most members were wary of marching in our contingent for the reasons you identified, and because of body shame. So, in Toronto's Pride Parade, we welcomed men of good will who wanted to march with us, regardless of whether they were members and regardless of their sexual orientation. Each year several non-members visiting from the U.S. would join us in the Parade, and some of those would return year after year. Typically our Parade contingent would include a few straight-identified non-members-- typically men in their 20s committed to naturism and comfortable around people of every sexual orientation, who figured it would be fun to walk the route with us.
Thanks for that further detail, Peter. Even after writing the article and submitting it for publication, I keep learning more.
As someone who also lives in Alaska, I can tell you right now, if you really want our state to be more nude-friendly in public, then look in the mirror and start there. As TNT!MEN clearly demonstrated, we have to put aside our differences and work together to move forward. The only way any state, anywhere, can be more accepting of us is for us to be more accepting of each other.
It also really helps when the people who are leading the effort know how to deal with those men (mostly) who feel that their ego and their conservative values must always be represented. It amazes me how controlling and offensive some str8 naturists are re what kind of jewelry or tattoos are acceptable, for example.
Some str8 naturists who join in the Pride parade specifically ask to be placed far from TNT to express their conservative values. Which is ridiculous because the conservative textiled onlookers think of them as radical leftists who should be jailed just as much as they do TNT.
In TNT, the conservative men self-selected away from our political efforts because they were too public and too challenging. Many of our members did not support us participating in Pride specifically because of that, and most of the people who join us in the Pride parade are not local members.
And if you let that get in the way by trying to appeal to them, they will happily prevent all progress simply by being themselves, and won’t even notice what they have done.
FR -- people and clubs that throw comments at piercings and tats while promoting nudity are hilarious. Or those who think family values and Pride don't intersect. The naturist community should feel honoured to walk with TNT.
Happy Pride! 🌈❤️
Gerald: What you imagine you are seeing is an expression of your own ignorance and privilege.
What you are ACTUALLY seeing is that the horrible homosexuals that you so clearly despise and wish to continue oppressing have fought for and won equality rights that benefit EVERYONE, not just themselves!
Like a few of the other commenters here, I was once a teenager in the early 2000’s scouring the internet for information about nudism, and TNT!MEN was one of the first resources I found that made me feel like I might belong here. I think it’s safe to say that the group has made a lasting impact for gay nudists, well beyond its legal victories in Toronto and Canada, just by being visible and outspoken at a time when access to nudist and naturist information on the internet was very limited.
Like you, I also discovered TNT!MEN’s website years ago, long before I moved to Toronto. (That wasn’t even on my radar at the time.) I didn’t realize until after writing this article that there are so many of us spread out far beyond Toronto or Canada who benefited from this organization’s existence and its online presence all those years ago. We owe David Drascic a debt for being an internet pioneer and steadfastly recording and promoting TNT!MEN’s actions and events at a time when the World Wide Web was truly in its infancy.
Thank you. This a remarkable article about remarkable people. Thanks to you and PN the information is out there, and I am inspired.