Nudity and Public Decency Laws in America

Generally, in America, nudity is against the law in public places. Moreover, nudity is also generally illegal on a persons own property if the nude person is visible to the public, such as through an open window or sunbathing nude in someone's yard. While most state laws are clear about nudity around children and nudity meant to arouse, some other wording is vague and violations often are a matter of community standards for indecency. Of course, in some situations, these laws may conflict with constitutional protections for freedom of expression, particularly if the nudity is part of an artistic performance or political demonstration.

Following is a state-by-state synopsis of nudity laws. Some more obvious laws have been omitted for the sake of brevity, and common sense should be employed (e.g., nudity on school grounds or around children who are not your own will likely never be legal).

There are no federal laws either for or against nudity, except to the extent that it may be protected under the First Amendment right to freedom of expression. Local laws will take precedence when the question of nudity relates to federal lands, such as federal parks, beaches, and other facilities.

In some states there are public lands where nudity is allowed or simply tolerated. There are also private facilities where nudity is allowed in almost every state, with the usual requirement being that the nudity must simply not be observable from outside, public areas.

New York, Hawaii, Maine, Ohio, and Texas are unique in that they each have laws expressly allowing women to go topless in any location where men could do so legally.

For full article, and a state-by-state synopsis of nudity laws please copy and paste the link: https://www.hg.org/legal-articles/nudity-and-public-decency-laws-in-america-31193

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