LOOKING FOR HELP TO PROMOTE THE NUDE LIFESTYLE
I recently turned 60 and have believed in the nudist/naturist lifestyle ever since I was 14 years old. Being an American, this lifestyle has never been embraced by mainstream society so its legitimacy has always been questioned. It wasnt until my late 20's that I myself ventured into this culture for the first time, even though throughout my life prior to this time I had always practiced its philosophies in the privacy of my home and even within my mind. Since that time, I've dabbled into the lifestyle on and off over the next 20 years, but I've done it alone and unfortunately, single men are generally suspect due to their propensity of having a more voyeuristic motive in being amongst women in a nudist environment. In my first marriage, I had a wife that was accepting of this lifestyle and for a short duration, we both enjoyed nudism with our children. However, once our marriage ended, my focus was on our children and over the next 10 years, actively participating in nudism was no longer a priority. My children are now grown and I have remarried but my new wife does not desire to try this out but knew of my feelings prior to our marriage and had at that point agreed to try it out once she adjusted to American life (she is from the Philippines). Being a patient man, I waited until recently to return to my nudist ways, but my wife has changed her mind and refuses to try it. I share all of this now because I believe its important for others to trust me in my endeavor to reactivate my nude life and hopefully help me in my plans to not only help myself, but hopefully the nudist movement as well.
Right now I am in the process of building a blog about nudist life. I already have a name for it and a host site. I am preparing the site to go live soon but I have come across a stumbling block. I have researched a lot about American blogging on nudism. There is a lot of good content out there, but its missing something. Right now, nudism is predominately an older oriented lifestyle. Very little in the way of younger people, especially women. Frankly, in order for this lifestyle to be sustainable, its base needs to improve in its younger membership. I have some ideas on how to do this, but I cant do it alone and I need input from younger generations. I live in the state of Indiana, so I am looking for nudists that I can meet with in person to collaborate and help develop a plan to promote two specific things that I believe that mainstream society needs to be re-educated about: body acceptance for everyone and how nudity and sex are not mutually inclusive. I am open to collaboration outside of my state, but realistically if I am going to move forward with things, there's going to be projects that will require physical interactions (for example if a video is being produced).
Just want people to know at the outset that at this point its all like a volunteer effort. I am anticipating having to personally fund certain initiatives in this regard, but if its done right and it proves to be a success, there's potential in making this a positive thing for all involved, especially the nudist movement itself. I am logansport_nudist here and anyone can contact me directly if they like. This is my first effort trying organize things. Hope there are others out there who can provide me with some help in making this happen. Any thoughts are appreciated.
Right now, nudism is predominately an older oriented lifestyle. Very little in the way of younger people, especially women. Frankly, in order for this lifestyle to be sustainable, its base needs to improve in its younger membership. I have some ideas on how to do this, but I cant do it alone and I need input from younger generations. ... Hope there are others out there who can provide me with some help in making this happen. Any thoughts are appreciated.
I am similar in age and geography to you. My basic conclusion is that we've blown it as far as nudism goes and are by definition not the ones who can fix things. Maybe the word nudism itself can't be fixed but needs to die and become redefined in its nontextile glory. We need to let go to the next generation and support their efforts, efforts from which maybe we'll be excluded. No matter. It's not about us. It's about maintaining human decency and respect unrelated to clothing. Maybe the best way to care, encourage and sustain nudism is to get out of the way. Otherwise we're arguing over details which may be completely irrelevant to younger generations. I don't know and am comfortable not having the answers. How can we support the next generation?
I wish you good luck in your endeavor.
Perhaps you should study German society & attitudes. "Naturism" seems much more accepted & practiced in that culture.
In American culture, from what I see in the locker rooms the future is running around wrapped in a towel over their swim suit or underclothes. They get those attitudes from their parents & the teachers. I can't imagine schools teaching students to be calm with their bodies, I think they barely discuss bodies for fear of a lawsuit.
If you could get the YMCA's to offer naked mens swim & naked womens swim sessions again. I think that would go far to calming people down.
Good luck to you on this journey & I hope your wife comes along with you.
Getting younger people involved in nudism has been a perennial problem and topic of discussion. There have been a few positive steps: I hear that some American fraternities and sororities have occasional "naked parties" where there's an opportunity to socialize with other people in the nude without a context of sex (that is, no more than in any other sort of party). That gives the students a taste of what it is to be nude with other people and see how it feels.
But we old codgers are not the ones who will make it happen. It will be up to the young folks, just as it was in the last resurgence of nudism in the 1960s, when the counterculture encouraged people to get out of their clothes and experience the world naked. We gave ourselves permission to sample the lifestyle, just as we gave ourselves permission to try pot or wear love beads or go to Grateful Dead concerts.
There's a great story about advertising. The people who made Guinness stout in Ireland did some marketing research and found that there was a reluctance for drinkers to buy it, based on some preconceived notions about it. So they came up with a slogan: "Guinness. I don't like it because I haven't tried it." Predictably, demand for the product surged. All it took was for somebody to challenge them... to dare them... to try it.
Nudism is in the same position. People don't like it because they haven't tried it, for a zillion reasons about morality, body image, fear of erections (in men) or being hit on (in women), or the inconvenience of having to travel long distances to enjoy it. Our goal is to get people to try it, at least for one afternoon or evening.
Another poster believes that there really are many younger people who are nudists, but they have no impact on established nudism because they don't feel that they have anything in common with older nudists. Instead of joining naturist organizations or patronizing resorts, they form their own informal associations based on their circle of friends or co-workers. I have no idea about how to reach out to them, but I think that they are the future of nudism in the US and probably elsewhere as well.
"...its base needs to improve in its younger membership.
...I have some ideas on how to do this, but I cant do it alone and I need input from younger generations.
...there's going to be projects that will require physical interactions (for example if a video is being produced)"
"Hope there are others out there who can provide me with
some help in making this happen. Any thoughts are appreciated.
I am open to collaboration ..."
You may want to inquire at CFI.
They have been doing these things that you want to do for a while now.
Maybe you can get some feedback from them.
clothesfree.com
I agree that the future of nudism lies in the younger generation, but your suggestion that we need to get out of the way is way off. The truth and promise of nudism is very much reflected in the way the older generation has molded some of the organizational aspects. Its become this way because through our experiences in life, we have come to realize the benefits of the lifestyle, despite the conservative sociology that restricts and allows the lies associating nudity with sexual depravity. In my younger years, my affinity towards nudity developed through personal introspection and the idea of nudist camps was more of an isolated phenomenon that held no real credibility. Today that idea still permeates and in all honesty, its because the older generation has not done enough to help dispel that concept. Getting out of the way will certainly seal nudisms fate, much to the religious rights pleasure. We owe it to the movement to help create a more inclusive atmosphere, promoting a more promising environment that doesnt have to settle for this type of idea that its just for old people. Instead of " getting in the way", let's work together in finding ways to positively influence the image of our own nudity and make it inclusive for all walks of life.
Evolutionii - Thanks for the suggestion, but I have done a lot of significant research and you are quite right that other countries have greater success in having nudist lifestyle environments. I believe the United States could achieve similar success if a larger image campaign was implemented that addressed the illogical idea that its a sexual phenomenon rather than some legitimate lifestyle. The organizations here seem more focused on maintaining the status quo rather than using its presence to address our social shortcomings in understanding the difference between nudity and human sexuality. I have some ideas on how to combat some of this but I need some female oriented input so that anything I do does not come off as onesided from a male perspective. Hopefully I will find someone closer to home that will enable more continuity in developing a plan to do some of the things I'd like to do. And thank you for your comment about my wife. I would so much love for her to join, but we all know that this lifestyle is not for everyone and I think she's got a permanent spot on that one!
woodsman21 - I'm sensing the uncomfortable notion that as long as old people are a fundamental part of nudism, its never going to attract a younger crowd. There is some truth in that perception, but what were forgetting is that it is a perception based on a limited exposure model. You yourself indicated that some positive exposure via college campuses in having parties that resulted in nude activities could be construed as a step forward, but I think more the opposite because the atmosphere in that setting is more leaning towards a sexual environment than a "nudist" one. That in itself has resulted in a very serious misconception that where there is nudity, there has got to be sex. If the activities actually resulted in interactions that resulted in casual human behaviors normally done with clothing on - without sexual expectations - then I would agree on your conclusion. However, the reality is quite different, as is evidenced by numerous videos on our internet.
Ones exposure to actual nudism can dispel most anyone's concern. The road to attempting a walk in that environment is plagued by any number of challenges which our own society has created. The act of taking ones clothes off in front of strangers places an uneasy situation on most persons psyche. Nudity has been ingrained in America as a privately confined concept and to consider such an idea is counterintuitive based on any number of generalities. In order to combat this condition, people need to know that the positives of taking such a risk far outnumber the negatives. Utilizing the younger generation in facing this challenge is difficult because in the most general sense, they are themselves young adults for the first time without sufficient understandings that exists about this culture. There has to be a way to reach these minds in a amicable manner that allows them to appreciate the possibilities that this lifestyle has to offer.
Thank you for giving my post such serious consideration. I didn't mean to imply that we older people have no role to play. But if our attitude is that we are a scene that young people will have to adapt to, rather than us adapting to them, we're not going to see a lot of participation from younger people.
Some mention was made in my post of young people discovering nudism on their own, through association with friend who find clothing unnecessary while swimming, hot tubs, and so on. They've already found that getting naked in front of other people is no big thing. Whether organized nudism gives them more opportunities to practice nudism depends on how effective we are at evangelizing it.
One more thing: I consider those parties at "Greek" clubs on campus to be a step in the right direction, despite the undercurrent of sexual attraction. Let's face the fact that nearly ALL social events on campuses have an undercurrent of sexual attraction, regardless of the type or amount of clothing involved. (At least, that's how it was when I was in college, where we went in search of somebody to have sex with. I don't think that students today are any more pure and chaste than we were.) But if we can take an established way of having the sexes socialize, and take the added step of removing clothes, it gives them a chance to taste the apple. (I should have added that attendees are forewarned that sex will be off the table.)
I agree that the future of nudism lies in the younger generation, but your suggestion that we need to get out of the way is way off. ... Instead of " getting in the way", let's work together in finding ways to positively influence the image of our own nudity and make it inclusive for all walks of life.
I wholeheartedly agree but believe "our" generation has failed miserably in making nudism inclusive for all walks of life. In this part of the country, our resorts require cars, have relatively expensive fees and practice blatant sexual discrimination (at least my personal experience as a single dad). It leaves relatively well-off aging straight couples to define nudism, and in the process it often becomes a defense of idiosyncratic values such as denying we are sexual beings just because we happen to be naked. If "our generation" can positively influence the image of our nudist lifestyle with things like a resort ride sharing app, a vegan snack bar and microbrews, it might be a good start, at least a willingness to show we care. I don't think Millennials have body issues or need to learn from our example, though we can mistakenly get that impression. I see them as more pragmatic, less dogmatic and gladly willing to escape whatever labels and assumptions we put on them.
Getting out of the way doesn't mean giving up. It's more along the lines of admitting our failures and outdated thinking, It's following younger generations' lead and holding our organizations from resorts to AANR accountable to policies that refuse to tolerate both inappropriate behavior and the discriminatory "let the right ones in" sexist policies. We can get out of the way by asking some hard questions and showing we can listen and are willing to learn. We care and they might never know it. Let's show it, with textiles or not.
Spot on, stoneandy. The very basis of most thinking of established nudist organizations is outmoded, and they are oblivious or dismissive of significant concerns of the newer generations.
The established generations can and should provide insight, but I would caution against insisting on providing direction to the newer generations who define and align their values in ways that evade the thought processes of most established nudist organizations.
stoneandy wrote:The trick is to support change on their terms rather than the comfortable and likely outdated assumptions I hold.
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