The Los Angeles and Milwaukee WNBR groups have both announced that their 2024 rides will take place on Saturday 22 June, times and places to be determined. The relatively new ride in Milwaukee faces the prospect of taking place (or not) under a change in the law that would prohibit such activities, even in the form of a First Amendment–protected protest.
As of early February, we can find 2024 WNBR dates set for six cities in North America: Los Angeles, Madison, Milwaukee, Montréal, San Francisco, and Toronto. Madison and Milwaukee are pushing ahead with plans to hold rides despite Republican state legislators’ recent attempts to ban public nudity, particularly where children might see nude adults.
(UPDATE 26 February: The Assembly adjourned without bringing the bills to the floor. For this year at least, it appears that the Madison and Milwaukee rides will proceed without a legal cloud over them.)
Two bills got part-way through the Wisconsin Assembly and Senate in 2023, but were not passed by both houses by the end of the year. The bills have been revived for 2024, and both have already passed the Senate as of mid-January. The vote was almost entirely along party lines, with the Republican majority voting in favor.
Per the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
One bill would change the language in state law from “indecent” exposure of genitals in public to simply “intentional” exposure, with exceptions for breastfeeding or diapering a baby. Under the bills, violations would result in a Class A misdemeanor, which carries up to a $10,000 fine, nine months in jail or both.
The other would prohibit people from allowing minors to attend “an event at which a group of adult participants intentionally expose their genitals, buttocks or other intimate parts in a public area.” It would also prohibit taking pictures of nude children at the event, unless for the purpose of reporting it to police within a day.
jsonline, 16 Jan 2024
The latter bill arose from loud, shocked complaints about a photo of a minor girl participating nude in the Madison ride.
In the Assembly, the bills to watch this year are AB 503 and 504.
Even if the bills pass both houses this year, according to the article quoted above, Democratic Governor Tony Evers has hinted that he would veto them.
While Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has told reporters “it’s probably not a really good idea” for children to participate in the event, he expressed doubts about “litigating and legislating things that frankly don’t need it,” indicating the bills could receive his veto.
The Madison and Milwaukee ride organizers have pressed on as if none of this legislative activity is happening, not even acknowledging the possibility of a ban on their respective websites. Madison’s site shows a date of Saturday 15 June for this year’s ride. The Milwaukee site, with the new domain wnbr-milwaukee.com, shows a ride scheduled for the following weekend on 22 June.
For the record, WNBR Houston organizers believe that people in general, including children, benefit from healthy exposure to nudity much more than they are harmed. A large part of this nation’s neurosis concerning nudity results from not seeing enough of it and viewing the human body as shameful. Other countries—and parts of North America—where nudity is not stigmatized tend to have much healthier attitudes toward sexuality as well. As long as the nudity is not sexualized or forced on the children (don’t thrust your parts in the kids’ faces), the sight of bare bodies of various sizes and types helps young people develop a positive body image.
1. How are Well-Parented minors harmed by Naturism or Nudism or an understanding of the anatomical details & function of #TheHumanBody?
2. The PROFESSIONAL reason #WNBRmadison2024 & #WNBRmilwaukee2024 are IGNORING —as You & Every Literate Person should — the impotent vain inane virtue-signally hysterical bills — aside from the FACTS that :
a. less than 10% of #USgovt bills become laws ) ;
b. @GovEvers is a lifelong devoted membr of the @WisDems & leader in @TheDemocrats party — devoted to #ClimateChange politics, sworn to VETO any any anti-Environmental Protection activism, which ALL WNBRs have always been & are indeed the longest growing rolling global grassroots Environmental Movement ; &
c. ALL #USgovt Courts / Judges / DAs have ALWAYS PreEmptively Dismissed ANY & ALL WNBRist & Naturist & Nudist cases brought before them since they violate Our Paramount IN•A•LI•EN•A•BLE Liberty & even lesser Codified #1stAmendment Constitutional Rights — whether or not #AB503 or #AB503 overcome the likely Gubernatorial VETO.
— is that #WNBRmadison2024 & #WNBRmilwaukee2024 clearly have better things to do with their time & energy Promoting their rides & rallying New WNBRists than waste their time & energy on frivolous & trivial ephemera ( Greek, neuter of ephēmeros ‘lasting only a day’ ) or perpetuating baseless anxiety & fear about such heroic valiant & necessary — & FUN — Civil Rights Activism.
3. Do You have a reference/source for the Official Statement of Intent from @GovEvers clarifying his plans/intent to VETO #AB503 & #AB504. Please provide it in response — if You don’t reckon it is Journalistically Responsible prudent & helpful to QUOTE it in the context of Your Article/Post, as an update, as You should have done in the lead of Your reference to this topic instead of creating inane vapid dramatic effect by excluding it.
“The Madison and Milwaukee ride organizers have pressed on as if none of this legislative activity is happening, not even acknowledging the possibility of a ban on their respective websites. Madison’s site shows a date of Saturday 15 June for this year’s ride. The Milwaukee site, with the new domain wnbr-milwaukee.com, shows a ride scheduled for the following weekend on 22 June”
Thank you for your comment, mARTy. The post has been modified to include the paragraph quoting Gov. Evers’ indication of intent to veto the bills.
You’re quite right about proper journalistic practices; however, this blog and this site as a whole make no pretense of being actual journalism. Even with past experience writing and editing newspaper articles, I struggled with putting all the facts on this matter together in an order that would make the best sense and convey the message most cogently.
Please “bare” in mind that the federal government does not as yet have jurisdiction on determining the constitutionality of the proposed anti-nudity legislation in Wisconsin. Until someone pushes it into the federal court system, it remains a state matter; even then, a federal district judge could refuse to hear the case on jurisdictional grounds.
BRILLIANT. Thank You.
I never bother reading modern, biased, msmSnews journalism drivel, which rarely has Human interests at its heart & is usually driven by exploitive & exploitative corporate/financial interests. It’s an easily discernible fact that most mainstream “journalists” — who know who butters their buns — are simply stenographers for corporations when not auxiliary employees — since disillusioned sustainable “subscribers” exited more than a decade ago & recent economic collapses have evaporated a foundation of diverse advertising income ); so, I never followed the MJS link ( clickbait? inadvertently boosting their superficial engagement/advertising ) for the important @GovEvers quote which provides better context.
Although Your WNBR Experience might be limited by the interweb censorship tyrants, in many Cities — @PhyllyNBR, Bruxelles, etc — Responsible Mature Family-Oriented WNBRist/Naturist/Nudist “PARENTS” have brought Their Children ( on cargo seats/bikes** ) in tow & many more Mature Responsible PARENTS, as Onlookers, have no problem allowing their Children to Watch & Talk to Them about WNBRs ( & Nudism & Their Bodies & Healthy Activity/Biking ). Many FAMILIES join the annual SF #Bay2Breakers / #BARE2BREAKERS knowing & despite of or because there will Be Hundreds of Nudist/Naturist/Exhibitionist Participants.
My Own Parents brought Me to formal & informal Naturist & Nudist & #ClothingOptional venues — including YMCA Pools & Lockerrooms ( YOUNG Children are STILL often chaperoned by Responsible Parents into Opposite Gender/Sex Lockerrooms )— as a Young Child & I never got harmed.
Every Human is a “Journalist” — no license or certification or corporate blessing/sponsorship needed — when We responsibly convey Our Experience & Knowledge & Intelligence to Help/Inform Others.
** See:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/GFTLYVPtwtihre5M6