Evanston City Council debates proposal to allow anyone to go topless in public spaces regardless of gender
EVANSTON, Ill. (CBS) -- At any given Lake Michigan beach, you're sure to see lawn chairs, beach towels, coolers – and of course, people in swimwear.
But in Evanston, the City Council is debating a proposal that would reduce how much swimwear is required in some instances. It would strip an ordinance on public nudity from the books to allow women to go topless at beaches there – as men are already allowed to do.
Evanston Ald. Devon Reid (8th) said his proposal would allow anyone to be topless regardless of gender in the city – not only at the beach, but also at any other public place. He said it is all in the name of equity.
Indeed, no one blinks an eye as men bare their chests as temperatures linger in the 80s at Clark Street Beach just south of the Northwestern University Evanston Campus. Reid says it is a problem that women are not allowed to do the same.
"This is a regulation that regulates women's bodies in a way that we do not regulate men's bodies," Reid said.
Reid is vocal about his proposed change to the city nudity ordinance.
"I'm a member of the LGBTQ community," he said. "Some of my close friends are trans and nonbinary folks."
Reid's proposal would allow anyone to be topless regardless of gender. It would apply not just at beaches, but also at parks and on city streets.
"This has nothing to do with beaches," Reid said. "This is about the entire community," he said.
The city's public nudity ordinance has been in effect since the 1950s and does not allow "female breast exposure." Those who violate the law could be fined up to $750 and face a misdemeanor criminal charge.
The specific language in the ordinance is:
"It shall be unlawful for any person to appear in a public place in a state of nudity or to make any indecent exposure of his/her person. For purposes of this Section, nudity shall be defined as: The showing of the human male or female genitals, pubic areas or buttocks, or female breast with less than a fully opaque covering of any portion thereof below the top of the nipple. Women breastfeeding in public are exempt from this definition."
Reid said his proposal came to be after he reviewed city codes. His goal is to change any that seem inequitable.
"Men have enjoyed this right forever, essentially – and I don't think we want to be in the business of taking away rights," Reid said. "I think we want to expand the rights."
Just south of Evanston, Chicago has an indecent exposure law that also bans women from going topless in public. The Chicago ordinance was challenged in 2014, but a federal appeals court upheld the ban.
Beachgoers in Evanston and Chicago weighed in Wednesday on the potential change.
"I do have grandkids, so, you know, that kind of concerns me a little," one woman said.
"I am surprised, but I'm not offended – and I think what other people want to do on the beach is fine as long as it doesn't hurt anybody else," added Barb Bonamasso of Chicago.
We did reach out to law enforcement to learn about how many indecent exposure tickets are written on average in Evanston, and to whom. When we get that information, we'll bring it to you.
Reid's proposal will be discussed at a Sept. 6 meeting of the Evanston City Council Human Services Committee, of which he is a member.
