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South Florida Free Beaches /Florida Naturist Association, Inc.

The President’s Message

 By: Richard Mason

Preface:

Most people that visit Haulover Beach have no understanding of the threat of closure of the beach by state law.

Many will make statements that the members of South Florida Free Beaches are blowing smoke when they discuss  the threats to nude beaches in Florida. Follows is my recent article on the Clay County, Florida proposed Public Nudity Ordinance and its wording. This same ordinance has been adopted in over 50 Florida Counties and would now be a state law if were not for the efforts of the organized naturist associations led by South Florida Free Beaches to prevent this from happening.

The battle is not over and I will explain why in the January 2015 Presidents Message.

The Threat to Haulover's Naturist Beach!

During the past year, I have written about the importance of Nudists  conducting themselves in accordance with the principles of Naturist Etiquette.

Naturists as a group should be self-policing on the issues of open sexual behavior in a nudist environment.

There are new nudists who advocate for the need for nudist facilities to become more “avant garde” and join the world of the “Lifestyle.”

Those of us that have been on the front lines in the government affairs trenches and have been fighting a tide of anti-nudity state bills and county ordinances for over 30 years have a different view.

Current legislation, listed below has the same words as past anti-nudity ordinances and those that wish to practice sexual activity in a public place should read the ordinance.

There is nothing wrong with recreational sex or the social relationships within the Lifestyle community. Just like in real estate, Its Location! Location! Location!

The following was the edited down then ‘cut & pasted’ from of the 10 page Clay County Ordinance. I took out the fun part, the 405 words used to describe the human buttocks and how to measure it as well as how to determine if too much of the female breast was exposed and what a nipple and areola looks like.  Over 50 counties in Florida have adopted similar versions of this ordinance. This is also the wording in bills introduced in Tallahassee in attempts to create a state law.

Their motivation is obvious. Make mere nudity a crime and you can cause nude nightclubs to put clothing on their strippers.   I will let the Ordinance speak for itself.

AN ORDINANCE BY THE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF

CLAY COUNTY, FLORIDA …  DECLARING PUBLIC NUDITY

AND SEXUAL CONDUCT OR THE SIMULATION THEREOF

UNLAWFUL (2014)

WHEREAS, local governments may prohibit the exposure of certain body parts,(see Geaneas v. Willets, 911 F.2d 579 (11th Cir. 1990) and have successfully passed and defended regulations relating to public nudity; and,

WHEREAS  Clay County, Florida  desires to regulate (and prohibit) public nudity and sexual  conduct, and the Board believes that public nudity and sexual conduct begets undesirable  behavior, and that adverse secondary effects such as, but not limited to, prostitution, sexual battery, assault and the spread of social communicable and sexually transmittable diseases may occur where nude and sexual conduct is permitted; and,…. has the potential for begetting, undesirable and unlawful behavior; and that sexual, lewd, lascivious and salacious conduct results in violation of law and creates dangers to the health, safety, morals and welfare of the public and those who engage in such conduct.

WHEREAS, appearing nude in public places was a criminal offense at common law and

A Public Place means any location frequented by the public, parks, beaches, business and commercial establishments, whether for profit or not for profit and whether open to the public at large or where entrance is limited by a cover charge or membership requirement or membership fee .., hotels, motels, restaurants, night clubs,and meeting facilities utilized by,… socialorganizations, but do not include premises, or portions thereof such as motel or hotel rooms, used solely as a private residence,

 Sec. 2.4-3. (a) No person shall knowingly, intentionally or recklessly appear, or cause another person to appear nude or expose to public view his or her genitals, vulva, penis, pubic area, or buttocks or any simulation thereof.

 (d) No person or entity maintaining, owning, or operating a public place shall encourage, allow or permit any person to knowingly, intentionally or recklessly appear nude or to knowingly, intentionally or recklessly expose to public view his or her genitals, pubic area, vulva, penis, anus, or any portion of the buttocks or any simulation thereof at such public place. or …permit any person at such public place to engage in sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy, bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation, lap dancing, straddle dancing, any sexual act which is prohibited by law, touching, caressing, or fondling of the breasts, buttocks, anus or genitals or any simulation thereof….. in CLAY COUNTY, FLORIDA –end

On October 13, myself, representing So. Fl. Free Beaches, Shirley Mason, BEACHES Foundation, Ralph Collinson AANR, FL and Bill Schroer, then Ex.Director of AANR National appeared at the first hearing to oppose this ordinance. On October 28 at the 2^nd hearing, Ralph Collinson and Ray Maury, Tallahassee lobbyist for both SFFB & AANR spoke in opposition to the ordinance and requested a delay. They were successful and the ordinance was delayed for five months.

The point is that all the organizations opposing this ordinance were membership organizations. Only one individual nudist showed up in opposition and he was an AANR member.

The lesson here is that membership organization are important. They are the only reason you can be nude today, at a nudist resort or beach in Florida.

Reprinted by permission of NUSA SUN Magazine

Join other naturist men and women and their families from Florida and the rest of North America for the continent's first regional naturist gathering in 2015.  Come for any or all of the days — it's up to you!

This nude gathering features nearly 300 scheduled activities, including a broad array of seminars, workshops, sports, music and dance (including nightly drum circle around a huge bonfire), and social activities.  There are also several off-site events, including canuding on the Loxahatchee River and excursions to Haulover Beach in Miami and Blind Creek Beach in Fort Pierce, FL.  Proceeds of the Festival will benefit South Florida Free Beaches and The Naturist Society.

The Mid-Winter Naturist Festival is one of a series of Naturist Society-sanctioned nude events each year.  Diversity is valued, and all are welcome.  Pre-registration is encouraged for planning purposes, but not required.  (It makes check-in quick and easy.)  Get details and/or register.
                       
Meanwhile, try Sunsport Gardens’ nude drumming circle, every Friday from 9 PM to midnight.  (The first Friday of every month is a little more elaborate.)  Free entry starts at 5 PM; visitors must depart by 2 AM.  Includes use of amenities such as the café, showers, pool, spa, and sauna.  You must present your government-issued photo ID for admission.  Get directions.                        

Update on Clay County, FL anti-nudity legislation

There was an informal and unofficial but public question-and-answer session on November 6, 2014 in the Clay County Commission chamber (near Jacksonville, FL) about the package of ordinances regarding adult entertainment businesses and public nudity introduced in October.  At its subsequent regular meeting on November 10, the Clay County Board of Commissioners ("Board") discussed the plan of action for proceeding with these matters.  There was apparently some confusion as to who was supposed to come up with that plan. The County Attorney presented his draft, but Commissioners stated that they wanted to create their own plan and disregard his.  The County Attorney's plan projected that first and second readings of the final, revised ordinances would occur on March 10 and 24, 2015, respectively, but that timing may change with the Board's version of the plan of action.

There were also discussion and near consensus about handling the regulatory and anti-nudity ordinances first, with fine-tuning of the ordinance dealing with zoning for permissible locations of adult entertainment businesses to be taken up later after further study.  Various distance formulas were being looked at to ensure dispersal of such locations and to avoid proximity to certain other uses.

The main driver of these initiatives is legal advice the County has received that its current, total ban on adult entertainment businesses would not hold up under constitutional challenge, leaving the County vulnerable to expensive legal action and liability for damages.  The coinciding attempt to ban public nudity appears to be based on dubious assertions about so-called "secondary effects" of such businesses and the uninformed conflation of those with non-sexual nudity.

An expert letter from Dr. Marvin Frandsen, past President of B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation Institute, in opposition to the proposed anti-nudity ordinance was read into the record at the November 10 meeting.  Michael Kahn, the outside attorney that Clay County retained to advise on and craft the legislation, refuted Dr. Frandsen's letter, but the Commissioner that introduced the letter appears to have developed some understanding that public nudity is a subject unrelated to that of adult entertainment businesses and that nudists do not present a problem.  Dr. Frandsen is drafting on behalf of South Florida Free Beaches and AANR Florida (Florida Region of the American Association for Nude Recreation) a suggested ordinance for submission to Clay County that will address any legitimate concerns while safeguarding naturist interests.

Discussion of the regulatory and anti-nudity ordinances resumed at the Board's December 9 meeting, at which a revised regulatory ordinance was presented with technical changes, including limiting its application to unincorporated areas to avoid conflict with or liability for the enforcement of municipal ordinances.  The anti-nudity ordinance was presented with no changes from October.  No decisions were made, but another public Q&A session was scheduled for December 15, to be conducted by Mr. Kahn, the outside attorney.  Further discussion of the ordinances was expected, incorporating input from the December 15 session, at the first Board meeting (click for date and time) in January 2015.  For background and further updates, please keep an eye on www.naturistaction.org/clay.

2014 “Keep Our Beaches Bare” fundraising raffle drawing took place on November 30

Congratulations to the winners of this year’s fundraising raffle for South Florida Free Beaches and B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation Institute, along with thanks to all that participated!  There were more than 1,100 entries, an increase from last year, yielding nearly $7,000 after expenses, split evenly between SFFB and B.E.A.C.H.E.S.  The drawing took place at 2 PM on Sunday, November 30 under the South Chickee (thatch-roofed canopy) near lifeguard station #13 on Haulover Beach.

First prize was a balcony stateroom for two on Bare Necessities Tour & Travel’s The Big Nude Boat cruise from Fort Lauderdale to the islands of the French Caribbean and back, February 12-21, 2015.  There were other great prizes, including weekend vacation packages for two at a number of resorts in Florida.  Winners and their prizes are listed at www.beachesfoundation.org/fundraiser.  At press time, space was still available on the cruise; get info and make reservations.
  
           

Auction results: "Own a piece of nude beach history!"

During the week of November 23, B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation Institute auctioned seven retired signs that had been posted for up to 15+ years at Haulover Beach to mark the boundaries of the clothing-optional section.  The Miami-Dade County Department of Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces decommissioned and removed the signs in January 2014, to be replaced in service with a new design and color scheme.  At B.E.A.C.H.E.S.’ request, the old signs were released from storage to help raise funds to support its mission.

This project was an experiment and, although B.E.A.C.H.E.S. had high hopes for it, no one was really sure what to expect.  As testimony to what Haulover Beach and its history mean to beachgoers and other naturists, there was furious competition, especially on November 30, the final day of the auction, for these symbolic keepsakes.  The winning bids totaled nearly $2,600 before expenses, a very pleasing outcome.  More photos, descriptions, and auction details (for a limited time) are available at www.beachesfoundation.org/signs.

               

Chairperson sought for Miami-Dade County Social Committee;

South Florida Free Beaches/Florida Naturist Association is seeking to establish a Social Committee for its members in Miami-Dade County.

The objective would be to hold social get-togethers at local restaurants, the theater or trips to local attractions. All clothed events.

Also, social events on the beach at Haulover. BEACHES Foundation built three Chickee Huts on the beach and they are available for social events on the beach. 

Many members have expressed to us that the beach is crowded but most of the visitors appear to be strangers. That does not have to be. By having socials we will get to know each other on a personal basis. 

SFFB-FNA is prepared to support a Social Committee Chairperson with mail-outs, phone number lists, email addresses, enewletter bulletins, flyers and postings in our beach bulletin boards.

Event training available.Please contact Richard Mason, president for information at 305-620-7090.

The State of the Association

South Florida Free Beaches/Florida Naturist Association is presently the only activist Free Beach naturist association in Florida. Because of that we constantly receive requests for assistance in many matters concerning nudist/naturist issues, both here in Florida and on a national basis.

Canaveral National Seashore

We recently intervened in the matter of a naturist beach visitor to Playalinda Beach who received a citation for having a sign on his care that stated: “Beyond this point you may encounter nude sunbathers.” There is a park rule that opposes commercial signs in the park. This sign did not violate that rule. In fact it qualified for First Amendment Status protection.

We wrote a letter to the park superintendent for the citation recipient requesting for the citation to be rescinded. However, that could not happen because the ticket was with the U.S Attorney's office.  One of our members tried to find an ACLU attorney in the Orlando Area for the naturist recipient. The Us Attorney did not support the citation and it was then dismissed in the federal court this past week.

We have been involved with Playalinda Beach since 1989. A story that could fill several books. However, the important thing is that the beach still flourishes as a naturist beach.

SFFB/FNA can claim bragging rights along with the Central Florida Naturists on the fact that the beach is sill there as a naturist beach.

Clay County, Florida

You can read the report in another section of this newsletter.

Caspersen Beach, Venice, Florida

Seth of B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation attended an organizational meeting last month in Bradenton, FL with the Suncoast Naturists group, which has established an effort to obtain a recognized, clothing-optional section at Caspersen. They have a petition drive going on Change.org, and the latest status of the project is available on the Free Caspersen Beach page of their website at www.suncoastnaturists.org.

Arkansas

A naturist in the state of Arkansas has contacted SFFB/FNA concerning the Arkansas state law that forbids nudism from existing even on private property. It is against the law to even promote or discuss nudism at all in the state.

We have reviewed the law and have sent him a few suggestions. The Arkansas law violates the US Constitution’s Bill of Rights however it will take a citizen of the state to challenge the law in a federal court. It that occurs, the unintended consequences of a victory may be that you have a state law that accomplishes the same result.

Hate and intolerance still thrives in parts of the United States as official policy. Arkansas is one of those places.

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