Woman organizing top-free run

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KINGSTON - A local woman is organizing a top-free run for Wednesday in order to express her appreciation of the human body and to celebrate a woman's right to go topless in Ontario.

In 1991, Gwen Jacob was charged with public indecency for walking down a Guelph street topless. Her case made history in 1996 when her conviction was overturned. After her case was over, women in Ontario had a legally recognized right to be topless in public.

However, according to Kingstonian Sarah Campbell, the social atmosphere surrounding women who choose to go top-free in public still needs a lot of work. Campbell believes that although women have a legal right to bare their breasts in public, they are not socially free to do so.

"I remember that decision in '96. I remember that decision changing. I always thought that I wanted to do a run but I never thought I could do it," Campbell said.

After living in Toronto, Campbell moved back to Kingston and became involved with a Facebook group called Topless Kingston, a group of individuals who come together to celebrate the human body and their right to go topless.

After realizing that July 19 marks the 26th anniversary of the day Jacob was charged, Campbell decided to go ahead and plan a run to commemorate that moment here in Kingston, and celebrate the bodily freedom that it represents for women.

"There's so much that comes attached to just having a female body. The double standard still exists and it just drives me nuts," Campbell said.

Her mission is to help spur a cultural change in Canada towards seeing women's bodies as not inherently sexual and to normalize the idea of women going topless in public as men do.

Campbell explained that all are welcome to join her, including people of all genders and gender expressions of all ages and ability on her 5.5-kilometre run or 1.5-kilometre walk, which she plans to begin and end in City Park on Wednesday.

"It doesn't matter what your gender expression is or your sexuality or anything. None of it matters. It's all about just people accepting bodies," Campbell said. "I actually didn't confer with anybody if this was the right thing to do, because this is a really personal decision. But everybody is welcome to join me, as it should be."

Keeping the event personal rather than commercial was important for Campbell when she began her plans.

"It's really easy to politicize things. That's why I went ahead and made this a personal event. It's not associated with any agency or organization that has funding requirements to fulfil, or a political group that has all of these other ideologies attached to it," Campbell said. "It's just one person's attempt to do something out of love, from a place of love and appreciation for the human body."

After running through City Park, Campbell plans to run from King Street to Centre Street and back again in order to go past Bellevue House.

"I want to run past Sir John A.'s house to give him a wave for some symbolism," Campbell explained, in order to say, "we've got it from here, guy. Thanks for doing your time."

Campbell would like to see the run become an annual event, but is primarily focused on reminding people that going topless is a woman's legal right, and that women's bodies are not shameful.

"If people are offended, then that's their personal value set. It's a reminder that this is OK, this is legal, a female body is acceptable, a female body is appropriate," Campbell said. "I can't tell other people to love themselves if I can't step up." 



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