The Breast Freedom Parades were a response to the fallout from "the naked guy". Basically nudity was outlawed in Berkeley and some residents started an annual protest. This started in the early 90s (I want to say 93 but I didn't actually look it up) and they had at least 10 of them.

The basic pattern is that they would meet at People's Park and get in some chanting and then the organizers would disrobe and encourage others to as well. This year they just spent a brief time in the park and spent most of their time marching - later years they'd mostly stick to the park and "touching exercises". I think as a result this year a lot more of the younger gals were willing to take their top off and march around, whereas they were less likely to hang around the park and be touched by creepy old guys.

Note that this whole thing eventually morphed into the "Breasts not Bombs" protest in Berkeley - same folks, same process, different name.

I'm not entirely sure what the order of these is so I'm just going to do the best I can.

This is just after they've left the park and they're headed towards Telegraph. Note she's holding an x-plicit players sheet - I think it has the lyrics to the breast freedom song on it.

This gal vanished after about a block, not sure what happened to her.

Notice the long lens on the guy ont he left - all the gals had a bubble of mostly male photographers around them.

Lots of stopping at intersections and dancing in a circle while singing the breast freedom song.

More dancing. Note the video camera - the organizers were actually taping and eventually you could buy tapes of some of the years on their website.

You can see the press of protesters and hangers on as they're marching down the sidewalk.

Again, mostly male gawkers. I think this might be one of the times they lined up along the sidewalk (more of those later).

Gotta love the macaw.

I eventually just started getting in front of them and letting them come to me. Even though they were swarmed by guys behind them, many of them seemed rather surprised to see a guy with a camera waiting for them. Even though they were pretty much just going up and down the same three blocks.

OK, this shot's just gratuitous, I admit it.

These two got bored and left - but without putting their tops back on. People were coming and going throughout the event - probably there were no more than 3-4 gals topless at any one time despite the total count you would get looking at every picture here.

They hung out on this corner for a while and it was amazing how little attention anybody paid to them.

Posing.

Oh, yes, I'm very naughty.

Still walking.

Yes, that guy's super close to the gal with the baby.

I'm not sure where this is in the sequence.

This is one of the times they lined up in front of a store. We'll show those corporate squares what Berkeley really is! Notice the guy/gal ratio.

Again, in front of the store. You can see video and still cameras. Look how big video cameras were in 1995 - that's not a professional unit, it's just big because it takes regular VHS tapes.

 



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