Green Party Leader Elizabeth May introduced a petition to the House of Commons calling for the repeal of laws around public nudity. .The petition, started by James Andrew Porter from North Saanich, BC, addresses Section 174 of the Criminal Code that says it is illegal to be "nude in a public place" or while "exposed to public while on private property." .According to the definition, including in Section 174, "a person is nude who is clad as to offend against public decency or order." .Petition e-3999 calls for the House of Commons to repeal the code and "insert language into the Criminal Code specifying that public nudity, in and of itself, is not indecent, obscene, or a nuisance.".Statements included in the petition:.Nudity is not intrinsically sexual, indecent, or obscene;The existing prohibition on public nudity harms society by reinforcing the notion that the human body is inherently shameful;Nudism is known to have significant benefits to physical and mental health;Non-sexual nudity is not harmful to children or youth;Clothing, and the process of washing it, is known to cause significant water pollution in the form of microfibres;The existing prohibition on public nudity is unduly Anglocentric for a nation composed of citizens of many ethnic origins who value and respect cultural and racial diversity; andPublic nudity per se was not historically an offence at common law, nor under the Criminal Code until 1954..The petition was opened for signatures last Wednesday and will be open until September 8. To date, the petition has received 110 signatures.
