The 1980s tested the city’s lewd conduct to the limit. “Straight men come in droves – they line the wall, they zoom in on boats, they come dressed up in police suits and give out tickets for ‘lewd conduct’ because some of us don’t wear shirts.” “There is a beach here in Seattle where many Lesbians gather regularly – to be ‘out,’ to be comfortable … just to be,” it read. In August, 1988, an anonymous writer to the Seattle Gay News submitted a letter to the editor in support of topless self-expression at Denny-Blaine Beach. The article described Howell Park, where Warnock used to visit as “a quieter, more family-oriented slice of lawn.” “For many women, it’s a matter of pride, and of gender politics, so they have continued to swim shirtless despite the tickets and the police patrols,” the article says. In 1988, in an article titled “The Cops and The Tops,” the Seattle Weekly reported that police were citing nude sunbathers at Denny-Blaine beach for “lewd conduct” for the second year in a row. At one time, simply exposing genitals or female breasts was against city law. How could a nude beach flourish in the city? In fact, Seattle wasn’t always so permissive of public nudity. “You'll lay out your towel and then you'll be kind of worried your feet are going to hit someone else,” Darling said. Like so many places in this region, it’s more crowded, especially on weekends. The reputation is traveling by word of mouth new beach-goers are showing up.
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"It, to me, reminds me there are special spaces where benevolence and camaraderie still exist,” McCartney said. They carried blankets, sunscreen, and a picnic of salad, cheese, chicken strips and ranch dressing.ĭevotees of this beach are legion, and they are protective of this small oasis.Īaron Justice McCartney said it’s where old friends meet, strangers share food, and violin music will be played impromptu. “You just feel comfortable, like there's no social expectations to even talk to people,” Lipton said. “Once you get naked, it kind of strips away all your walls,” Flannery said. They said they come often for the mellow, accepting atmosphere. Today the park is known as a safe and welcoming place for all bodies and sexualities, with or without clothing.Īnd on this particular afternoon, boyfriends Elias Darling and Will Flannery walked down the path to the beach with their friend Emily Lipton. Warnock asked KUOW, how did this beach become a haven for nudity? But she moved out of the neighborhood in 2001, and since then (whether by coincidence or causation) the small enclave is now overwhelmingly naked and gay. Grandma would not abide the nudity-no matter that she was an ardent feminist and civil rights activist. The norm was to visit the beach with clothes – but every so often a topless woman would appear, Warnock said, and Grandma hiked up the steep path home to call police.
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“I stayed in the very shallows and every so often would go a little deeper and deeper until I finally learned how to swim.” Contrary to stereotype, he said, same-sex couples earn on average $15,000 less annually than opposite sex households.“I used to be scared of the water when I was a little kid,” he said. Ghaziani listed two reasons gayborhoods are losing their edge: Gays and lesbians are being priced out. One sociologist characterized lesbians as the “canaries in the urban coal mine.” Lesbians, he said, typically pave the way. Ghaziani said gays and lesbians have often been involved in the early stages of urban revitalization or renewal.
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The 1970s and 1980s marked a moment in time that demographers refer to as the Great Gay Migration. These areas flourished some decades later following the Stonewall riots of 1969.
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“Gayborhoods in the United States first formed following World War II,” he said, “when gay men and lesbians who were discharged from the military as a result of their real or perceived homosexuality decided to remain behind in major urban centers rather than returning home disgraced.” Amin Ghaziani, an associate professor of sociology at the University of British Columbia, has analyzed the changing role of gay neighborhoods in his new book, "There Goes the Gayborhood.” Ghaziani said gayborhoods began as refuges for LGBT people from heterosexual culture.