DENVER – Hundreds of topless women and men will march down the 16th St. Mall in Denver to promote topless equality during the 2017 Go Topless Day Parade taking place this Saturday.
Organizers said the march will seek “to improve relations between the sexes in the U.S and reduce objectification by reminding America that while nudity and sexuality can overlap, they aren't the same thing.”
The march will also serve as an opportunity to show that men and women “can embrace topless equality while promoting respect and healthy boundaries,” according to the event’s Facebook page.
The meet up will begin at the Bannock Street end of Civic Center Park, near the corner of Colfax and Broadway, starting at 11 a.m.
The march down the 16th Street Mall and back will begin at 1:30 p.m.
A worldwide event
Go Topless Day parades are taking place in over 40 cities across the world – from Burkina Faso in Africa to Valparaiso in Chile, according to the organization’s website. Over 20 events are scheduled to take place in the United States alone.
“It is only logical that GoTopless Day protests (or celebrations depending on the legal status of your city) would fall on Women's Equality Day since the right to go topless for women is based on gender equality as their right to vote once was,” a press release of the event states.
Colorado’s fight for female toplessness
While female toplessness is not banned in Denver, cities like Fort Collins are still fighting to end the ban on toplessness after the city said it was planning to appeal a federal judge’s decision to temporarily halt enforcement of its ban on women going topless.
The Denver march, which has been taking place each year around this time since it started back in 2013, saw ten times more people in 2016 than the year prior, according to organizers.