I agree with you Anna that men are ostracised, I've experienced this (I believe the reason is that it's easier to assume single men are perverts) as for families with children, I don't know enough about this to comment. Was the article about women to try to increase the women to men ratio at public naturist sites / beaches? Because in my opinion, it is once again men that are making women feel uneasy on beaches etc, especially with the possibility now of being filmed / photographed without permission. I can only imagine the pain at the invasion of privacy and potential of social media sharing!

Thanks Darren. I can assure you that as a family we feel more and more ostracised too. Adult only seems to be becoming far too common, every week I read of swims, walks, events and venues that do not want families and people under 18. 

It was not an article but instead a call out for the idea of inclusion within organised naturism for women - not public spaces like beaches. 

I agree taking photographs with out permission is a dreadful thing, but it also effects couples, some men and families. It is definitely putting people off naturism, or making them worry, but that is more to do with the bad behaviour of individuals (who are often not naturists) and isn't really a sign of lack of inclusion. The post seemed to me all about ensuring women feel that organised naturism has inclusivity for them, and I am not aware that it ever doesn't show that. Women are nothing but wanted and welcomed in naturism, sometimes to a point where it appears very prejudice towards them. There may be a smaller ratio of women in naturism, but I struggle to see how that is a sign of a lack of inclusion.   

Could it be something that exists elsewhere and carries across to the Naturism world? In our society women face a lot of challenges. There’s factors such as violence against women, disparity in wages and objectification of women, particularly in pornography but in other areas as well. This carries to places such as our local Rural Firefighting Service brigade where we don’t get as many female volunteers.  Our brigade has gone through a lot to try and demonstrate that we are egalitarian to try and attract more females. Given the general disparity in society I can see that Naturist groups are trying to demonstrate similarly that they are safe places for women to attract more women. Unfortunately for single men, it’s resulting in the discriminatory practices, but also in the call for more to be done to “protect” women’s rights.

Even though I’m a married man I suffer the discrimination because my wife chooses not to participate in my Naturism. I can’t freely join the local nudist group. Even here on ANW I have had friend requests refused because my wife isn’t part of my nude profile. And it extends beyond Naturism, too. I’m constantly reminded (by media) that I’m responsible for the violence and discrimination that exists in society because of my demographic. My wife constantly reminds me that I’m not responsible and supports me by telling me that I’m not like that, but the mindset continues. To me it seems that certain boundaries need to be pushed to achieve change, but it’s just unsettling for me that I’m on the receiving end of the push for change in the Naturist world. 

I don’t have any answers. But I can see that the reaction is deep seated and beyond just the Naturism boundaries. As the old saying goes “It only takes one bad apple to spoil the whole crop”. The fear of something is usually more powerful than the actuality and this discussion point is at the core of women’s participation in Naturism. 

It saddens me Tony to hear that some people have refused you friendship based on the fact you are not part of a naturist couple. We should judge everyone on an individual basis for what they share and how they behave. I could understand a family wanting to meet up with another family on a beach or to go on holiday with, or a couple doing likewise, or 2 men, 2 women etc. But to not accept them as basic friends to share things like ANW with I find surprising. Some of the loveliest and most active people on ANW are men who do not have naturist partners. We are a community and as such we should welcome everyone and give every an equal status of trust as a starting point. 

Let's face it there are couples within naturism who are more interested in swinging and other such interactions. Surely their behaviour is more worrying and damaging to naturism than the behaviour of the average single man? As Steve has often said, he would be the same person whether he had me in his life or not, yet having me in his life gives him a level of trust that he wouldn't have as a single man. That is just unfair. 

Unfair? Maybe, Anna. But it's "just the way it is" for some people, even here on ANW. And I think it's a bit more prevalent that you may realise.

While it might have been nice to friend the couple, there still needs to be boundaries beyond basic social etiquette. Nothing says anyone has to friend another. There's a myriad of reasons why people may decide not to, and mandating that they have to friend someone just potentially puts the other party in an uncomfortable position. There's a fundamental difference between playing nicely in the broader ANW sandpit and actually friending  people. Besides, how is it any different if I don't friend someone because they hadn't validated their account or paid an annual membership? It's just different arbitrary parameters that don't relate to their actual personality. No one has to be my friend if they don't want to.

The basic rules of society still exist here, it's just complicated a bit by the nudity and the fact that it's an internet forum so in general terms we don't meet face-to-face to have the benefits of reading body language. Some people choose to join and remain silent. Some don't post images. Many don't validate their accounts. Some are shy, some are not, some are gay, some are straight. And we all read "something" into that and make judgements to varying degrees. I haven't personally met anyone from ANW, although I have come close to meeting a couple and hopefully one day we will meet. There's others here I have email conversations with. But my point is that ANW is just a microcosm of individuals sharing common interests. No different to real life really.

Bringing it back to the current topic of Women in Naturism - the negative aspects of groups discriminating against males is an attempt to be done in a positive way, albeit clumsy and discriminatory. It's an attempt at trying to make the environment more attractive to females. Unfortunately it alienates some males, and it ironically doesn't seem to be having the effect of attracting more females to Naturism be they married or single. But, it's also known by another name that's fallen a little out of fashion lately. It's also called "positive action", but the old name is just covering what it's actually doing to make some people feel better about it.