Dave Rossow
interviewed by Emma Taylor on October 19, 1995
"I'm nude whenever I can be."
Dave Rossow is a member of the Naturist Society.
Tripod: Why did you join the Naturist Society?
DR: I believe in their values and what they're doing. I believe in the lifestyle and the freedom that comes with it.
Tripod: What are their values?
DR: I'd say body acceptance, freedom to be yourself.
Tripod: In what situations? To what extreme would you carry this?
DR: Once you take off all your clothing, you drop all the hype and you lose all the stereotypes. You become known for who you are and not what you look like. It's more important what you think as opposed to what you look like.
Tripod: So do you think nudity should be acceptable in more situations? Would that improve our lives?
DR: Yes. When you drop your clothing, you drop your fears and inhibitions. I don't know how I want to word that. You become -- I 'm lost for words. I'm choking up. What was that question again?
Tripod: Do you think there should be more situations where nudity is acceptable?
DR: Yes. I think once you get used to seeing people without their clothing on, it becomes natural. You don't put the emphasis on what you can't see anymore. You just accept people for who they are.
Tripod: Aside from practical considerations such as the weather, would you like to see nudity at work? Would that improve the workplace?
DR: Well, obviously there are some jobs that you need to wear clothing for protection.
Tripod: Beyond that though ...
DR: Yeah, in general it would be nice if there were no problem. But I don't think society is ready for that.
Tripod: So is the Naturist Society more concerned with changing people's reactions to nudity, or changing the laws concerning nudity?
DR: Right now they're more concerned with protecting the freedom to have space allocated for nude use, such as nude beaches and places that are freely available to the public, where they can exercise their freedom to be nude.
Tripod: Do you spend a lot of time naked?
DR: Within my apartment, yes, and when I go to various clubs and whatnot. I'm nude when I can, when appropriate.
Tripod: Is nudity mandatory at the Naturist Society's events?
DR: It's pretty much optional. If someone doesn't feel like it, they don't have to, there's no pressure. It's kind of a relaxed situation -- if you're cold, you're going to put something on, obviously.
Tripod: Could you tell me a little about the history of the Naturist Society?
DR: It started in 1980 ... It's part of an international group called the International Naturist Federation, based out in Oshkosh.
Tripod: But the idea of embracing nudity goes back way beyond 1980, right?
DR: Yes, there's paintings in the Pyramids of nude figures, it dates back well before our documented history.
Tripod: So is the advent of clothing a backward step?
DR: Yes, it's a thing that has developed very recently. Even in the early 1900s, there was still popular skinny-dipping all over. It's worse in the United States, people in the United States have a more puritanical view.
Tripod: Why do you think that is?
DR: I don't really know. It's something that just came over.
Tripod: How antagonistic is the Naturist Society? Do you ever have demonstrations?
DR: Just recently there was a situation in Florida on a popular beach, and they are taking a legal stand there. They have a network called the Naturist Action Committee, and they monitor legislatures throughout the country. They look for bills to be introduced that expand public nudity.
Tripod: The Florida Naturists recently posted an article claiming, "We Naturists at Playalinda are essentially in the same place as the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto as the Nazis stormed in." Doesn't that seem a little extreme?
DR: I think that's kind of radical, but there is a lot of pressure from a minority of people to ban nudity. [The Naturists] have got to do something to try to get people motivated to help prevent that.
Tripod: Did you hear about the university student in California who decided to go to all his classes naked? What do you think about that kind of display?
DR: I think that kind of a demonstration is inappropriate because you shouldn't be forcing your beliefs on anyone else. By going out into public nude where people aren't going to be expecting it, you are forcing your belief on them. It would be better if it were more controlled and understood.
Tripod: So what is a gentler way to accustom people to nudity?
DR: Just present truthful valid information and keep introducing them to your views. Education is the best way.
Tripod: Are there any social benefits of nudity that might convince a person that nudity is the way to go?
DR: Yeah, there's enhanced self-esteem. You learn to accept others for who they are. You don't have to worry about any physical problems you may have. It's a very healthy benefit. Doctors have been known to prescribe nude recreation for people who suffer from depression.
Tripod: I've heard that a wider acceptance of nudity might reduce certain types of crime, too.
DR: I don't have any studies to refer to, but when you're at a nude beach, and you're used to seeing people nude all the time, you no longer focus on the body's individual parts. You look at people as a whole, compared to a textile beach, where people wear suits that are designed to focus the mind's attention on parts that you can't see. It builds up a lot of anxiety, and that anxiety can be misplaced through crime. If you go to a nude beach, all that dissolves.
Tripod: That sounds like the argument that you should let a kid watch whatever he wants on TV, so that he will grow bored of it. But that doesn't always happen -- don't you think increased nudity might encourage people to become even more obsessed with the human body?
DR: From my experience, people don't really become obsessed. You really can't compare it to the issue with the TV, because the content is so varied. On a nude beach, you're just talking about people.
Tripod: But the human body comes in all shapes and sizes too.
DR: Well, there's only two types of people, and they're all pretty much the same. And they haven't changed much in the last five or ten thousand years.
Tripod: So do you think nudity could ease racial tensions as well?
DR: From my experience, on a nude beach, I've seen people of all different races. And when you take off your clothing you become vulnerable. You can accept others for who they are, and not for what color their skin is, or what shape their body is in.
Tripod: How would more non-sexual nudity affect pornography?
DR: I think that there would be a lot less pornography if there were more nudity. It may sound contradictory, but I've lost interest in any pornography since I was a teenager, since I got involved in nudity. You see people nude all the time, and you tend to lose interest in all that.
Tripod: But it seems a shame to lost interest in seeing a person naked. Doesn't the very privacy of nudity also add to its intimacy?
DR: Well, I haven't lost interest in being intimate with my girlfriend.
Tripod: Is it different though, after spending so much time with naked people?
DR: No. When we get romantic, it's very passionate! But her beauty is kind of blended with everything else. She's far more beautiful than anything she could put on.
|
