Should We All Drop Our Tops When We Want To Be Heard?

The Montserrat Moms Seated Together For A Publicity Photo (AP)

Two stories in the news have me questioning and really wondering what people think about stripping down as an act of defiance and attention-getting.

Inna Shevchenko, leader of women's movement Femen and “sextremist” discusses her organization’s latest stunt at Notre Dame in Femen's Blasphemy in Notre Dame. Femen is a group of women who strip topless to protest when they see injustices. Their latest performance was supposed to be a celebration of the resignation of the Pope and a rallying cry against the church.

I am one of the first to have issues with the Catholic church and its treatment of women, but at the same time it is a religion and I wouldn’t do something in a place that others hold sacred just to get my own agenda across. Their whole stunt feels tacky and self-serving.

Meanwhile, from Spain, comes another story with women stripping down in the name of something they believe in—Spanish moms strip down to save school bus: Skin to Win! by George Mallet.

“In Montserrat, Spain, 10 mothers are showing some serious skin in a sexy calendar being sold to raise money in the face of Spain's austerity measures. The proceeds are being used to restore a reduction in bus service for 600 elementary school students.”

So a bunch of moms weren’t about to stand around while their kids’ school bus was taken away and they did what they thought would raise the most funds—pose for a sexy calendar.

As all the attention both of these stories are receiving shows, sometimes just doing something in the buff can get you the publicity you want to get your side of things out there or save something you need.

So the questions remain…should nudity be used to get attention? Are there some cases where it’s more acceptable and some that are just too risqué and “morally” questionable? Or should we all just strip down when we want to be heard?