AANR Throws "Naked Coffee Guy" Under the Bus

According to an article today in the Washington Examiner, AANR was contacted about the story of the man in Virginia who was arrested for being nude in his own home.

Carlyn Hawkins, a spokeswoman for the American Association for Nude Recreation, declined to comment on the specifics of the case. However, she said, "I'm nude when I'm in my home, but I also keep my drapes closed."

Hawkins said the association advocated naked responsibility.

"We don't want to offend anybody," she said. "We want to be accepted and we don't want any nudist to create any problems."

It's one thing for a blogger like me to comment on the case, but for a national organization to associate itself with this incident is simply terrible public relations. AANR should have simply declined all comments on the basis that the story was not directly related to nude recreation.

By making such an irresponsible statement, AANR has not only labeled Williamson a "nudist", they have also inferred that he is irresponsible, and a troublemaker, without knowing the full facts of the case.

Spokeswoman Hawkins, while technically correct in advising nudists to use discretion, should not be making public statements which perpetuate the notion that nudity is better when it's behind closed draperies and locked doors. Naturally, this does reinforce AANR's interests, which lie in landed clubs which charge admission, and activities which take place behind high fences with locked gates. One cannot state "we want to be accepted", and then advise those seeking acceptance to run and hide.

The Washington Examiner story also reports that police are distributing flyers in Williamson's neighborhood in an attempt to find more witnesses. This is a clear indication that authorities have a very weak case and need more evidence, even if they have to manufacture it.

Just imagine if this had been a woman nude in her kitchen making coffee, with a man outside her window peeking in. Does anyone think for one second that the woman would be the one arrested? No, the key to this case for the police is the 7 year-old child who allegedly saw the man nude in his window. It's always about protecting the children.

And Reason.com is reporting that a half-dozen cops barged into Williamson's home unannounced, entered his bedroom, and arrested him. Nude and dangerous!

It is also reported that the woman who made the complaint disputes the time of the incident, claiming it took place at 8:40 AM instead of 5:30. If that's true, would it not have much brighter outdoors, thus making it more difficult to see inside the house, even with the lights on in the kitchen? Nobody disputes that the woman and her child were on the man's property at the time of the alleged sighting.

I have no doubt that there will be more information coming out on this story in the next few days as police dig in to this man's background, and completely ruin his reputation in the neighborhood as they attempt to justify their overreaction and poor judgement in responding to the initial complaint.