OPINION: Why are we still afraid of nudity in 2016?

COMEDIAN Mandy Nolan played a gig in Federal recently and opened with an anecdote about nuding up for a protest one of the last times she was in the village.

Mandy Nolan, nude peace protest, February 2, 2003. Photo The Northern Star Archives. Picture: The Northern Star Archives

COMEDIAN Mandy Nolan played a gig in Federal recently and opened with an anecdote about nuding up for a protest one of the last times she was in the village.

That event was in February 2003.

Headlined by songstress Grace Knight, an estimated 750 women got their gear off in a paddock outside Federal and lay around and formed a giant peace symbol as a protest against the second Iraq war.

News of this flashed (sorry) around the world. Anything nude seems to attract headlines.

Fast forward 13 years and we are still outraged when people get naked to make a point.

Every year there are nude bike rides held on the Northern Rivers to raise awareness about safety for cyclists.

It always garners plenty of publicity because people still get freaked out by nudity.

The comments on Facebook and our website have ranged from people who think it's "disgusting" and asking why these people weren't arrested, to others who see nothing wrong with the naked body to be displayed in this way or used to promote a cause.

I'm not here to either promote or condemn nude protests, but I certainly don't think the naked body is "disgusting".

The Northern Rivers is rather a relaxed place to live and dress standards are not what they are in the city.

I mean hair shirts and bikinis are common attire for people to go shopping in many towns here.

We live in a hot climate anyway, so the fewer clothes you have, the cooler you are likely to be.