Heika‘s letter to the editor was published in the Union Leader yesterday, but they apparently don’t put those on their website, so Heika kindly sent Free Keene a copy:
First things first: Baring one’s breasts in public is not a crime, nor is it illegal. That said, I also want to make clear that, contrary to what your article of July 19 implied, there were not several of us parading around downtown, taking off our clothes. A very talented local artist and I decided it would be beautiful to have my breasts painted. He was very respectful of not touching my body in any way except on a professional level. We were sitting on a park bench, covering what was not being painted.
I was officially—and wrongfully—arrested for holding an open container of alcohol in a public place. For the record, I was not intoxicated. Part of the reason people gather daily on the common in downtown Keene is to peacefully protest this ludicrous law. Some drink, while others socialize. Many people feel we are not properly going about achieving our goal to see changes in personal freedoms (such as drinking a beer on a property that we are required to pay for), but at least we are trying. Writing the government to ask them to change the law simply doesn’t work.
We are very peaceful in our gatherings. We leave the park cleaner than the way we found it, we don’t scream belligerently at cars or people passing through, and we do not threaten or harm anyone in any way. That sort of behavior is frequently seen on the patios of downtown restaurants and bars, yet the police do nothing about that. Why are we the ones being singled out and crucified?
The answer is simple: People are scared of change. Creatures of habit we may be, but like it or not, there will be change. Eventually we will truly be allowed to “Live Free Or Die,” as New Hampshire’s motto reads. I am proud to be a resident of a state with such a proud slogan. I do not need brutal police officers to tell me when and where I can relax and have a beer. I have a job, I pay taxes, and I am an adult–an adult with a very capable mind, and no intent of harming another being.
If the government can dictate what kind of beverage I can hold while sitting on a bench that I have in part paid for, then where does it end? Will they soon be telling me I can’t walk barefoot in my own back yard? Or will they be telling me what time I must be in bed? I am no longer a helpless child to be subject to such restrictions. As a grown woman, I do not require rules concerning my body and property, which I am capable of maintaining and paying for.
I have heard many people ask us to stop our protest, that we are wasting too much of the taxpayers’ money. My response to that is: Stop making rules that hinder my right to choose and be free. If that would happen, we would have fewer arrests, lower court fees, and less jail time, and more money for worthy causes and concerns.
I was cited yet again this week for holding an open container of alcohol, and I will continue to do so until we see results. Results that allow us to make decisions for ourselves. As time goes on, more and more people join us in our peaceful protest of this law. Many people are not activists, but agree that this law is unjust. We invite anyone that agrees with this to join us at the park! All are welcome.
