Florida Nudist Colonies Have Real Skin in the Game When it Comes to Accessibility

During a reception at the Florida Governors Conference on Tourism I found myself seated next to someone wearing a mask that read: “I’D RATHER BE NAKED.” The provocative nature of the mask aroused my curiosity as I leaned over to inquire about what, besides his face, was behind the mask. He introduced himself as Martin Novoa, a board member of the South Florida Free Beaches Association, and the B.E.A.C.H.E.S. foundation, which advocates for nude beaches on public lands, beaches and waterways in South Florida. Curiosity prompted him to ask about my TravelAbility badge and when he learned that we produced a conference about making travel easier for people with disabilities, we discovered we had something in common: helping people with disabilities enjoy the travel experience.

After their request for a grant to purchase amenities for wheelchair users was rejected by Miami-Dade County officials, they held their own fundraising event that raised thousands of dollars for beach wheelchairs, beach wheelchair mats as well as showers that could be adjusted for wheelchair users. “It’s integral to our vision of full enjoyment that accessibility be built into all the opportunities,” said Novoa.

Watch TravelAbility’s interview with Martin below:

Our take: Sometimes accessibility surfaces when and where you least expect it. Perhaps nudists, an often jeered-at subculture of beach enthusiasts, have developed a baseline empathy for a group similarly overlooked by society. Or, while they may have been naïve to believe that a county government wouldn’t draw political derision for using taxpayer money to fund nude beach amenities, as a practical matter, they needed to provide access in order to retain members that were aging into a disability. Either way, while hats may be the only item of clothing considered optional, we collectively take ours off to them now as an homage to their proactivity.