So, I watched the Purge movies this past Halloween, and I think the idea of a holiday where crime is legal is a fascinating thought experiment. But the movies are unfortunately preoccupied with violence, when there is so much more you could do with the idea, especially on the subject of "consensual crime".
Now, I've had this thought for a while, but every year around my birthday I think about how I want to spend it in my birthday suit, and how it feels unjust that I can't go to my own birthday party without covering up (and if I'm just spending the day naked at home alone, then how is that any different from a regular day?). And this year it led me to hammer out what I think would be an intriguing writing prompt.
Maybe this would never work in a million years in the real world, but I think it would make for some pretty interesting stories, that could explore various facets - both positive and negative - of a world not terribly unlike our own, being exposed to public nudity (without being completely inundated with it, which would take us even further from reality). Here it is:
Writing Prompt: The government passes new legislation defending every citizen's freedom to go nude in public on the annual date of their birthday (as confirmed by official ID). All other laws remain in effect (including restrictions on public displays of sexuality), except those which would render it a crime to simply be undressed (e.g., indecency, harassment, etc. require offending behavior above and beyond mere exposure of the genitals). Businesses cannot restrict access or otherwise engage in discrimination based solely upon a person's state of dress. Jobs that require special equipment or uniforms for reasons of health or safety must provide alternate provisions, such as paid time off.
For this prompt, I would expect writers to explore what would happen in the wake of the passing of this new law. What pitfalls, expected or unexpected, might result? Who would take advantage of this new freedom? Would you? And what would that look like? Would some people end up getting themselves into trouble? What kind of longterm effects would this experiment have on society? Would public nudity eventually be completely normalized, or would citizens rally together and overturn this new law? Optionally, you might choose to consider what conditions led to the passing of the birthday suit law. Was it a groundswell of public opinion? A libertarian experiment? Or a nudist candidate imposing a "tyranny of the minority"?
I wish I myself had more experience writing stories. I love to pose hypothetical thought experiments like this one, but I always get boggled down in details - so many people would approach the situation so differently, it's impossible to predict what kind of effect it would have at any kind of scale. And how do you reconcile a premise that contradicts reality (e.g., a society that will defend by law a person's right to be naked in public on their birthday, but still considers it a heinous crime to do the same thing any other time). I dunno, I might try writing one anyway. Just for fun.
