MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) – Women are now legally allowed to go topless in Manhattan, with some restrictions.
The Manhattan City Commission on Tuesday unanimously decided to amend the city code to allow females to go topless. However, property owners and businesses may still require all patrons to wear shirts.
The Manhattan Mercury reports City Attorney Katie Jackson recommended the change to avoid potential lawsuits. She said the code could be changed again later.
Jackson cited a federal ruling in February 2017 that blocked Fort Collins, Colorado, from enforcing a law against women going topless. Fort Collins is in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, as is Kansas.
She said the government could still prosecute a topless woman who is acting in a lewd manner, which is against state law.
Laws prohibiting women from going topless in public are also being challenged in New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Wyoming.
Proponents say allowing women to take their shirts off in public is a step towards gender equality.
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