The Nude in Activism at NUDE Magazine

Carrie Leigh & Gary Frischer, of NUDE magazine, the most successful art nude title to hit American newsstands in a long time, selling out both its first and second issue, are preparing quite a surprise for you online.

Carrie & Gary have been Native American rights activists for many years, combining their art with their convinctions. This is how we came to connect.

A couple of months ago, I introduced them to John LeKay, editor and founder of Heyoka magazine. John is also director of the Silkwood Project. John interviewed Carrie Leigh for his website, along with the most popular art nude model in the world, May Lindstrom. In the same issue, he talked to green super model Summer Rayne Oakes and FUSE USA founder/director Sherwood Martinelli. All oppose the relicencing of the Indian Point nuclear power plant on the Hudson river.

Gary Frischer and I came to talk about how the nude has been used throughout history to make a point, attract attention to political issues. The most recent use of the naked form to make a social statement is of course PeTA. The nude I shot of Isabel Vinson last year in front of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant landed Isabel on the cover of the Brattleboro Reformer.

This has been going on for eons... Lady Godiva rode a horse naked through the streets of Coventry, taking pity on the suffering caused by her husband's oppressive taxation. Her actions were victorious. Her husband abolished the onerous taxes.

In 1958, Helen Caldicott, the doyenne of the anti-nuclear movement, disrobed with 50 others and marched through San Francisco chanting "Nudes, not nukes!" This has since inspired hundreds such Naked For Peace demonstrations around the world. Every year, thousands of nudes cyclists ride through the streets of major cities to bring attention to biker rights.

It's in this spirit that the editors of Nude magazine have decided to create a dedicated section on their website to celebrate the nude in activism. They are asking photographers and models who want to contribute work to contact them.

Sherwood Interview by John LeKay ~ Heyoka Magazine

Journalist John LeKay, friend of Rock The Reactors, Green Nuclear Butterfly, and FUSE USA, has interviewed Sherwood Martinelli for Heyoka Magazine.

John and Sherwood discuss the growing movement opposing the relicensing of the Indian Point nuclear power plant, and the rise of FUSE USA, a new coalition focused on getting the job done.

The interview with Sherwood appears in Heyoka Volume 9, alongside interviews with Rock The Reactors Betcee May and model/environmentalist Summer Rayne Oakes.

A few months ago GNB revealed Summer's association with ETS Energy store, a green business majority owned by BGA Engineering, which does maintenance work at Indian Point. Summer has since come out in opposition to the $50 Billion Federal loan guarantees to the nuclear power industry.

John LeKay runs the Silkwood Project, chronicling the disastrous effects of uranium mining on Native American lands.

SRO Speaks out on Nukes & her Cherokee roots...

John LeKay, publisher of Heyoke Magazine asked Summer Rayne Oakes:

What are your thoughts on alternative energies?

Summer Rayne Oakes: I'm becoming more and more vocal in this area as my work unfolds. I've written letters to my state Senators urging them to stop the $50 billion in loan guarantees for nuclear energy and voiced my concerns on coal. We need individuals, communities and the federal government behind clean renewables. The amount of subsidies and loan guarantees still supporting dirty energy is absolutely mind-boggling!

On the clean energy front, I like to put most of my own energies into positive movements. Over the last few months, I've been working with a number of young leaders on PowerShift 2007, which is the first national youth Climate Summit headed by Energy Action and the Campus Climate Challenge. The organizations have really been the backbone of much of the climate change actions, like Step it Up, Focus the Nation, and the President’s Climate Commitment. I feel invigorated when the youth take the lead in getting their campuses and communities to start taking progressive steps in reducing their carbon footprint.

For the rest of the interview, logon to:
http://heyokamagazine.com/HEYOKA.9.Fashion.htm