A woman has sparked national debate due to video circulating of her being detained on a South Carolina beach after complaints that her skimpy bikini was against the law.
Sam Panda, a well-known aerial acrobat, posted a video on her Facebook on Sunday of Myrtle Beach police officers handcuffing her, which was prompted by her and a friend wearing thong bikinis and “see-through” tops. In the video, an officer explained that the swimsuit violated city ordinances concerning public nudity.
“You’ve detained me for being in a thong,” Panda said in the video. The officers on camera said she was detained because of the way she was “acting.” They also read her the ordinances on the video.
One of the ordinances, 14-83, states it’s unlawful for a person to intentionally be in public wearing clothing that exposes others to “human male or female genitals, pubic area, pubic hair, buttocks, anus, vulva or any portion of the female breast at or below the areola thereof,” according to information obtained by The News & Observer.
The other ordinance, 5-30, states it’s against the law to be nude “on any public beach, beach access, in the public waters, any other public property, or in view of the public.” It further says “a state of dress or undress so as to expose to the view of others specified anatomical areas” is unlawful.
Panda and the other woman were willing to leave the beach and were released without charges, Myrtle Beach Police Department Cpl. Tom Vest told The News & Observer. Panda was in handcuffs for about 10 minutes.
In a Facebook post reprimanding the woman who complained about her appearance, Panda said she was “rushed, aggressively grabbed, manhandled and cuffed.”
“You allowed two women to be slut shamed publicly on a beach for their bathing suits,” she wrote. “And worst of all, you showed your daughter that her body is something she should be ashamed of and could be detained for. You showed her that a man can harm a woman over the way her body is viewed by other people. You have objectified a female body that does not belong to you and have showed your daughter that those actions are acceptable. You should be absolutely ashamed of yourself.”
Some folks agreed with Panda online. One Facebook user, Christopher McKinney, wrote: “American obsession with nudity is so prudish and anachronistic. We need to grow up. Far more offensive is the corruption from our leaders and big money.I’m not offended by nudity and I don’t know why anyone would be.”
Others, including Debra Connelly, thought Panda should’ve been willing to comply with the officers’ request.
“When an authority figure ie cop asks you to do something as simple as leave the beach you leave. Because you didn’t respect his authority now you get to pay $ for not complying. Lesson learned yet?”
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