February 21, 1998

CAMBRIDGE, Ont. (CP) _ It was billed as an event where women could exercise their rights unencumbered by lycra support garments. But in the end the bare-breasted swim staged Saturday at public pool was something of a bust. Only one woman from the Topfree Equal Rights Association swam topless at the W.G. Johnson swimming pool. Jeanette Tossounian of Kitchener swam and lounged in a whirlpool with several other swimmers. Other female demonstrators decided to keep their tops on in the glare of TV cameras. ``The only people getting excited seems to be your reporters and the people outside, I guess,'' said Tossounian, 22.

Clutching a megaphone outside the pool, anti-topless crusader Erika Kubassek of the Moral Support Movement launched a formal complaint and made her indignation known to a small crowd of onlookers. ``Don't people have any shame anymore?'' cried Kubassek, who was joined by a handful of protesters. ``We all know breasts are sexual objects, we've known that for thousands of years,'' she said. Female breasts are enticing to men. In Europe there is already full nudity, is that what we want? Are we ready for Sodom and Gomorrah, Cambridge?'' Kubassek, whose complaint will be forwarded to the city council, enouraged other pool patrons to sign a petition against topless swimming.