Topless women plan Bele Chere appearance in Asheville

The organizer of an August rally in downtown Asheville encouraging women to Go Topless is planning to attend Bele Chere this weekend with two or three bare-breasted women in tow.

Asheville Citizen-Times reporter Casey Blake talked to Jeff Johnson today. The 59-year-old general manager of his wife’s pediatrics practice in Huntsville, Ala., told her he’s driving up and plans to show up at the festival about 2 p.m. on Friday. Citizen-Times columnist John Boyle wrote about Johnson’s background here.

The topless rally last year drew about a dozen or so women who went topless at Pack Square. It also drew hundreds of gawkers who stared, cheered and shot countless hours of video and thousands of photos. This year’s Breastfest has already spawned an effort by anti-topless crusaders Carl Mumpower and Chad Nesbitt, who plan to disrupt the event.

If Johnson follows through on his plan, the appearance of two or three topless women at Bele Chere is sure to cause a ruckus. We’ll just have to keep our eyes peeled and see what happens.