A handful of Taupō mums are drawing the line on G-string togs in the district, urging people to opt for "appropriate" swimwear and ditch the cheeky bottoms.
In a since-deleted Facebook post, local mum Kayla Edwards said she felt uncomfortable taking her family to the public Spa Thermal Park in Taupō due to the lack of "appropriate" togs, sparking a G-string debate on social media.
Edwards told Newshub that her Facebook post attracted "negativity and backlash", people labelling the mum as "jealous and a prude" for her thoughts on swimwear.
"I actually expected that most people would agree with me, especially parents of young and impressionable children," she said, suggesting that public signage may discourage people from wearing bum-showing bathers.
"I obviously struck a nerve with a lot of people... I never intended to belittle anyone. My person opinion regarding G-strings in public hasn't changed.
"I don't have to prove I'm hot by prancing around in public wearing a G-string."
Despite taking the post down, Edwards said she was glad if her opinion had made people "consider their moral standards".
"I don't look down on anyone that wears a G-string in public, I just feel uncomfortable taking my family to places where this is happening," she explained.
Another Taupō mum, Renee Gray, told NZME she supported Edwards' stance, calling out swimmers who enjoy "undressing right by the swimming spot instead of going to use the changing rooms".
"I do think [the] council should put signage to say no nudity or undressing at local beaches," she told NZME.
Taupō single dad Craig Smith also weighed in, noting that skimpy swimwear "is definitely the fashion".
"G-strings or pulling bikini bottoms high so the butt is showing is definitely very prevalent now," he told NZME.
In a comment, Taupō District Council said it hadn't received any complaints about small swimwear or public nudity at council-owned swimming sites in the last year.
In April 2019, Auckland woman Yvette Harvie-Salter was asked to cover up at Albany Stadium Pool, a duty manager saying some mums had complained that her bikini was too revealing for a public pool. She was requested to change into a modest swimsuit or cover herself with a towel.
While acknowledging that the pool had signs requesting appropriate swimwear, Harvie-Salter said there was no specific ban on bikinis.
