QUESTION: I’m 32. Live in NYC and love to haunt the trees and shrubs in Central Park where I like to whip out my hard cock and stroke it. In just a few minutes I shoot! Not great cover, and usually lots of people. A few saw me, but no biggie. One just rolled his eyes and smirked. What do you think of this?
RESPONSE: There may be several reasons you find this so exciting—possibly just being outside where people usually don’t expose their genitals or masturbate, plus the thrill of danger, of possibly getting caught. Unfortunately, and against common sense, the consequences can be severe, legally. I wrote a column some time ago about a young fellow who was caught by a surveillance cam masturbating on a public bus late at night. He lucked out with just a warning, but the two possible charges, exposure and public lewdness can be serious, with fines and even prison terms.
Honestly you cannot be blamed for courting the excitement, though it’s probably not really worth the possibly serious consequences. If a real part of it is just being outdoors, there are more remote parks and hiking trails in other areas where it is safer to strip naked and/or masturbate outdoors. If you really do have an urge to be witnessed, which is normal and healthy, a safer place is a masturbation club such as the “Jacks” groups which tend to meet quite often in many major cities. For some of us, masturbating on cam online can also be a wonderful way to be witnessed and to witness other men enjoying their arousal.
I will not tell you that you should not do what you enjoy. It is really your choice and the forbidden or dangerous aspect may add to its appeal. I believe that Central Park’s shrubbery was reduced and modified some decades ago as it was being used as a major cruising ground by gay men. Hopefully, if you continue to pursue such adventures there, exercise real caution about getting caught and be completely aware that the legalities are nothing to sneeze at.
The laws that govern public nudity and what is actually such simple, harmless behavior as masturbating in public, survive in part from early Victorian times. The history is a lot more complex than this, but it’s also a remnant of male-dominant social control mechanisms.
Before the early 18thCentury when the worldwide vilification of masturbation really took off, many people got their sex education from living with family members of several generations in very close quarters—often a single room—and with little privacy. Younger people learned a lot by overhearing and peeking past drapes set up in sleeping areas. That was considered inevitable, natural, and healthy in many contexts.
Personally, I’m disturbed by how prudish and irrational it sounds to warn you against getting caught for what so many of us know is harmless, and even fun or arousing to observe. Let’s hope our species will grow up about such matters in the near future, to become more sensible and accepting of these human realities.
A note from The Batemaster: I’m honored that the guys at Bateworld have asked me to respond to some questions from male masturbators around the world every week.
Always check with your doctor about any issues you might be experiencing with your sexual organs. Prompt diagnosis and treatment are important. This article’s purpose is to inform and entertain readers and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment.
Unfortunately, in many states being caught exposing oneself outside can get you put on the sex offender list. In just about every state in America, once on the list it is near impossible to get yourself off. Though restrictions vary from state to state. One has a very limited, and monitored, life after being placed on the sex offender list. These restrictions dictate everything from where a person can live and work to who they can visit and where. Be very careful when making your choices.
Yes, good points! It may seem fun and exciting, but possible serious fines and even jail time may be only the prelude to lasting problems with being on a sex offender list. Thanks! — BPG
And depending on the type of employment you have, could be a possible career ender. Sounds like fun but….
I agree with Bruce that this can be very dangerous. The female body is not seen as threatening but the male body definitely is. A beautiful woman habitually streaking in the park would be treated as a folk hero and many sex-starved police officers would BOLO just to see her. In the meantime some men caught merely taking a leak in an alleyway have to register as sex offenders. As an admittedly over-modest person (the only one in swim trunks at the nudie resort) I admire exhibitionists but there are much safer spaces for you.
Again, good advice. It’s kind of sad and bizarre that there are still strong taboos about actually exposing your male genitals in public! Common sense suggests: Why should it be such a big deal? It’s all based on superstitions and strange beliefs, but those, unfortunately persist and are even encoded into laws. — BPG
This isn’t harmless play. People have a reasonable expectation of safety in public places and your actions could very well be perceived as an act (or potential act) of sexual violence. I came across a man exposing himself in the Ramble last winter, who then started following me down a path while I was walking my dog in the very early morning. It rattled me. I didn’t know if this was just a guy cruising me, or whether I was contending with something more violent. So, no, don’t jerk off in an urban park, you asshole. You don’t have the right to scare and potentially traumatize someone who doesn’t know what your intentions are.
Agreed, Parker, though I did not call him an “asshole.” Like it or not, there are contexts where such things as displaying your genitals or masturbating are wonderful, fun, hot, exciting. (Such as Bateworld, or consensual webcam play.) To expose strangers to such a spectacle in person is taken by many people as a kind of assault. Whether it ought to be taken so seriously or not–it usually is! True: it isn’t harmless play. — BPG