If a man posts a topless photo of himself on Instagram, no one blinks an eye. But if a woman does the same, her photo is sometimes removed by the site.
Instagram’s posting guidelines state that it prohibits “some photos of female nipples”, but they don’t mention anything about male nipples.
But are they really that different?
A new account, called ‘Genderless Nipples’, aims to point out how ridiculous the rule is by posting close-up photos of both male and female nipples.
Friends Morgan-Lee Wagner, Evelyne Wyss and Marco Russo set up the account because they believe all nipples should be treated equally.
The nipples posted on the page all have their hair removed, so there’s no obvious indication as to whether they belong to a man or a woman.
Each is posted with a short statement, such as “my nipple isn’t sexual, your thoughts are” or “no one is free when others are oppressed”.
“No matter people’s gender, everybody should be treated equally,” Wyss, told Metro.
“We are not against the rules, but we think rules should be applied to all genders equally.”
Instagram’s guidelines state that the site doesn’t allow nudity “for a variety of reasons”.
“This includes photos, videos, and some digitally-created content that show sexual intercourse, genitals, and close-ups of fully-nude buttocks,” they say.
“It also includes some photos of female nipples, but photos of post-mastectomy scarring and women actively breastfeeding are allowed. Nudity in photos of paintings and sculptures is okay, too.”
Commenting on the account, an Instagram spokesperson told The Huffington Post UK: “We are deeply invested in building a platform where people can express themselves, but we need to be mindful that our community is made up of people of different ages, backgrounds and beliefs.
“This is a complex area and it’s not always easy to satisfy everyone, but we are trying our best and we are listening to the community.”