Last month saw a number of cities playing unwitting host to groups of naked bike riders as the WNBR (World Naked Bike Ride) movement continued its famously nude activities to protest cars and oil dependency and to promote body pride. But even as the movement has grown, the events have faced opposition.
For example, last year in Madison, Wisconsin, police cited 9 naked riders for disorderly conduct when the refused to cover up at the request of police. Hoping to head that off such problems this year this year, three WNBR organizers asked a court to file a temporary injunction to prevent that from happening this year.
But Judge Maryann Sumi refused to tie the hands of the police, saying riders had no right to be naked in public, according to a Wisconsin State Journal report. Nevertheless, in court testimony, police pledged to act only on serious complaints from citizens, and the ride went ahead as scheduled.
Despite the setback, organizers worked with the police and proceeded with the ride on June 18 of this year. Only one person among the 70 riders was cited for disorderly conduct.
A week prior to that, the WNBR movement faced organized opposition in Portsmouth, the second-largest city in England's Hampshire county. Nearly a 1,000 residents signed a petition to stop the event, which they termed "indecent" and "offensive." Despite such efforts organizers went ahead with the ride after consulting with the local constabulary. Nudity in in England is only illegal if it's intended to cause alarm or distress, a circumstance that does not apply to naturists.
Perhaps most surprising was the opposition encountered at the start of the WNBR event in Berkeley, California. As reported by Mitch Hightower on his blog, riders were to meet at People's Park, a small grassy area owned by the University of California at Berkeley. Naked riders applying sunscreen were berated by a middle-aged woman who demanded riders cover up lest she call the police. Minutes later, officers arrived and ordered participants to put on clothes.
"Apparently the University has no problem with drug dealing, indigents living in the landscaping or any of the other questionable activities we observed," wrote Hightower, "but a bare penis is just not acceptable."
According to the report, after this incident the ride went ahead as scheduled with approximately a dozen, although many were clothed.
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