Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Omaha Steve

(107,489 posts)
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 09:54 PM Oct 12

Naked bike riders demonstrate against federal troops in 'quintessentially Portland' protest

Source: AP

By JENNY KANE and CHRISTOPHER WEBER
Updated 7:22 PM CDT, October 12, 2025
Leer en español

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Protesters rallying against the Trump administration in Portland put the city’s quirky and irreverent reputation on display Sunday by pedaling through the streets wearing absolutely nothing — or close to it — in an “emergency” edition of the annual World Naked Bike Ride.

Crowds that have gathered daily and nightly outside the immigration facility in Oregon’s largest city in recent days have embraced the absurd, donning inflatable frog, unicorn, axolotl and banana costumes as they face off with federal law enforcement who often deploy tear gas and pepper balls.

The bike ride is an annual tradition that usually happens in the summer, but organizers of this weekend’s hastily called event said another nude ride was necessary to speak out against President Donald Trump’s attempts to mobilize the National Guard to quell protests.

Rider Janene King called the nude ride a “quintessentially Portland way to protest.”



Read more: https://apnews.com/article/portland-oregon-naked-bike-ride-protest-43ecafc5f5ce0a7d7f44dc016fbe86d0

29 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Naked bike riders demonstrate against federal troops in 'quintessentially Portland' protest (Original Post) Omaha Steve Oct 12 OP
Magat heads will explode! SheltieLover Oct 12 #1
A most effective protest tactic since Lady Godiva. Bravo! nt Wednesdays Oct 12 #2
This message was self-deleted by its author nilram Oct 15 #20
That's an annual event in San Francisco. RandySF Oct 13 #3
My youngest daughter used to participate in that. murielm99 Oct 13 #4
seattle as well samnsara Oct 13 #9
ditto Portland nilram Oct 15 #21
Makes our side look stupid. The Grand Illuminist Oct 13 #5
... Oeditpus Rex Oct 13 #6
Makes our side look fearless. pnwmom Oct 13 #7
Agree 100%. Timeflyer Oct 13 #8
My grandfather was at the Ludlow Massacre DenaliDemocrat Oct 14 #17
The worst thing we could do is offer an excuse for violence. This does the opposite, pnwmom Oct 14 #18
Well getting naked and riding a bike DenaliDemocrat Oct 14 #19
I don't see anybody laughing. Do you? Hekate Oct 16 #24
I sure do DenaliDemocrat Oct 16 #25
i disagree.. samnsara Oct 13 #10
I find this perspective a bit perplexing. The metaphor is obvious. hunter Oct 13 #13
It's about as "transparent" as one can be! Zambero Oct 13 #14
Mind you don't hurt yourself clutching those pearls nt GenThePerservering Oct 13 #15
The Speaker, aka Li'l Pervy, agrees. Only he calls it dangerous and disgusting and ugly... Hekate Oct 15 #22
It's something that would be more effective in Europe JI7 Oct 16 #26
I disagree. I think it makes Dems look good--they can stand-or ride against Trump. riversedge Oct 16 #27
"our side" Skittles Oct 16 #29
I remember that naked woman from 2020. She sat down in front of the line travelingthrulife Oct 13 #11
I remember it, too - she was very effective in making their heads explode. Talitha Oct 13 #12
I loved that so much I saved the photo & article. So outrageous and above all so brave... Hekate Oct 15 #23
Quarter inch of rain fell that day, and it was in the low 50s GenThePerservering Oct 13 #16
This made me smile LetMyPeopleVote Oct 16 #28

Response to Wednesdays (Reply #2)

murielm99

(32,445 posts)
4. My youngest daughter used to participate in that.
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 12:34 AM
Oct 13

But I don't think it was in San Francisco. Probably Chicago.

samnsara

(18,672 posts)
9. seattle as well
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 09:01 AM
Oct 13

..that was one of the first things my grand daughters saw when they moved from Tennessee to their hometown of Seattle...

nilram

(3,399 posts)
21. ditto Portland
Wed Oct 15, 2025, 10:22 PM
Oct 15
The bike ride is an annual tradition that usually happens in the summer

pnwmom

(110,129 posts)
7. Makes our side look fearless.
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 02:25 AM
Oct 13

The fearful ones are the guys holding semi-automatics and wearing masks.

DenaliDemocrat

(1,714 posts)
17. My grandfather was at the Ludlow Massacre
Tue Oct 14, 2025, 10:02 AM
Oct 14

Those miners were fearless.

This is just dumb. It’s why they laugh at us.

pnwmom

(110,129 posts)
18. The worst thing we could do is offer an excuse for violence. This does the opposite,
Tue Oct 14, 2025, 11:58 AM
Oct 14

while succeeding in taunting Trump.

DenaliDemocrat

(1,714 posts)
19. Well getting naked and riding a bike
Tue Oct 14, 2025, 12:15 PM
Oct 14

Is clownish behavior. A sit in forcing them to violence, an hones-to-God labor strike, a boycott- those send a message. Riding a bike naked is just dumb.

DenaliDemocrat

(1,714 posts)
25. I sure do
Thu Oct 16, 2025, 05:55 AM
Oct 16

Ask around. People roll their eyes. Oh, Donald Trump is a fascist? We will show him. We will ride our bikes naked….

Ridiculous.

samnsara

(18,672 posts)
10. i disagree..
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 09:03 AM
Oct 13

I think its a great idea and when trumps teeny weeny gang comes to Seattle they will be greeted with the same...

hunter

(40,102 posts)
13. I find this perspective a bit perplexing. The metaphor is obvious.
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 01:31 PM
Oct 13

They are telling the Trump administration and Republicans leaders in general, "Hey, I've got nothing to hide, how about you?"

Everyone in the Trump administration has something to hide.

How about those Epstein files? is just a small sampling of what they hide.

I think we are beyond the point of offending voters who may still be "on the fence." If they are still on the fence they are lost souls and the best we can hope for is that they will abstain from elections instead of voting for Republicans.

Personally, I don't worry much about nudity. Half of why I wear clothes is environmental -- I sunburn very easily and I don't like to be cold. The other half is that I pay attention to social norms, however arbitrary and inexplicable those might be.

Plenty of people have seen me naked, photographed me naked, and drawn or painted me naked, for the most part in social contexts where nudity is generally accepted within our society. ( And most of that was before the internet could turn the most innocent sorts of casual nudity or art into a scandal. )

If newly minted ICE agents or young National Guard soldiers from "conservative" U.S.A. are shocked by naked bike riders, maybe this is a good thing. Maybe they'll secretly wish they were hanging out with those interesting people. The U.S.A. is not Iran (yet?) where they'd have license to beat naked protesters bloody and haul them away to prison, possibly to die.

Zambero

(9,890 posts)
14. It's about as "transparent" as one can be!
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 02:25 PM
Oct 13

Cloaked in secrecy (a-la Epstein files) it ain't!

Hekate

(99,958 posts)
22. The Speaker, aka Li'l Pervy, agrees. Only he calls it dangerous and disgusting and ugly...
Wed Oct 15, 2025, 11:54 PM
Oct 15

It’s an annual tradition in Portland — and it can’t be all bad, if it gives Li’l Pervy the willies.

travelingthrulife

(3,604 posts)
11. I remember that naked woman from 2020. She sat down in front of the line
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 11:00 AM
Oct 13

of grotesquely armed goons and spread her legs wide. I swear those goons nearly wet their pants and started crying for their mommies.

Talitha

(7,616 posts)
12. I remember it, too - she was very effective in making their heads explode.
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 11:41 AM
Oct 13
Your choice of which head I'm referring to.

Hekate

(99,958 posts)
23. I loved that so much I saved the photo & article. So outrageous and above all so brave...
Wed Oct 15, 2025, 11:59 PM
Oct 15

That kind of physical display is something I could never do in my life, but when I saw it in that context I admired her enormously.

GenThePerservering

(3,138 posts)
16. Quarter inch of rain fell that day, and it was in the low 50s
Mon Oct 13, 2025, 02:48 PM
Oct 13

I'm sure ICE and the sad group of counter-protestors with Charlie Kuck's picture were whining about the weather. Obvs the protestors themselves weren't so weak.

Latest Discussions»Latest Breaking News»Naked bike riders demonst...