Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
"Topless" Bedford Bike Lane Protest Draws Media, Clothed Cyclists
By
John Del Signore
Published Dec 19, 2009
Modified Dec 21, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
View all 6
By
John Del Signore
Published Dec 19, 2009
Modified Dec 21, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
"I want to see some boobs," shouted a lone NYPD officer (seen here) who pulled up to our photographer at Bedford Avenue in South Williamsburg, ironically blocking the former bike lane in the process. "I've been trying to find out online when this is happening and nobody had the start time! Did I miss it?" Minutes later, a group of 15-20 fully clothed cyclists pedaled by, trailed by almost twice as many photographers, TV news crews, and assorted media. The "topless" protest over the controversially removed bike lane was not the NC-17 provocation the media and others had hoped for. At one point, two men in a parked car near Division Street shouted at the cyclists, "We've been waiting for two hours! Where's the skin?"
Last weekend's rainy protest, organized by Times Up, attracted a heavy police presence, but only a couple NYPD vehicles trailed the bicyclists tonight. But it wasn't just the snow and cold weather that kept the protesters clothed. One of the ride's organizers, Heather Loop, had previously taken a confrontational stance toward the South Williamsburg Hasidic community, telling the Brooklyn Paper, "If you can't handle scantily clad women … live in a place where you can have your own sanctuary, like upstate." But tonight Loop and others backpedaled their provocation. "We're not trying to start a war, we're trying to save a bike lane," Loop told us.
"I'm tired of seeing ghost bikes," said protester Lyla Durden. "It can get really hectic and dangerous without bike lanes." And before the ride, Calisha Jenkins, standing in the snow with fake rubber breasts hanging outside her coat, told us, "I'm really clumsy, and without a bike lane I'm a sitting duck." The protest, officially organized by Candy Rain, began with a dedication to bicyclists who've been killed and injured in traffic accidents. Then it was off into the snow, with photographers, news trucks, and the NYPD on hand to catch any provocation. Ultimately, the neighborhood's Hasidic residents barely seemed to notice.
Tagged
bedford avenue
bike lane
Hasidic
nyc
nypd
protest
ride
topless
williamsburg
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags
Prosecutors say the 22-year-old damaged property outside the Fresh Meadows shop twice in May.
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:07 p.m. ET
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
News
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial
By
David Brand
Mamdani launches new team to help NYers keep SNAP, Medicaid benefits
By
Caroline Lewis
Riders at 53rd St. station where man was fatally shot say they worry about gun violence
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .