Content warning : nudity
A protester in Portland definitely surprised the police last weekend, after waltzing into a crowded protest pretty much naked (with the exception of a beanie).
Protests in Portland, Oregon have been happening since the beginning of June – and have intensified in recent weeks as unmarked vehicles and what seem to be national security forces have started to show up on the streets of Portland. The scenes have been grabbing national attention, as reports have surfaced of these agents grabbing people off the streets and detaining them.
The nude woman appeared on the scene in Portland during a standoff in the evening, after federal agents and police had descended upon the area. Journalist, Donovan Farley, who had been chronicling the events of the night on his Twitter feed and witnessed the entire standoff.
She seemed to be wearing a face mask and a beanie – and not anything else – and videos posted on social media suggested that she was doing yoga and pacing around before she sat down on the road. She continued to do yoga in front of the line of police and didn't move until they did.
And then? Naked Athena appeared and the little boys didn’t know what to do. https://t.co/Elo69SsV0t— Donovan Farley (@Donovan Farley) 1595062329
Amazing. https://t.co/HmP9r85SWV— Donovan Farley (@Donovan Farley) 1595062448
She won https://t.co/XxHyI5JJoX— Donovan Farley (@Donovan Farley) 1595062727
Needless to say that people were in awe of her bravery and confidence.
naked Athena of Portland Oregon making the cops back off protestors by stripping naked and sitting down in the str… https://t.co/8Y8BT9nbWW— fallon (@fallon) 1595101695
Portland early this morning; nude female demonstrator, who lay down in the street and began performing yoga. The co… https://t.co/MhZCHO9WEt— Victoria 🏳️🌈 #blacklivesmatter ❤️✌🏽🙏 (@Victoria 🏳️🌈 #blacklivesmatter ❤️✌🏽🙏) 1595105615
#NakedAthena #nakedathenainportland is my new favorite icon. Stopping violence with her literal naked body.… https://t.co/asmLbiDt8r— melly (@melly) 1595175305
At one point, another protester gets in front of her with a shield, as police shot pepper balls at the women's feet. Videos from the encounter show that the police eventually backed away, and can even be seen driving away from the scene in photos from the standoff. One of the photographers who was taking photos of her and the protest pointed out that it would have been incredibly painful to have been shot without any clothes on.
Dave Killen, a photographer and reporter for Oregon Live, said:
Everyone seemed surprised and kind of astounded.