Protesters in Portland combined political defiance with the city’s trademark eccentricity on Sunday, riding through downtown streets nude or nearly so in an “emergency” edition of the annual World Naked Bike Ride.
The hastily organized demonstration came as residents continued daily protests outside the city’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.
The nude ride, organizers said, was called to oppose President Donald Trump’s attempts to deploy National Guard troops to cities, including Portland, in response to ongoing protests.
Participants pedaled past onlookers wearing little more than shoes, hats, or wigs.
Some carried signs and shouted anti-administration slogans.
Many others embraced humor and absurdity — costumes shaped like unicorns, frogs, axolotls, and bananas mingled with the unclothed riders as they cycled through the rain.
MASSIVE BREAKING: Federal judge has just issued a RESTRAINING ORDER blocking Trump's USE OF THE National Guard in Portland!
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) October 4, 2025
Keep fighting back against the snowflakes!! pic.twitter.com/7ZTiLdsgyF
Janene King, 51, said she viewed the event as “a quintessentially Portland way to protest.” King rode nude except for wool socks, a wig, and a hat while sipping hot tea in the mid-50-degree weather.
“We definitely do not want troops coming into our city,” she said.
The ride’s organizers described the event online as an act of joy and solidarity: “Joy is a form of protest. Being together with mutual respect and kindness is a form of protest. It’s your choice how much or little you wear.”
As riders reached the ICE building, authorities instructed them to remain on sidewalks or risk arrest.
The demonstration took place as the city awaited a ruling from a federal appeals court on whether the Trump administration could move forward with the deployment.
A federal judge had previously issued a temporary hold on Oct. 5.
The World Naked Bike Ride has been a Portland staple since 2004, often drawing thousands of cyclists each summer who ride en masse through city streets to promote body positivity and protest dependence on fossil fuels.
Some years have seen crowds as large as 10,000 riders, temporarily bringing downtown traffic to a standstill.
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