ACLU Says Oregon Woman Has Right to Bike Naked; Local Law Begs to Differ

By: Ryan Smith
Topics: Daily Blotter

(Ashland Daily Tidings)

ASHLAND, Ore. (CBS/AP) They call Jen Moss "Ashland's Naked Lady."

A hit with the city's men, Moss is known for biking around Ashland, Ore., in just a g-string, nothing up top and no word on a helmet.

Photo: Jenn Moss, Ashland's Naked Lady.

But soon Moss will be covered up and her joyrides outlawed. This week, the town's city council adopted a ban on public nudity and the mayor signed the ordinance. The order takes effect in February and applies to anyone over the age of 8.

The nudity issue arose in 2008, when Moss started bicycling around Ashland wearing little more than a smile. More complaints came last summer, when a retired computer programmer visiting the city took nude strolls near an elementary school. Then a vacationer from Minnesota exposed himself in October.

Photo: Jenn Moss, Ashland's Naked Lady.

Ashland had already banned the exposing of genitalia in parks and downtown. Tuesday night's decision to expand the ban brought a threat of legal action from the American Civil Liberties Union, which says it violates the Oregon Constitution's protection of free expression.

In a 1985 decision, the Oregon Court of Appeals upheld Portland's ban on public nudity. But the court also ruled that public nudity can be a protected form of expression, such as during a protest.

And that's exactly what Moss says she is doing.

"I just wanted to stand up for evolution," she said. "In Europe it's no big deal to see naked people. It will be nice when Americans have evolved and they won't even notice that I'm naked anymore."

And if you think being nude for Moss is about sex, you're wrong, she says.

"I do not watch pornography and I support committed, monogamous relationships based on mutual respect. I do believe people have the right to do pornography, but it drains the human soul. Sex is sacred and is about making love, not war," Moss said the Ashland Daily Tidings.

Moss, whose parents "are just your normal, everyday people," moved to Ashland from Ojai, Calif., because of its lax public nudity law.

A former waitress, Moss quit that job over "concern about pesticides, herbicides, chemical use and cruelty to animals," according the Daily Tidings.

She has now been working as "kind of a life coach for people," and is looking for a new job, Moss told the paper.

Anybody hiring?

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Should Moss have the right to peddle naked or is she disturbing the peace?

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by Frdmftr September 3, 2010 8:37 PM EDT: I disagree with zootsuithap. Clothes are an insecurity/immaturity thing. Grow up and take them off. Be secure enough to stop feeling vulnerable just because you are naked.; Reply to this comment


by Frdmftr September 3, 2010 8:29 PM EDT: I find the comments here incredible. Here is a sweet, inoffensive, cute, naked, perhaps a little air-headed but certainly harmless gal, doing something that brightens her day and ours, and half the people who are moved to comment sound like Victorian blue-noses who'd ***** and moan if they were being hung with a new rope. Get over yourselves, people! My only disagreement with Ms Moss is that her philosophy makes it difficult to carry a sidearm discreetly -- and I am sure she would say that is a benefit. But that's my only disagreement, really.; Reply to this comment


by EarthFriendGen January 12, 2010 11:06 PM EST: Hello everyone! It's Earth Friend Gen! I changed my name to start with a G--from Genesis to Genitals I am Genuinely Gen! In the flesh! Oh yeah! Talk about EXPOSURE! Am I getting under your skin? LOL. This is very interesting, indeed. So, guess what? I am developing a "nude suit". I'll be debuting it in Ojai soon. I'll be "legally" covered (the law is ILLEGAL), but, I'll look naked. Hmmm? Seeing is believing. Seems like all this controversy and attention coupled with my original "nude suit" will really cause an UPRISING. Wake up sheeple! Fear and judgment will get you nowhere fast. I am a cosmic catalyst of consciousness. Hope you choose to seek the truth--the naked truth--while you still can in this life. I am not afraid of anyone or anything. May Mother Earth protect me by ALWAYS intuitively letting me know what's up. I plan on wearing my "birthday suit" in Ashland on my birthday, May 29th. My "birthday/nude suit" will consist of nipple-like pastie covers and a g-sting made of clear fishing wire and covered in front with fake curly hair. It's government and sheeple approved--they're just too ignorant to know it, but I'm here to show it and lay down the law, baby! It's so sad how brainwashed and ILLogical the masses are. Truth is, most women these days barely have any hair down there. Who do you think started this trend? Pornography did! I am a natural woman and I do not look like a porn star. So, while the sheeple wrongly judge me for my naked truth, they are the ones that look like little girls or landing strips down there. Hmmm? Love me or Hate me, just know that I am here by the grace of God--God really is Love and Light--the POWER of All that Is. Until you are at peace with the way you are born, you shall never be at peace. Humans are the only living beings on planet Earth that are ashamed of their natural form. And it's the so-called religious folks that have the hardest time with it. I am becoming a reverend of ,"Eden". My religion is based on the garden of Eden: Naked, Organic, Original Innocence. Oh ye of little faith . . . . Did you know that I'm protected by the first amendment to be naked anywhere in public? Even without official religious status, we have the freedom to express our natural form--how we ALL are born. I'll probably just wear my "nude suit" though, because the law is so corrupt and I have better things to do than get stuck--in the time and money consuming legal process. If you want to learn more, I am Earth Friend Gen on Facebook and www.EarthFriendGen.com is coming soon. I'll end this with some quotes. "Being natural and matter-of-fact about nudity prevents your children from developing an attitude of shame or disgust about the human body"--Dr. Lee Salk. "Obscenity, indecency, vulgarity, these are strictly confined to man. He invented them. Among the higher animals there is no trace of them. They hide nothing. They are unashamed."--Mark Twain By the way, I did NOT move to Ashland because of the liberal nudity laws--that was just icing on the cake. I moved there because of the natural beauty and Earth-friendly community. Take it all with a grain of salt. The news does not have your best interest at heart. They are part of the sheeple matrix. I represent the Naked Truth, here to lead the way to true FREEDOM!!!; Reply to this comment


by sjb0225 January 11, 2010 12:41 AM EST: Anyone under 8 can be naked in public? Sound like a haven for pedophiles! The Portland, Oregon city council and mayor sound like old head, stodgy types in a city that enjoys a great deal of personal freedom. Never been there but I heard it's great. Too bad the elected officials are hardcore conservatives. They should move to Nebraska or Oklahoma--they'd fit right in.; Reply to this comment


by sunday42 January 10, 2010 11:12 PM EST: I bet her bike seat stinks.; Reply to this comment

by pupspop January 10, 2010 10:26 PM EST

I'm an old man of 68 and I believe women are more attractive when they are decently clothed and conducting themselves as women should in society.

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by Frdmftr September 3, 2010 8:14 PM EDT: I'm a YOUNG man of 68 and I believe a naked lady is like flowers on the dinner table: She brightens the day! (You GO, Gen!)


by tmittelstaed January 10, 2010 1:08 PM EST: Moss normally isn't riding around Ashland (and Portland) in pasties and a G-string. She normally rides completely stark naked and when the cops stop her, she pulls out her pasties and G-string, puts them on, and continues her ride. She never gets ticketed because it's not like you can see anything with her legs closed, (she also doesen't have a heck of a lot to see, anyway) and she has the political protesting gig going which is enough to get the typical "disturbing the peace" ticket dismissed and the cops know it.

Whether she's protesting anything is open for interpretation. She's more of an advertiser, not a protester. Most people don't really care about the nudity, her last summer rides in Portland generated a hundred or so phone calls to police - with most callers not complaining about the nudity, but instead assuming she was a mental case, or was going to get attacked by a rapist or some such.

Generally in Oregon the weather isn't condusive to running around without any clothes on except during a few months out of the year, so Moss is really not much of a problem most of the time. People here are a lot more concerned with the cell phone driving ban, etc.; Reply to this comment

by PVperson2 January 10, 2010 12:01 PM EST

Every village has an idiot.

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by Frdmftr September 3, 2010 8:18 PM EDT: And you, sir or madam, are a Grinch.

by KPeters_from_UK January 10, 2010 10:44 AM EST

"I just wanted to stand up for evolution," she said. "In Europe it's no big deal to see naked people. It will be nice when Americans have evolved and they won't even notice that I'm naked anymore."

I get pretty frustrated with anyone who uses part of a fact for their argument. Sure, Europeans do go topless on beaches. Not a problem. But that's only half of the truth. Any European, male or female who decides to ride their bike nake in public would be immediately arrested.

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by livefree7 January 11, 2010 12:47 AM EST: Depends on the country. Germany is perhaps the world's most nudist friendly country & sometimes some people go to work naked. The UK where you live is more conservative.