Cyclists will ride naked around Romford this weekend to campaign for safety for cyclists and body freedom.
Romford World Naked Bike Ride is taking place this Saturday (September 9) after its first run in the town last year.
The “nude protest”, along the lines of the World Naked Bike Ride that took place in London in June, will begin from Central Park in Dagenham and head to Romford where bikers will do three laps of the town centre with some breaks in between.
One of the organisers, Eccentric Pink, told the Recorder that the idea is to promote both the rights of cyclists and an acceptance of all body shapes.
They said: “We are against car culture. We are against burning of fuel. We are campaigning for better road safety for cyclists and body positivity.”
They added that cyclists are not seen by drivers of cars when they have their clothes on but they are noticed when they are naked.
Living in East London near Romford themselves, Eccentric Pink said Romford was chosen as the location as it known to have a heavy car culture.
Through their protest, they hope to push for more cycle lanes that they believe are lacking in Romford.
Eccentric Pink added: “Cycle lanes are very absent in Romford. There aren’t really many cycle lanes, and I don’t think there is a car free area. It never does my lungs any favours when I go to Romford to do my shopping.
“Perhaps if Romford had more cycle lanes, more people would ditch their cars.”
Responding to critics who say the naked bike ride is indecent, they said that they are not doing anything illegal.
Laws on nudity, they claim, are not broken if people are doing passive activities such as walking, cycling, going to the beach.
They said nudity that is sexual in nature or done to cause alarm or distress would break the law, but they stressed that their intent is not to trigger any such concerns.
They said: “We choose our routes very carefully and we try not to get close to schools or play parks or cemeteries. So we are very mindful of that.
“A lot of people don’t realise that the nudity has a message which is to help portray the vulnerability of cyclists. It is a form of protest.”
The naked bike ride will begin at 12pm when cyclists will start assembling at Central Park in Dagenham, and is expected to be over by 4.30pm on September 9.
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