“Bare With Us” demonstrators gathered at the Waterloo Town Square in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, on Saturday, Aug. 1, 2015. The rally and march were organized by three sisters who were stopped by a police officer for biking topless a week ago. Local media reports said people were waving banners and wearing body paint with messages including “everyone has the right to NOT be harassed” and “Bare With Us! They’re just boobs!”
Musician Alysha Brilla said she and her sisters were not wearing shirts while cycling in Kitchener, Ontario, on July 24 when a male police officer drove up beside them and told them to cover up because it is the law. Brilla said she told the officer he was wrong and that when she started filming the interaction on her cellphone, the officer said he had only wanted to check if the women had proper bells and lights on their bicycles.
Ontario women have had the right to go topless in public since 1996. A similar incident in June garnered headlines after an 8-year-old was told by city staff in Guelph, Ontario, to cover up while she was in a wading pool wearing only a swim bottom.
“It was really well attended, and the people who came were very supportive. I had no idea how polarizing the issue would be. I thought people would not be so disturbed by the female breast. We just want to advocate and let people know that they do have this right,” Brilla was quoted as saying.
They carried slogans of “They feed you, they breed you, but they sure as hell don’t need you” through the streets. Another one read: “They are boobs, not bombs, chill out.” Police in Canada allegedly stopped the three sisters for cycling topless a week ago in Kitchener, Ontario.
A male police officer who asked them to cover up to comply with the law was told that women in Ontario had the right to go topless in public since 1996. As Brilla started recording their conversation on her phone, the policeman changed his stance and said he stopped to check if their bikes had proper bells and lights for safety.
