Times Square topless ladies say they will refuse to leave despite city officials desires to confine performers to 'activity zones'

  • Some New York City officials are proposing designated 'activity zones' for street performers including the topless women and costumed characters
  • Several of the painted women have said that they will not leave the area
  • They made headlines this summer after reports of some of them accosting passers-by, grabbing their arms and urging them to stop and pose
  • Legal experts say the quandary is whether the women's activity amounts to a street performance or a form of commerce that can be regulated

By Dailymail.com Reporter and Associated Press

Published: 13:41 EST, 11 October 2015 | Updated: 18:47 EST, 11 October 2015

A growing legion of bare-chested ladies wearing only red, white and blue paint over their breasts, thongs, feathery headdresses and high heels, have taken over Times Square, seeking tips by posing with passing men, women and, yes, children.  

And facing what they see as a cringe-worthy crisis after decades of scrubbing Times Square's once-sleazy image, some city officials are now proposing to confine topless women - as well as the costumed characters working alongside them - to designated 'activity zones'.

But several of the painted ladies who spoke candidly this past week made it clear that, restrictions or not, they're not going anywhere.

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A growing number of body-painted topless women performers have filled Times Square to pose in pictures with tourists for tips

A growing number of body-painted topless women performers have filled Times Square to pose in pictures with tourists for tips

City officials have suggested that the topless women - as well as the costumed characters - be put into designated 'activity zones'

City officials have suggested that the topless women - as well as the costumed characters - be put into designated 'activity zones'

'They can't do anything unless they change the Constitution,' insisted Saira Nicole, 29, who works the square as part of a topless trio. She said she'd defy any move to relegate the women to a specific zone.

'You're not putting a stop to me, period.'

The presence of the topless women over the past year has shaken the Crossroads of the World in ways that the similarly photo-hawking costumed characters who came before - Elmos, Spider-Men and Sponge Bobs - never did. 

It reached a peak this summer with reports of some of the women aggressively accosting passers-by, grabbing their arms and urging them to stop and pose.

'I would say, as a human being and a parent, I don't think it's appropriate in the middle of one of the busiest squares in New York City that women should display themselves that way,' Mayor Bill de Blasio said recently, acknowledging he'd given serious consideration to a short-lived idea of addressing the problem by ripping out Times Square's popular pedestrian plazas entirely.

Tim Tompkins, president of the influential Times Square Alliance business group, told a WNYC radio interviewer this summer that 'one of these naked ladies literally made a woman cry' by threatening to punch her when asked to cover up. 

Tompkins cast the issue as aggressive solicitation for money, not in toplessness itself.

But the women have spoke out against this potential regulation, claiming that they don't plan on going anywhere

But the women have spoke out against this potential regulation, claiming that they don't plan on going anywhere

The presence of the women has shaken the square, as there were reports this summer of some of the women aggressively accosting passers-by, grabbing their arms and urging them to stop and pose

The presence of the women has shaken the square, as there were reports this summer of some of the women aggressively accosting passers-by, grabbing their arms and urging them to stop and pose

Tim Tompkins, president of the influential Times Square Alliance business group, said it's not an issue of toplessness, but an issue of overcrowding in Times Square that needs to be taken care of
The women declined to say how much they make on a daily basis

Tim Tompkins, president of the influential Times Square Alliance business group, said it's not an issue of toplessness, but an issue of overcrowding in Times Square that needs to be taken care of

Others see the problem as congestion, not indiscretion. City Councilman Corey Johnson, a member of a hastily convened city task force that has proposed the 'activity zones', said the city must ease pedestrian crowding by setting some restrictions - whether on topless women, costumed characters or tourist bus rides.

'We're not saying these people can't be in Times Square, but for congestion and public safety reasons, they would have to be in designated areas,' he said. Still, he acknowledges he expects any plan to face litigation.

Legal experts say the quandary is whether the women's activity amounts to a street performance protected by the First Amendment or a form of commerce that can be regulated. 

Civil rights attorney Ron Kuby noted that there's nothing illegal in New York City about going topless or asking people for money.

As many as a dozen topless women were counted roaming Times Square at any one time this summer, often making tips of $10 to $20 per photo - more than the costumed characters appeared to pull in.

'Batman hates us,' said 23-year-old Amanda Roman. Like the other painted ladies, she refused to discuss how much money they make daily.

The woman appear equally split between Americans and immigrants from Latin America who call themselves 'desnudas' - Spanish for naked women.

Until six years ago, the Times Square (pictured in 1983) had cars running through it instead of a wide plaza for street performers

Until six years ago, the Times Square (pictured in 1983) had cars running through it instead of a wide plaza for street performers

Alongside the topless women are several costumed characters hoping to gain tips from posing with tourists

Alongside the topless women are several costumed characters hoping to gain tips from posing with tourists

Some say they got the job after answering online ads for 'body paint models'. Others say they were unable to find normal jobs.

Their bare chests are thickly painted with patriotic colors, brushed on outdoors in the square by male managers who hold onto the women's cash. 

One of the men, Roman's boyfriend, Chris Olivieri, says he also sticks around 'to make sure the girls don't get touched.'

Olivieri says he sets clear rules for the women: No touching people. No shaking butts. No demanding tips.

'Times Square is our stage,' Nicole said. 'I love the fact that I'm part of people's experience across the world, when they take home photos of us, and that's their memory from New York City.'

And In the heart of Times Square, there is a grinning two-year-old boy flanked by a pair of strikingly posed, topless women. 

Click. His mom takes a picture for the family album and hands the women a dollar bill.

Toni Torres of Newark, New Jersey, got just that kind of unusual keepsake from her 2-year-old grandson's interaction with the topless women, even though she could understand how some people might have a problem with it.

'If they were completely naked, with a little kid like that, I wouldn't like it,' said Torres, who watched the whole scene play out. 'But the painted body is a work of art. When I first saw them, I said, "Oh my God, that's really nice".'

In 1935 (pictured) Times Square had no plaza, simply features sidewalks for pedestrians with a road down the middle

In 1935 (pictured) Times Square had no plaza, simply features sidewalks for pedestrians with a road down the middle

 

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