East Village topless woman Moira Johnston resurfaces in Philly

Moira Johnston in the East Village in 2012.
Credit: Metro

The New York City resident who turned heads and made headlines last year after walking around the East Village topless has moved on to Philadelphia, where she continues to bare her breasts in public.

Moira Johnston, exercising her right to be topless in NYC (which has been legal since 1992, by the way), was a well-known fixture in the neighborhood, walking the city streets and shopping at Whole Foods.

She told the blog Racked last year that her skin show was really about raising awareness for a woman’s right to be topless in public. She was arrested once on the accusation that her free-roaming ta-tas were a danger to children, but those charges were eventually dropped.

Now, as warm weather returns to the east coast, Johnston, 30, is spreading her message in Philadelphia, but scaling it back a notch by covering her nipples with a pair of pasties. She was spotted in Philly’s Rittenhouse Square on Wednesday, according to New Jersey 101.5. Apparently, she is a native of the City of Brotherly love. Johnston also said her mom is a breast cancer survivor who supports her nude endeavors.

Will Johnston be returning to the East Village this summer? If she does, we’re sure she won’t be hard to miss.

Follow Cassandra Garrison on Twitter: @CassieAtMetro