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Who is Jane Doe?

By Larry Knowles

November 28, 2005

San Diego--The term “Jane Doe” originated during the reign of King Edward III (1312-1377) as the logical female equivalent to “John Doe,” a hypothetical land owner who was kicked off his own property by an unruly tenant. The key word is “hypothetical.” John Doe didn’t exist, and neither did his claim of eviction, or “ejectment” as it was called back then.

However, on Craigslist, the popular online bulletin board with over 180 city-specific portals, a woman who calls herself Jane Doe is very real—and so is her fight against eviction from the board. For the past month, Jane Doe has been posting nude and semi-nude photos of herself on Craigslist San Diego; and for the past month, visitors and regulars have weighed in on her postings, offering everything from glowing support and constructive criticism to bitter condemnation. The most strident critics have also “flagged” the postings, or tagged them for removal from the board.

She has been told, publicly, to “shut the #$@& up,” to “die,” to “rot in hell.” After she posted a few photos on Craigslist Boston, a purported Bostonian chimed in on CL San Diego:

SD’ers, would you please take back this piece of trash? Apparently, she’s made her way to the East Coast, and nobody in Boston wants her! Please keep your garbage in check!

While Craigslist San Diego has a certain element of poster who delights in criticizing any message, regardless of content, it also has a contingent that’s legitimately exasperated by the Jane Doe affair. They’ve lamented how Jane—at first unwittingly and now consciously—has co-opted the board to push a free speech agenda which seemingly lacks coherence.

As one poster, identified as Bif, told Vyuz, “I think her posting nude pics is sort of silly. What's the point? Of course you will have the horny guys all gung ho to see more, and all the fat chicks will be mad.”

Another poster stated publicly, “Go to some other website and look for a date. Or, better yet, try to meet someone the old fashion way--in person. Otherwise, you'll be the target of the Lower Class fools online here...BTW, quit looking so desperate that you have to paste silly little messages on yourself to prove who you are. Have some class please.”

Yet another critic posted:

It’s up to her whether she would think it so important to prove a point that she would strip on an anonymous board. Quite honestly, I think she is physically beautiful, at least what I can see of her. That still doesn’t detract from the disrespect she obviously has for other people, and that, is a very ugly thing.

I’m sorry Jane. I'm sure you had a legitimate concern, but the way you went about it was so sickening, I’m sorry you are a fellow female.

So, who is Jane Doe? Why, really, does she persist in posting nude photos of herself? She’s made her point and polarized the board. Anyone who’s followed the affair for the past month pretty much knows where they stand by now.

“The very first time I posted,” said Jane Doe in a recent telephone interview, “I thought, ‘Wow, it’s a lark. It’s gonna be fun, and no one will know who I am.’”

“I first did it because I’m a psychotherapist. I work where I have to wear a cute little work outfit, and I have to fit in and be conservative.”

“Well, as I got the responses, it was absolutely frickin’ nuts! People were writing things like they wanted to kill me, they wanted me to hang myself, or just really horrible stuff.”

“And they were flagging things, and taking them off the post….They were freaking out over a nude or semi-nude picture taken voluntarily by an adult. Once I saw that—it’s still fun—but it’s honestly about, ‘No, you’re not gonna shut me up! It’s crazy. Why you people can’t accept this!’”

Jane contacted Vyuz first by e-mail, then by calling from a protected phone number. She refrained from giving her real name or other information that could be used to easily identify her. To validate her identity, she provided Vyuz with information to which only Jane Doe would be privy.

Jane told Vyuz that she is between 25 and 30 years old, single, and heterosexual. She grew up in La Jolla, California, earned a bachelors degree from San Diego State, and a Masters from the University of San Diego.

“I don’t even try to say I have an education,” she said with resignation, “because [posters] will call me a liar and I can’t prove it.”

While she declined to reveal where she currently lives, she said that she shares an apartment with a female roommate, and that it is the roommate who takes the provocative photos that appear on Craigslist.

Jane, who came across as articulate and surprising circumspect during the interview, explained that she doesn’t want to show her face on Craigslist for fear of harming her career.

“I’m a psychotherapist. I work with lots of different people, and showing my face just isn’t going to be good for my career. While I wouldn’t lose my job, what I’m doing is tacky.”

“If I were going to do porn, I’d show my face. But that’s not my career.”

Posters have suggested that Jane was molested as a child, a notion that she scoffs at. “I had a wonderful childhood,” she says emphatically, “My parents loved me. I was just with them the other night for Thanksgiving.”

When asked why she doesn’t just start a blog, where she can post without recrimination, she answered, “If I started a blog or web page, only the people who liked it would go on it. That’s really not the point with the free speech thing.”

“The fact that Craigslist exists and lets people post anything they want, is because of the First Amendment,” she added.

Jane emphasized that she is not posting the pictures for any commercial purposes. She neither has any product on the market nor any nude photos posted commercially on the internet or in print.

If she did want to make money, though, she’d likely make a killing. She’s received plenty of e-mails from male admirers. While some of the messages have been more sexual than others, none of them have been rude.

“I’ve had ‘Hey, would you like to meet?’ ‘You’re gorgeous.’ You’re sexy.’ ‘I’d love to make you feel good.’ That kind of stuff. I’ve really not had any disgusting comments from the male component, like one would think.”

A poster who identified himself as Keith told Vyuz via e-mail, “I like Jane's pictures. Here is a woman who admires her own body and is happy to show it to strangers, from a distance, while she still keeps her true identity hidden…. I have sent her emails thanking her for the pics, encouraging her not to let the negative people on CL get to her, and to keep it up.”

Another poster succinctly said, “I think she looks great! You wouldn't catch me pissing and moaning if I came home to find her on the couch naked and waiting for me. More pics please!”

Those who have flagged Jane Doe’s postings rarely identify themselves. And when they do rear their heads, their reasons are often obtuse. One public poster wrote, “We flag [your posts] because you are an annoying troll, and that is the best way to deal with trolls. You make it easy, too, in that you give us plenty of reasons to flag. Most of your posts contain prohibited material, most are discussions, and at this point, ALL of them are spam.”

But what is prohibited material? The Craigslist Terms of Use state that one agrees not to post content that is “pornographic or depicts a human engaged in actual sexual conduct including but not limited to…lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of any person.” Would Jane be considered pornographic, and would her displays be considered lascivious exhibition?

For many, the answer isn’t clear. And for that reason, most visitor to CL San Diego prefer to stay on the sidelines while the bashers and supporters go at it.

As for her views of pornography, Jane said that it can be degrading, but isn’t inherently sexist towards women. “I think there can be very degrading pornography. I think there can be awesome pornography,” she added.

“I think that it’s fine. It shouldn’t be illegal. It can be as disgusting as it wants to without killing someone or raping someone. And if I don’t wanna watch it, I won’t."

For now, Jane will continue to battle for her First Amendment rights and post provocative photos on Craigslist San Diego. While the hypothetical Jane Doe of the American court system is almost always a victim, this Jane Doe is anything but that. This Jane Doe is empowered, engaging, and won’t go without a fight.

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Larry Knowles is the editor of Vyuz San Diego. He can be reached at lgkiii@vyuz.com.

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