( CNN ) -- John Brennan says he did not go to the Portland International Airport intending to get naked . But after feeling harassed by airport screeners Tuesday , the 50-year-old Portland , Oregon , man stripped off his clothes in a protest that brought him even more attention from airport authorities , national headlines and a short stint in jail . `` I just took off my clothes and said 'See , I do n't have any explosives , ' '' Brennan told CNN on Wednesday . `` The individuals at TSA are just doing their job and the whole organization needs to find a balance between safety and privacy . They use fear and intimidation and it 's got to stop somewhere . '' The Transportation Security Administration had a different take on the incident . `` TSA partners with the traveling public to screen all passengers safely and efficiently . When a passenger chooses to be purposefully disruptive , we notify law enforcement , '' the organization said in a statement . Brennan said he lives in Portland and was traveling to San Jose , California , for business . After he went through the metal detector and was patted down , a screener told him he tested positive for explosives , he said . Brennan said he felt `` humiliated , '' and decided to take off all his clothes . He is no stranger to naked protest as he has participated in a nude bike ride in Portland , he said . `` I am aware that 's a tool I can use for free speech , '' he said . `` I know that as an Oregonian and as a citizen , one of my ways of expressing myself is being naked . It gets people 's attention . '' And it did . Police said some passengers shielded their children 's eyes , while others laughed and snapped photos . TSA officials called police . Brennan was handcuffed and walked back to a holding room while officers draped a blanket on him . He was taken to a county jail , and now faces charges of disorderly conduct and indecent exposure . Brennan says it was worth it . `` I 'm choosing liberty because my privacy and constitutional liberties are worth fighting for , '' he said .
The man is charged with disorderly conduct and indecent exposure . `` As a citizen one of my ways of expressing myself is being naked , '' Brennan says . He said he was arrested after police saw him in the nude on his way to work at an office building near downtown Los Angeles.