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LGBT News Tennessee Becomes 1st State to Pass a Ban on Drag Shows

Discussion in 'Current Events, World News, & LGBT News' started by Incoming, Feb 24, 2023.

  1. Incoming

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    What I find remarkable is that Tennessee's economy depends so much on entertainment, being the home of country music and a magnet for creative talent of many kinds.

    But in the end, it's the same story - those parts of the US that welcome diversity and open-mindedness will benefit in the long run.

    Those that embrace religious autocracy will end up looking more like, well, Iran.


    https://newrepublic.com/post/170757/live-nation-ticketmaster-reports-record-16-billion-revenue

    February 23, 2023/6:00 p.m. ET
    Tennessee Becomes the First State to Pass a Ban on Drag Shows
    The bill is so vaguely worded it could also target trans people and Pride celebrations generally.
    [​IMG]
    Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images
    Kameron Michaels performs onstage for RuPaul's Drag Race Werq The World Tour in Nashville, Tennessee, August 9, 2022.

    Tennessee lawmakers passed the country’s first ban on drag performances Thursday, part of an onslaught of bills restricting LGBTQ rights across the United States that could have much farther-reaching consequences.

    House Bill 9 is headed to Governor Bill Lee, who has said he will decide whether or not to sign the bill once it reaches his desk. If he does, the measure will go into effect on April 1, two months ahead of Pride Month.



    The bill bans “male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to prurient interest,” meaning of a sexual nature, either in public or if there is a minor present. The language is vague and makes no distinction between drag performers and transgender people.




    When HB9 was first introduced in November 2022, the ACLU of Tennessee noted that “dance, fashion, and music—essential components of a drag performance—are all protected by the First Amendment. Yet, these laws are written so broadly and vaguely that they would allow government officials to censor performers based on their own subjective viewpoints of what they deem appropriate on any given day.”

    “So, let’s call this what it is—a malicious attempt to remove LGBTQ people from public life,” the group said in a statement.



    The bill’s vagueness could also affect Pride celebrations, which last for the month of June. Drag performers or trans people appearing in public could be charged with felonies simply for existing.

    Transgender people and drag artists dancing in a pride parade could be considered criminal.

    Cops could begin arresting people at pride events in Tennessee for being "male or female impersonators" dancing down the street as so many of us have seen and partaken in.

    — Erin Reed (@ErinInTheMorn) February 23, 2023
    “By passing House Bill 9, the Tennessee legislature has done nothing but spread hate, misinformation, and extremism,” Human Rights Campaign Legal Director Sarah Warbelow said in a statement. “Drag is a longstanding, celebratory form of entertainment and a meaningful source of employment for many across the state. Yet, rather than focus on actual policy issues facing Tennesseans, politicians would rather spend their time and effort misconstruing age-appropriate performances at a library to pass as many anti-LGBTQ+ bills as they can.”

    It should go without saying that drag, like any performance, can be tailored to be appropriate for any audience. Seeing drag performances can actually be beneficial to younger people who are LGBTQ, because it shows them that they are not alone. More than half of LGBTQ youth struggle with depression, and 45 percent of trans kids have considered suicide, according to the HRC. But those with at least one adult in their life who accepts them are 40 percent less likely to attempt suicide.



    Tennessee’s bill, unfortunately, is part of a homophobic and transphobic backlash to the increasing visibility of LGBTQ people. Drag performers have become a particular target for Republicans and right-wing extremist groups, who accuse the entertainers of being pedophiles.

    There are dozens of bills being moved through state legislatures across the U.S. that would ban drag performances. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently revoked an organization’s liquor license because it hosted a drag show.
     
  2. Ushiromiya Red

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    Why are they doing this!? It's so fucking cruel and inhumane that it's not even funny. None of these types of bills are a laughing matter. Plus the vagueness of this bullshit law don't help nothing either.

    Basically it criminalizes anyone who isn't straight or cis and that's a problem. Basically,I could be arrested for simply being out in public as a trans man. That scares the hell outta me! This law goes against every American value imaginable.
    [​IMG]
     
    #2 Ushiromiya Red, Feb 24, 2023
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2023
  3. Lo The Froggo

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    thats absolutely horrible
    straight up wrong
    if tennessee was the first what more is to come
    im so sorry to all the people in tennessee who are suffering or could suffer from this ban
     
  4. Jakebusman

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    This is straight up wrong and not cool what's next ? Banning gay/bi same sex couples being out in public ?
     
  5. Lo The Froggo

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    fr though what has the world come to???
     
  6. Chip

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    So... perhaps this should be carried out to its absurd ends.

    Does it ban the showing of the Robin Williams/Nathan Lane movie "The Birdcage"?

    Does it ban musical theater that happens to have drag-like performers in it, such as Cabaret?

    Does it prohibit men dressing as women, or women dressing as men in theatrical settings?

    What about cartoon characters in theme parks? How are they different than drag dress?

    I'm sorry, but the Republican Christian conservatives that come up with this sort of crap simply aren't very bright.
     
  7. Chip

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    If they could get away with it, they absolutely would.
     
  8. Lo The Froggo

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    yeah I don't doubt it
     
  9. Lo The Froggo

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    no they really arent
     
  10. Ushiromiya Red

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    Unfortunately, they're not really known for their brains... probably cause they don't have them in the first place..
     
  11. Jakebusman

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    I have a bad feeling other states are watching this and will be joining too !
     
  12. chicodeoro

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    In Britain every Christmas thousands of families take their children to see men dressing up as women and women dressing up as boys. Pantomine: good ol' fashioned family entertainment. I wonder how the sad little people on the US Christian right would regard it?

    Beth