A federal appeals court has made a significant decision regarding Tennessee's first-in-the-nation law aimed at regulating drag shows. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to dismiss a lawsuit that challenged the law, reversing a previous ruling that deemed the statute unconstitutional and blocked its enforcement in part of the state.
The lawsuit was filed by a Memphis-based LGBTQ+ theater company, Friends of George's, which claimed that the law would negatively impact them as they produce drag-centric performances, comedy sketches, and plays with no age restrictions. However, the appeals court found that the theater company did not have the legal standing to sue over the law as their performances were not deemed harmful to minors under the law's definition.
The law, which was advanced by Tennessee's Republican-dominated Legislature with the support of Governor Bill Lee, does not explicitly mention the term 'drag.' Instead, it broadens the definition of adult cabaret to include performances deemed harmful to minors, which now includes 'male or female impersonators.'
Performers who violate the law by staging adult cabaret performances in public or where minors might be present could face misdemeanor or felony charges. The court emphasized that the term 'harmful to minors' has specific criteria under Tennessee law, requiring materials to lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for a reasonable 17-year-old.
While the law has faced criticism for its potential discriminatory enforcement, the ruling clarified that Friends of George's performances did not meet the criteria for prosecution under the law. The decision comes amidst ongoing debates over the enforcement and implications of Tennessee's anti-drag ban, with Democrats and LGBTQ+ advocates raising concerns about its impact on the community.
Tennessee's Republican supermajority has been active in passing laws targeting the LGBTQ+ community, with the state enacting numerous anti-LGBTQ+ measures in recent years. The Human Rights Campaign highlighted Tennessee as having the highest number of anti-LGBTQ+ laws since 2015, including legislation restricting transgender rights and requiring public school employees to disclose information about transgender students to their parents.
