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Tennessee Law Keeps Drag Queens Away from Kids

Tennessee Law Keeps Drag Queens Away from Kids

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) this month signed a bill designed to keep drag shows and other debauched performances away from children. Putting Kids First, approved with a vote of 74-19, prohibits “adult cabaret performances” in venues were children may be present. 

The term “cabaret” refers to any show featuring “topless dancers, go-go dancers, exotic dancers, strippers, [and] male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to a prurient interest,” notes National Review. 

Prohibited content is further defined by the state’s pre-existing obscenity law, which is based on the US Supreme Court’s Miller test.

Moving forward, drag shows and other adult-oriented performances in the state of Tennessee must be held in age-restricted venues. Violations will be considered a Class A misdemeanor and those responsible will face fines of up to $2,500 and up to 1 year in prison. Repeated violations will be punished with fines up to $3,000 and prison sentences up to 6 years. 

“This is a commonsense child-safety bill,” says Tennessee State Representative Chris Todd (R), and is just the sort of legislation we need as Democrats continue to insert queer theory and other liberal propaganda into school curricula.  

In response to critics who view the bill as an attack against the LGBTQ community, Senate Majority Leader and bill sponsor Jack Johnson (R) made it clear the bill is not specifically aimed at drag shows: 

“The intent of the legislation is just to simply say that you cannot have sexually explicit entertainment…in a public venue where kids might be present,” explains Johnson, who introduced the bill after he was asked to stop a “family-friendly” drag show from taking place in a public park during a Pride event in Jackson. “It gives confidence to parents that they can take their kids to a public or private show and will not be blindsided by a sexualized performance.”

Exposing the nation’s most vulnerable demographic to sexually-charged performances such as drag shows is psychologically damaging and should be considered child abuse.

As Washington Times contributor Cheryl Chumley writes, the goals of those supporting drag shows and other deviant displays are not about acceptance or tolerance. “It’s about flipping norms and flipping the middle finger at traditional family and biblically based values. It’s about tearing down societal standards and bringing about a new culture that supposedly embraces everything – which is to say, stands for nothing.” 

Author’s Note: I hope other states follow Tennessee’s example and continue to put the safety of our children above Democrats backwards ideas about “inclusivity.” 

Sources:

Tennessee puts children first with drag queen ban 

Tennessee passes controversial draw show bill 

Tennessee takes lead in Republican effort to restrict drag shows 

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15 Comments

  1. frank stetson

    “If I hadn’t been a girl, I’d have been a drag queen.” Dolly Parton from Tennessee.

    Goodbye Milton Berle. Angelina Jolie, Michal C. Hall, Tony Curtis, John Travolta, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Lemmon, Robin Williams, Mathew Broderick, Al Pacino, Jamie Farr, Tom Hanks, Patrick Swayze and many, many, more too. You’re movie, tv, and stage shows not wanted in Tennessee. Kids should not watch these movies even if some like it hot.

    Some prudish assholes in Tennessee MANDATE that parents can’t make these choices for their kids and need to be protected by force, by State jack-booted thugs in this regard because Tootsie may turn you into a drag queen or worse, in their squinty little eyes.

    The bill bans anything that minors may see.

    They don’t go after the groomers. They don’t go away actual acts of perversion. They go after Female Impersonators. And not just in library book readings, but everywhere that a minor may view it.

    The State of Tennessee outlaws this because Tennessee parents don’t do what’s proper in their squinty little eyes. And they feel parents can not protect their own kids so the State needs to step in and MANDATE what is right in this regard.

    • Clayton M Dungey

      Frank; the only ‘exhaust pipe’, putting out crap, that you apparently like, is YOU and your kind! Showing that ‘drag sickness’ is bad enough, in age restricted confines, NOT in open, unrestricted areas, where children can see your disease! It is bad enough that the liberal ‘tail-pipe’ mayor of Jackson, Tn., tried to display the sickness in an open park. Very proud of Rep. Chris Todd, for what he is doing to curb this disease.

    • bill L

      When you have so called parents that get their news from the main stream Communist Propaganda outlets you end up with these counter reactions to stupidity where stupidity typically equals the set of { Misinformed, Uniformed } where the Misinformed are the class that listen and accept as fact everything they get from media dominated by Communists (DemocRATs).

      • Bill L

        { Misinformed, Uninformed }

  2. Sane Person

    Yes such an important law. Look at how drag queens descended on the Capitol and tried to stage a coup based on the BS a retarded president keeps spouting. How about you start living in the real world

  3. Bill L

    To sum up this article…

    Keep anything that reeks of a Communist (DemocRAT) away from your children. Commies should always be under close supervision whether they are family or NOT.

  4. Steve

    In ’58 there were published 45 communist goals to destroy America from within. These are a few relating to this news.
    “17-Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teacher’s associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
    24-Eliminate laws governing obscenity by calling them “censorship” and violation of free speech and free press.
    25-Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio and TV.
    26-Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as “normal, natural, healthy.”
    40-Discredit the family as an institution.
    41-Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
    Many public schools are toxically mentally molesting our kids with the LGBT activist agenda to groom them. Drag Queens are just one group pushing the agenda. Transgenders have a huge war on women going. Currently there are over 82,000 boy scouts suing the BSA for $Billion for not protecting them from grooming and being sexually molested by pervert LGBT troop leaders.

  5. Mike f

    Yet another example of republican government overreach. Conservatives believe that government needs to make decisions for people regarding what they and their children can watch, read, write about, or decide what is best regarding their healthcare. Despite deploring Democrats for providing benefits for people as government overreach, Republicans believe that the populace is too stupid to make their own decisions and the government should do it for them. Will the people that vote Republican wake up to this? Doubtful-their leaders know their constituency…

    • Frank stetson

      Pretty impossible to enforce as written.

      They would basically have to close down Tennessee to all media coming into the State.

      TCM is playing some like it hot today. That would be deemed illegal in Tennessee soon.

  6. CHILDREN, under the age of 21, do not belong at a bar with naked men dressed as women.

    There is a BIG DIFFERENCE between a guy dressing up as a girl, on a TV, like in Tootsie.
    And naked men dressed up as sex objects in a bar that encourage CHILDREN to come up and dance with them.

    No one has a problem with ADULTS hanging out at a bar with naked men dressed as women.
    CHILDREN, under the age of 21, do not belong at a bar with naked men dressed as women.

    • Mike f

      Perhaps the laws In Tennessee are different, but in my state people under 21 are not allowed in bars?

      • frank stetson

        If you are not believing that one, how about: “naked men dressed as women.” Talk about covering the waterfront. They are naked, they are dressed, they are men, they act like women….”

        The issue isn’t stopping trans from readings in the public libraries, the issue is the law is WRITTEN to preclude all female impersonators WHEREVER they might be viewed. So that does include Tootsie and all movies of that ilk.

        Steve, Clayton, Bill and others seem to think communists like drag shows? really, big in china, cuba, and russia for example? sorry steve but communists tend to roll your way on this…. And Clayton, why do you conclude someone who questions the lunacy of this law to be gay or trans? Protecting someone’s freedom to be different is about as Republican as you can get. Government Mandates are generally not your thing, much less jack-booted thugs forcing you to submit to their fake moralities.

        I, a liberal, not a communist, not even a socialist, have no issue with age-restricting these shows; better yet, ‘under 17 not admitted without a parent” would even be better IMO.

        But to knee-jerk against the fears of idiots like you boys, and to outlaw all female impersonators anywhere they may be seen publicly is an unworkable law. You can’t turn back the clock on Tootsie, Some Like it Hot, etc. and this law does that, I believe —— that’s my issue.

        Take care of your kids; you don’t need this law to do that. But if you must have a law, make it one that will stick. This law won’t clear court, IMO.

  7. Sophie

    Hooray for Tennessee !! It’s time to take a stand against these freak shows! Of course those who protest are selfish and force their insanity on everyone, including our children. They are such hypocrites, they don’t others have their choices without labeling them!!
    I hope more states and cities follow suit. It’s time to bring back decency!

  8. RICHARD

    PARENTS NEED TO BE IN CHARGE, STOP TAKING THEIR KIDS TO THESE VULGAR SHOWS.WE NEED OUR KIDS EDUCATED IN SOMETHING THAT WILL HELP THEM IN FUTURE. NOT LOOK AT THESE ABOMINATIONS,WHERE IS OUR COUNTRY GOING????
    GENDER- IDENTITY AND GENDER IDEOLOGIE NEEDS TO BE STOPPED. IN 10 YEARS FROM NOW WE WILL HAVE . 100% MORE MENTALLY CHALLENGED KIDS.

  9. Jpop

    Young Children should not be exposed to this crap. Period. Stop the Grooming.

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