Tennessee’s ban on drag shows when children are present will remain in effect, as the Supreme Court earlier this week refused to hear a challenge to the law brought on by a drag performance group, a move the state’s Republican attorney general heralded as “another big win for Tennessee.”
The state’s Adult Entertainment Act, passed in 2023, does not allow “adult-oriented performances” in public spaces, or anywhere where minors may see them.
“Free speech is a sacred American value, but the First Amendment does not require Tennessee to allow sexually explicit performances in front of children,” Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said in a post on X. “We will continue to defend TN’s law and children.”
Violators who do not adhere to the Adult Entertainment Act could be prosecuted for a Class A misdemeanor, while a second or third offense is a Class E felony. Both could result in fines and jail time anywhere from 11 months to six years.
“I’m proud that the United States Supreme Court has upheld yet another Tennessee law protecting our children. SB 3 ensures that Tennessee children are not exposed to sexually explicit entertainment,” state’s Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson said in an X post. Johnson was one of the sponsors of the bill in 2023.
The Supreme Court already has another case in front of them brought by the ACLU challenging a Tennessee law prohibiting transgender medical treatments and procedures for minors.
In that case, the court is weighing whether the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause, which guarantees equal treatment under the law for individuals in similar circumstances, prevents states from banning medical providers from offering puberty blockers and hormone treatments to children seeking transgender surgical procedures.
Speaking to Fox News Digital last month, Skrmetti expressed cautious optimism of a favorable outcome.
“It seems like the momentum has really shifted almost culturally on these issues. And when you see people trying to rewrite laws through creative judging, through creative regulating, that alienates the people from the laws that bind them, and it’s bad for America.”
“We’ll know what the Supreme Court does when the Supreme Court does it,” he added.
The high court is expected to rule on that case by June.
The post SCOTUS tosses challenge to TN law banning drag shows with kids present, state AG hails decision appeared first on Fox News.
