Federal Judge Strikes Down Texas Law Banning Drag Shows – Again
It was initially struck down in 2023.
A Texas state law that bans drag performances in places where children could be present has been struck down for a second time.
On Tuesday, US District Judge David Hittner said Texas can’t enforce its drag show ban. He explained that the law improperly prevents speech and violates the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
The ban was passed by the Texas legislature in 2023. It bans drag artists from dancing suggestively or with certain prosthetics on public property or in front of minors, or conducting any “sexually-oriented performance” presented on the premises in the presence of an individual younger than 18 years of age.
Texas was just one of the states that year that went after drag shows.
Groups sued over the ban’s implication of what a “sexually-oriented performance” was.
Hittner initially struck the ban down in 2023, but an appeals court sent it back to him to review, according to The Guardian.
Because it was returned, the law went into effect.
This new ruling, however, prevents it from being enforced.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is facing Democrat James Talrico for U.S. Senate, says he’ll appeal this recent decision.
Hittner, in his ruling, told anyone “who find such activities as described in this case offensive” to “just don’t go,” the outlet reports.
The Guardian notes he even mentioned the late Dolly Parton in his ruling, writing that people would attack Parton “as a voluptuous sex symbol because of her big hair, flamboyant clothes and breast exposure.”
“There are ‘erotic’ elements in countless popular performances that could be subject to both civil and criminal penalties under SB 12,” Hittner said.
“Even if S.B. 12 were somehow content-neutral (an argument the Attorney General has never advanced), it still prohibits huge swaths of constitutionally protected performances. Because the term ‘prurient interest in sex’ is open-ended, SB 12 can be used to cherry-pick particular aspects of performances that might be ‘in some sense erotic’,” he said.
Drag artist Brigitte Bandit, a plaintiff in the case, wrote on social media, “Drag is free speech, bitch.”
In a statement, Bandit said, “Drag has always been a form of free expression, and it is a relief that the court recognized that today. “We use our performances to assert liberation, power, and joy with our community. As a lifelong Texan, I’m sick of this state trying to censor art and stoke hatred and violence against drag artists and the LGBTQIA+ community. No one should be punished for performing drag, and I wish lawmakers would take steps to protect kids from real dangers in our state instead of trying to divide and marginalize us.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, which brought the case with Baker Botts LLP on behalf of the plaintiffs The Woodlands Pride, Abilene Pride Alliance, Extragrams LLC, 360 Queen Entertainment LLC, and Bandit, praised the ruling.
“Today’s decision confirms that the Legislature’s attempt to ban drag performances was unconstitutional from start to finish,” said Brian Klosterboer, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Texas. “Drag has a rich history as a refuge of joy and liberation for countless Texans, and it’s not going anywhere. This law stifled free expression across our state and made people afraid to engage in or attend drag shows and other performances. But all Texans — no matter our gender or background — are guaranteed the right to free expression. We celebrate this victory and remain committed to stopping state officials from targeting LGBTQIA+ Texans and making our state less free and fair.”
