We live in a strange time here in Appalachia today. At best, we are governed by uninformed and unempathetic leaders who don’t see improving their constituents’ lives as a priority. At worst, however, we have politicians who are following a downright fascist playbook, actively bringing the hammer down on marriage rights, bodily autonomy, and now gender nonconformity.
In Tennessee, Governor Bill Lee signed a bill amending the Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-51-1401, changing the description of adult cabaret performance to include “male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to a prurient interest”. (1)
To save you a google search, here is what that means according to the Supreme Court: “that which incites lasciviousness or lust”. (2)
Now, I shouldn’t have to spell it out that this is as strict of a legal definition as something like, “that which any reasonable person would conclude.” A reasonable person in the context of law is a hypothetical person used to portray what the “average, cautious, and sensible” person would decide.
What could go wrong? It is precisely this ambiguity which conservative politicians are exploiting already in their rhetoric, claiming that dressing in drag or being a “male or female impersonator” is inherently sexual and, therefore should be illegal in public spaces or where minors are allowed.
The fact is that drag is not inherently sexual, no more than a cisgender woman wearing an extravagant outfit is inherently sexual. Nor is wearing “masculine” or “feminine” clothing inconsistent with one’s assigned sex at birth prurient in any fashion. It is perfectly acceptable for a cisgender woman to wear feminine clothing in public, so why is it suddenly inappropriate if she is trans?
Consider the discrepancy between this line of logic and the continued legality of establishments such as Hooters to permit underage patrons. It is literally a restaurant whose primary theme is attractive female waitresses in intentionally skimpy outfits. Their selling point is lust. If that doesn’t match the definition of “prurient interest” in the eyes of the law, I shouldn’t have to spell out what’s wrong with classifying drag and gender non-conformity as such.
This, however, has not stopped conservative politicians from making claims that drag queens are “grooming” children by, for example, reading them storybooks at the library. To be clear: there is absolutely nothing akin to actual adult cabaret occurring in these “drag queen story hour” style events, but this is what the conservative narrative would have you believe.
Moreover, this narrative coupled with this new legal definition would allow law enforcement to make that judgment for themselves in order to arrest a drag performer regardless of whether anything sexual in nature was portrayed or suggested. It seems like an officer is well within the law to decide that a transgender individual simply existing in public constitutes a “male or female impersonator” and therefore arrest them and charge them with a felony.
The loose and rather subjective description of this law will enable and legitimize extreme legal persecution of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, a group which already faces an uphill battle for social acceptance and legal recognition. So, what are we to do? As a member of the queer community and a close friend to many transgender or gender non-conforming people, I have lately felt at a loss of what I can do.
I can only imagine how some of my peers feel, and all I can do is listen to them, hear them, and help them in any way I can. It can feel as though we are running up against a monolithic, bureaucratic machine of politics in our efforts to protect LGBT folks, but this is what we must do.
We must educate our friends, keep the conversation going, and never ever let up the pressure. We will fight for our rights for as long as breath passes our lips.
In Appalachia, we stand together cause there’s love in them/their hills.
Sources
[1] https://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/113/Bill/SB0003.pdf [2] https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/osg/briefs/1984/01/01/sg840109.txt#:~:text=In%20a%20footnote%20in%20Roth,20.
