In the midst of the climate emergency, the stripping away of rights to certain groups, crumbling Democracy, gun violence, and the other routine horrors of the 21st century, we want to take a moment to reflect on the 19th-century issues of public decency. Because if you look at the City of Champaign’s ordinances pertaining to “adult entertainment,” one might think it was the year 1870.
Like many other counties, Champaign maintains strict control over public decency via zoning laws. According to Wikipedia, “The primary purpose of zoning is to segregate uses that are thought to be incompatible. In practice, zoning is also used to prevent new development from interfering with existing uses and/or to preserve the “character” of a community, wherein character has often been used euphemistically to refer to the racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic makeup of said community.” Champaign County’s zoning laws say:
SEXUALLY ORIENTED BUSINESSES shall not be permitted on lots located within 1,000 feet of:
A. another SEXUALLY ORIENTED BUSINESS;
B. a school, park, church or library; or
C. any residential zoning DISTRICT.
With C-U being a micro-urban area chock full of parks, where residential neighborhoods butt right up to the business districts, there is approximately one zone where a sexually oriented business may be located.
Yes, we all know where the Silver Bullet is. The City of Champaign, however, has additional restrictions for “adult entertainment establishments.” Under the rules for adult entertainment establishments, here is the very-not-small list of definitions and things you cannot do:
- Nude or state of nudity. A state of dress or undress that exposes to view: (i) less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, anus, or female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areolae, but not including any portion of the cleavage of the female breast exhibited by a dress, blouse, shirt, leotard, bathing suit, or other wearing apparel, provided the areolae is not exposed; or (ii) human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered, or any device or covering that, when worn, simulates human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state.
- Semi-nude. A state of dress or undress in which clothing covers no more than the human genitals, pubic region, anus, and areolae of the female breast, as well as a portion of the body covered by supporting straps or devices or by other minor accessory apparel such as hats, gloves and socks.
- Specified anatomical areas. Any of the following:
- Less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areolae, but not including any portion of the cleavage of the female breast exhibited by a dress, blouse, shirt, leotard, bathing suit, or other wearing apparel, provided the areolae is not exposed
- Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered, or any device or covering that, when worn, simulates human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state.
- Specified sexual activities. Any of the following:
- Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts.
- Sex acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated, including intercourse, oral copulation, or sodomy.
- Masturbation, actual or simulated.
- Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation, arousal, or tumescence.
- Excretory functions as part of or in connection with any of the activities set forth in paragraphs a., b., c., or d. of this definition.
- Straddle dance. The use by an adult establishment employee of any part of his or her body to touch the genitals, pubic region, buttock, anus, or female breast of any adult establishment patron or any other person, or the touching of the genitals, pubic region, buttock, anus, or female breast of an adult establishment employee by any adult establishment patron. Conduct shall be a “straddle dance” regardless of whether the “touch” or “touching” occurs while the person is displaying or exposing any specified anatomical area. Conduct shall also be a “straddle dance” regardless of whether the “touch” or “touching” is direct or through a medium. Conduct commonly referred to by the slang terms “lap dance,” “table dance,” and “face dance” shall be included within this definition of straddle dance.
On the surface, you might think, “Okay I don’t really want to see excretory functions with or without simulated masturbation, so I don’t see what the issue is?” But these rules are subsumed under the ordinances pertaining to alcoholic beverages, revealing their roots in Prohibition-era moral panic. These kinds of regulations are rooted in misogyny and are used to perpetuate Puritanical values about women’s bodies, nudity, and sex, ultimately becoming tools to demonize and oppress sex workers.
We understand that some restrictions are necessary and helpful in protecting minors from abuse. But at the end of the day, these laws have an effect on free expression, creating an uncomfortable environment for local performance artists, when plainclothes police officers surveil their performances for infractions. They perpetuate stigma and shame around bodies and sex. They further entrench conservative Christian values as a default. And in a time when the Christian right is banning books and creating political spectacle against LGTBQ+ Pride displays and attacking trans rights, having laws on the books that police womens’ bodies and sexuality is not a good thing.
Perhaps, it’s time to have a look at the ordinances governing adult entertainment and update them to be more body and sex-positive.
The Editorial Board is Jessica Hammie, Julie McClure, Patrick Singer, and Mara Thacker.