The Injunction Against Unconstitutional "Public Dancing Bans" In Tenn., Will Be Permanent In a Few Days' Time.

The Volunteer State's lawyers essentially conceded at the bench trial (which concluded yesterday) that local prosecutors cannot save the statute as written. So the preliminary injunction, state wide remains in full force. [Note especially here that the statutory ban on dancing in public only applied to men who put on make up or a dress. All other dancing in public was. . . okie-dokie!] Here's that opinion, as a backgrounder, and a bit:

. . .The United States Constitution -- a law that is supreme even to the Tennessee General Assembly’s acts -- has placed some issues beyond the reach of the democratic process. First among them is the freedom of speech. If Tennessee wishes to exercise its police power in restricting speech it considers obscene, it must do so within the constraints and framework of the United States Constitution.

The Court finds that, as it stands, the record here suggests that when the legislature passed this Statute, it missed the mark. . . .

I would expect that by a few days after Memorial Day, we will see a USDC opinion and order making the injunction permanent, state wide.

So ends GOP Gov. Bill Lee's silly grandstanding, against his own drag performances in 1977, at Franklin High.

Hilarious.

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