March 29, 2000 12:32pm
FRC Applauds Supreme Court Ruling
Source: Family Research Council
by: Company Press Release
(WASHINGTON) -- On Wednesday, the Supreme Court upheld an Erie, Pennsylvania ordinance that prohibits totally nude dancing and defends the right of local governments to protect their communities from the adverse secondary effects of sexually-oriented businesses. ``We commend the high court for reaffirming that, in the interests of public health and safety, totally nude dancing should be prohibited,'' Family Research Council's (FRC) Chief Spokesperson Janet Parshall said Wednesday. FRC submitted an amicus brief in this case, City of Erie vs. Pap's A.M.
``Banning nude dancing is not about restricting the First Amendment and free expression, but about safeguarding society from the adverse effects of public nude dancing, including problems like prostitution, sexual harassment, public intoxication, crime and violence, and the spread of sexually- transmitted diseases,'' Parshall said. In his concurring opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia argued that the Court's decision did not violate the First Amendment, because the ``traditional power of government to foster good morals ... and the acceptability of the traditional judgment ... that nude public dancing itself is immoral, have not been repealed by the First Amendment.''
``The Supreme Court's decision reaffirms the right of local governments to protect the health and welfare of their communities, said FRC's Senior Director of Legal Studies, Jan LaRue, who was a counsel-of-record in FRC's amicus brief. ''Totally nude dancing does have adverse secondary effects on a community, and so the local government should insist on restrictions-and the Supreme Court has made clear that the restriction is, 'Put some clothes on!'``
|
