WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - A federal judge has ruled that Tennessee's law restricting drag performances in public or where children were present was unconstitutional, striking a blow to efforts in U.S. states to regulate LGBTQ conduct.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee in February had signed the bill passed by the state's assembly that aimed to restrict drag performances, putting the state at the forefront of a Republican-led effort to limit drag in at least 15 states in recent months.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Parker, an appointee of former Republican President Donald Trump, ruled late on Friday that the law was "both unconstitutionally vague and substantially overbroad."
"Simply put, no majority of the Supreme Court has held that sexually explicit — but not obscene — speech receives less protection than political, artistic, or scientific speech," Parker said in the ruling.
Reporting by Timothy Gardner; Additional reporting by Eric Beech and Jonathan Allen; Editing by Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Persons:
Bill Lee, District Judge Thomas Parker, Donald Trump, Parker, Timothy Gardner, Eric Beech, Jonathan Allen, Daniel Wallis
Organizations:
Republican, District, Human Rights, GLAAD, Thomson
Locations:
U.S, Tennessee, Memphis