A federal appeals court has re-instated Tennessee’s restrictions on drag performances. Thursday’s order reverses a district court ruling last year, which had prevented the ban from taking effect.
Tennessee’s legislature made waves in 2023. Here’s a review of the year’s top stories in state politics.
Tennessee politics got national attention in 2023. There were protests, expulsions, culture wars and one official’s interesting social media activity brought to light. Below is a list of some of the top events from the year.
A legal challenge to the state’s drag restrictions in East Tennessee is on pause, pending a federal court’s ruling
The fate of Tennessee’s drag restrictions is now in the hands of a federal appeals court. A federal district judge in East Tennessee has put a legal challenge to the state law on hold until the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals issues a final ruling on whether the restrictions are unconstitutional.
Tennessee’s drag restrictions have been temporarily blocked — again
A second federal judge in Tennessee has temporarily blocked a state law restricting drag performances in public spaces. The order from an East Tennessee judge comes three months after a West Tennessee judge ruled the law unconstitutional.
Tennessee’s drag restrictions are back in court
A Tennessee law restricting drag performances in public spaces is back in court, nearly three months after a federal judge ruled it unconstitutional.
Tennessee plans to appeal a ruling that declares the state’s anti-drag law is unconstitutional
Tennessee’s attorney general says he plans to appeal a federal judge’s ruling that threw out the state’s anti-drag law. The Adult Entertainment Act, or AEA, was ruled unconstitutional late Friday night, but there’s still confusion about the law’s current status.
Tennessee’s law restricting drag has been ruled unconstitutional
An LGBTQ theater company based in Memphis brought the case against the state in late March, arguing that it violated their First Amendment rights and that the law’s vague language left them in a legal gray area.
A judge will soon decide whether Tennessee’s first-of-its-kind drag restrictions will go into effect. Here’s how that decision has shaped Pride this year.
Tennessee passed a first-of-its-kind law restricting drag in public places earlier this year. But that law has never been enforced. A judge temporarily blocked it the night before it was set to go into effect. Now, a ruling in the case against Tennessee’s law is expected soon, just as Pride month is coming up.
Neo-Nazis threatened a drag show at a Cookeville bar. Now the bar is facing eviction.
A drag show at a local brewery in Cookeville drew neo-Nazis and right-wing protesters with semi-automatic rifles. Now, the bar that hosted the event is getting evicted, and LGBTQ members say local law enforcement is using them as scapegoats.
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