The legal status of striptease in the United States and elsewhere has evolved over the course of time, with national and local laws becoming more liberal overall (though not universally) in the U.S. but much stricter in places such as Iceland. From ancient times to the present day, striptease was considered a form of public nudity and subject to legal and cultural prohibitions on moral and decency grounds. Such restrictions have been embodied in venue licensing regulations and various national and local laws, including liquor licensing restrictions.
Many U.S. jurisdictions have specific laws on the books related to striptease. Among provisions introduced is the "six foot rule" requiring that strippers maintain a six foot distance while performing topless or nude. While in their bikini or other work outfit this rule is not in effect, but is indicative of the level of scrutiny prevailing in some regions on dancer-customer interaction. Other rules forbid "full nudity". In some parts of the USA, there are laws forbidding the exposure of female nipples, which have thus to be covered by pasties by the dancer (though no such taboo applies to the exposure of male nipples) [1].
In 2010, Iceland outlawed striptease.[2] Johanna Sigurðardottir, Iceland's prime minister, who is an open lesbian[3][4], said: "The Nordic countries are leading the way on women's equality, recognizing women as equal citizens rather than commodities for sale."[5] The politician behind the bill, Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir, said: "It is not acceptable that women or people in general are a product to be sold."[5]
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A relatively liberal social climate keeps many locales in the USA from passing stricter legislation against strip clubs, or from enforcing it fully. However, in recent years, many cities, such as New York City and San Francisco, have enacted ordinances prohibiting "adult entertainment" businesses from within a certain distance of houses, schools and churches, and perhaps each other.
Often, a distance of nearly half-a-mile is stipulated, thus guaranteeing that no new strip clubs can be opened in many major cities. Courts have generally upheld these zoning laws. “Crime and property depreciation are the inevitable consequences of the presence in a community of exotic dance adult entertainment”. Many areas in Europe also have liberal views on sexuality but the UK has seen recent legislation trend more conservative in its treatment of striptease.
Many U.S. jurisdictions have specific laws on the books related to striptease. In some parts of the USA, there are laws forbidding the exposure of female nipples, which have thus to be covered by pasties by the dancer (though no such taboo applies to the exposure of male nipples) [1]. In early 2010, the city of Detroit banned fully exposed breasts in its strip clubs, following the example of Houston who began enforcing a similar ordinance in 2008[6]. The city council has since softened the rules eliminating the requirement for pasties [7] but kept other restrictions. For some jurisdictions, even certain postures can be considered "indecent" (such as spreading the legs).
In several regions of the US, primarily due to the local legal restrictions, strip clubs often fall into one of two categories: topless and all/fully nude. Dancers in topless clubs are allowed to expose their breasts, but they are prohibited from exposing their genitals. Topless dancers typically perform in a G-string and, depending on local laws, may be required to wear pasties covering their nipples.
Fully nude clubs may be subject to additional requirements such as restrictions on alcohol sales or no-touch rules between customers and dancers.[8] To get around these rules two "separate" bars—one topless and one fully nude—may open adjacent to one another. In a small number of states and jurisdictions, where it is legal for alcohol to be consumed but not for alcohol to be sold, some clubs allow customers to bring their own beverages. These are known as BYOB clubs.
In the U.S., striptease dancers are generally classified as independent contractors. While a few smaller strip clubs may pay a weekly wage, for the most part all of a dancer's income is derived from tips and other fees they collect from customers. In most clubs, dancers have to pay a "stage fee" or "house fee" to work a given shift. In addition, most clubs take a percentage of each private dance. It is customary—and often required in the United States—for dancers to also pay a "tip out", which is money (either a set fee or a percentage of money earned) paid to staff members of clubs, such as DJs, house moms, make-up artists, servers, bartenders, and bouncers, at the end of their shift.[9]
Touching of strippers is illegal in many states. However, some dancers and some clubs condone touching of dancers during private dances. This touching often includes the fondling of breasts, buttocks, and in rare cases the vaginal region. In some locales, dancers may give a customer a "lap dance", whereby the dancer grinds against the customer's crotch while he is fully clothed in an attempt to arouse him or bring him to climax.
One of the more notorious local ordinances is San Diego Municipal Code 33.3610[10], specific and strict in response to allegations of corruption among local officials [11] which included contacts in the nude entertainment industry. Among its provisions is the "six foot rule", copied by other municipalities in requiring that dancers maintain a six foot distance while performing topless or nude. While in their bikini or other work outfit this rule is not in effect, but is indicative of the level of scrutiny prevailing in some regions on dancer-customer interaction.
In July 2009, it was discovered that, in addition to not having a prostitution law (prostitution in Rhode Island was outlawed in 2009), Rhode Island also does not have a law to stop underage girls from being exotic dancers.[12] The Mayor of Providence, David Cicilline signed an executive order, effective July 31, prohibiting the city Board of Licenses from issuing adult entertainment licenses to establishments that employ minors.[13] The club owners also made a pledge to not employ underage girls.[14]
There have been annual attempts to amend the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), passed in 2001. The 2009 version of the bill (Bill C-45: An Act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act) had specific provisions related to tightening the issuance of Exotic Dancer Visas as a means to combat human trafficking[15]. In addition to Canada, the Irish and Japanese governments had at one time special visa categories for 'entertainers' which enabled the trafficking of women for strip clubs and prostitution.[16] The former immigration chief in Cyprus was found guilty in 2001 of accepting bribes to issue work permits to foreign women (from Ukraine) who worked as strippers in clubs, some of whom were forced into prostitution.[17]
In the 1930s, when the Windmill Theatre, London, began to present nude shows, British law prohibited performers moving whilst in a state of nudity.[18] To get around that rule, models appeared naked in stationary tableaux vivants. To keep within the law, sometimes devices were used which rotated the models without them moving themselves. Fan dances were another device used to keep performances within the law. These allowed a naked dancer's body to be concealed by her fans or those of her attendants, until the end of an act, when she posed naked for a brief interval whilst standing stock still, and the lights went out or the curtain dropped to allow her to leave the stage.
A 2003 United Kingdom study reported statistics which said that in the London borough of Camden the number of rapes increased by 50% and indecent assaults by 57% after four lap dancing venues opened. According to the Lilith Report on Lap Dancing and Striptease in the Borough of Camden, these statistics were calculated from information published by the Metropolitan police relating to the years 1998-99 and 2001-02. The percentages however were incorrectly calculated and Metropolitan police provided the UK Guardian newspaper with the following figures: 72 rapes and 162 indecent assaults in the borough in 1998-99, and 96 rapes and 251 indecent assaults in 2001-02; a 33% increase in rape and a 55% increase in indecent assault[19]. The overall crime rate decreased over the same period[20]. However in 2011 Brooke Magnanti published a statistical re-analysis criticizing the Lilith report for its lack of incidence rate calculation, lack of control population, and using results from too short of a time period.[21]
The authors of Government Regulation of "Adult" Businesses Through Zoning and Anti-Nudity Ordinances: Debunking the Legal Myth of Negative Secondary Effects, a meta-analysis of 110 studies looking at the impact of strip clubs and other adult businesses, have concluded that the studies that favored of prohibiting exotic dancing suffered from research flaws, and that in the papers that did not contain fatal flaws, there was no correlation between adult-oriented business and any crime.[22] Ethnographic work also supports the conclusion that there is no relationship between adult entertainment and crime.[23]
In 2009 the United Kingdom passed the Policing and Crime Act following concerns about the expansion in the number of live sex entertainment venues across its territories. Any strip clubs where live entertainment takes place more than 11 times a year have to apply for a license from their local authorities[24]. Hackney council used the Act to introduce a “nil” policy on adult entertainment in early 2011. However the council’s own consultation found that over 75% of the people in Shoreditch (where most of Hackney’s existing clubs are) oppose the ban. Police note that crime and antisocial behaviour around the existing clubs is extremely low compared to late-night bars. Unions estimate up to 450 jobs could be lost and TUC argued that dancers who work in the existing establishments should be better protected instead.[25]
In 2010, Iceland outlawed striptease.[2] Johanna Sigurðardottir, Iceland's prime minister, who is an open lesbian[3][4], said: "The Nordic countries are leading the way on women's equality, recognizing women as equal citizens rather than commodities for sale."[5] The politician behind the bill, Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir, said: "It is not acceptable that women or people in general are a product to be sold."[5]
In 2008, the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research in Sydney, Australia reported 1,600 people were charged with committing a range of 27 criminal offenses in the state’s "places of worship". But the figures showed only 282 people were charged in premises classified as adult entertainment with the same offenses. A breakdown of the statistical figures showed that 85 people were assaulted in places of worship, compared to 66 at an adult entertainment premises. Incidents of sexual assault and harassing and threatening behavior were also greater at places of worship. The report included churches, synagogues, monasteries, mosques, convents, cathedrals and chapels as places of worship. Premises listed as adult entertainment sites included strip clubs, sex shops, brothels, massage parlors, gay clubs, gaming houses as well as gambling clubs. The center's interpretation was that people were just as likely to be assaulted or robbed in the sanctity of a church as they were in sex industry venues.[26]
Rules governing strip clubs and the overall adult entertainment industry vary around the world, and formats sometimes are combined under a single roof or complex. In Bangkok, Thailand the Nana Entertainment Plaza in downtown Bangkok is a large four-floor compound with over 40 bars. Most of the bars are go-go bars where girls dance in various stages of nudity. They are not formal brothels, since customers must negotiate with the female workers for services up to and including sex without an intermediary[27]. The Zona Norte red light district in Tijuana, Mexico has a number of legal brothels which are modeled on strip clubs and feature U.S.-style striptease performed by its prostitutes. Zurich, Switzerland also has legalized prostitution, and its strip clubs throughout the city offer sex among their services. Differing from Zurich brothels, sex services in the strip clubs are typically performed off site[28]. Eastern European strip clubs have a similar model[29]. A "sex zone" in Tokyo, Japan which is only .34 square kilometers had approximately 3,500 sex facilities as of 1999. These included strip theaters, peep shows, "soaplands," "lover's banks," porno shops, telephone clubs, karaoke bars, clubs and more all offering adult entertainment services[30]. Filipino red light districts contain go-go bars and strip clubs tightly concentrated with other types of businesses and each other similar to the U.S. In Dubai, a nation governed by very strict cultural norms and laws, there are several Indian strip clubs offering at least partial-nudity[31].Newspaper reports[32][33] indicate that customers can occasionally purchase sex in some American strip clubs. Both the U.S. municipalities of Detroit, Michigan and Houston, Texas were reputed to have rampant occurrences of illicit activity including prostitution linked to its striptease establishments [34][35] within their city limits. Prostitution is illegal in all states except in some rural counties in Nevada. Prostitution in Rhode Island was outlawed in 2009.
In Barnes v. Glen Theatre, Inc., decided in 1991, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a state can totally ban topless or nude dancing as Indiana did, though the decision was criticised for not doing enough to clarify to what degree nude dancing is considered free speech protected by the First Amendment.[36] In the 2000 case City of Erie v. Pap's A. M., the Supreme Court reaffirmed its finding that nude dancing was expressive conduct "marginally" protected by the First Amendment, but ruled that it could be regulated to limit "secondary effects" such as crime.