Pole-Dancing and the Law: 1st Amendment Collides With Zoning

[WSJ_law_blog]

In a classic case of the First Amendment running up against zoning laws, Stephanie Babines (pictured) is suing Adams Township in Pennsylvania for refusing to allow her to open a dance studio that features pole-dancing exercise classes on the grounds it’s a sexually oriented business. Here’s the AP report, and here’s the complaint.

Although Babines’ classes include pole-dancing, power lap dance, strip tease and “SeXXXercise,” they are all taught and performed fully clothed, the lawsuit states. Men can’t take the classes, and no spectators are allowed.

Township code enforcement officer Gary Peaco said he couldn’t comment on pending litigation. Township solicitor Charles Flach did not return the AP’s call seeking comment.

From the complaint:

The studio is not a men’s entertainment club or strip joint, nor is it a mere front for such activity. Rather, the dance Ms. Babines hopes to teach is part of a growing national exercise movement. Chronicled in U.S. News and World Report, The New York Times, Pittsburgh Magazine, and Oprah Winfrey’s talk show, pole dancing provides “a workout that combines aerobics, dance, yoga, [and] strength training.” Ms. Babines has seen her dance classes help women get in shape, build self-confidence, and express their sexuality. A recent report documented how the craze has even spread to China. But while a repressive country like China allows dance studios to teach pole dancing, the defendants in this small Butler County town have misapplied their zoning code to deny Ms. Babines her right to teach this new combination of art and sport to interested adult women.

The suit states that, at an appeal hearing in May, Peaco, the enforcement officer, testified that he didn’t need to interview Babines because her Web site’s “pink-and-black color scheme . . . and the high-heeled shoe in her logo” indicated to him she planned to run a sexually oriented business.

The Web site, OhMyYoureGorgeous.com, contains class descriptions for hoop aerobics, power lap dance, stiletto strut and cardio kick boxing.