Burger joint sues Ron DeSantis for banning drag shows

Local shop Hamburger Mary Orlando claimed that this bill goes against the First Amendment and that it lost important business as a result.

Los espectáculos de drag queens, cancelados tras aprobarse la Ley de Protección de los Niños respaldada por Ron DeSantis. — (Voz Media / Flickr)

Published by

Rosana Rábago Sainz

23 de mayo, 2023

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A burger joint sued Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida for banning drag shows. Hamburger Mary Orlando alleged that SB 1438, the Child Protection Act, goes against the First Amendment and that it has lost significant business because of the bill:

According to John and Mike Rogier, the lawsuit is being filed because they believe the bill is not aimed at protecting children living in Florida, but is simply a display of "continued oppression of the LGBTQ+ community."

Anytime our legislaters want to demonize a group, they say they are coming for your children. In this case, creating a false narrative that drag queens are grooming and recruiting your children with no factual basis or history to back up these accusations AT ALL!

In addition, they claim that the bill has important consequences for their business. As a result, they lost at least 20% of the Sunday bookings from some of their customers, as they are forbidden to bring their children to drag events, which seriously affects their work activity. "They simply cannot take the chance that their business or liquor licenses would be suspended for hosting a drag show where children attend."

In the meantime, the Ron DeSantis administration continues to defend this law, which prevents the presence of minors at live events deemed to be "for adults," which includes "any show, exhibition, or other presentation in front of a live audience which, in whole or in part, depicts or simulates nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or specific sexual activities … or the lewd exposure of prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts."

Tampa Pride Festival among drag shows canceled

The burger joint was the only business affected by the Child Protection Act. The Tampa Pride on the River festival will no longer be held due to the political climate in Florida. Carrie West, event chair, told the Tampa Bay Times: "In the end, we didn’t want to take any chances."

According to statements reported by Breitbart, approximately 20,000 people were to attend: "People already, they’ve been talking about it, they’ve been making plans to come to Tampa, fly to Tampa, drive to Tampa. I’m sorry that this has happened, but you are going to be the generation to make the change," West said.