Why Lancaster locals and officials are disputing an LGBTQ event's drag queen

LANCASTER, Ohio (WCMH) -- Although conservative Lancaster residents want to restrict drag queens after they said a performance during a LGBTQ+ Pride event was "pornographic," the city's top prosecutor said the shows are legal and protected by the First Amendment.

Members of a group called "Fairfield County Conservatives" spoke during city council meetings last month in protest of LGBTQ+ events hosted in downtown Lancaster, specifically "Lite the Nite with Pride" hosted on Sept. 14 by The Rainbow Alliance of Fairfield County. In its seventh year, the family-friendly Pride event featured a series of speakers, street vendors, food trucks and an outdoor drag queen show that the conservative group said was "obscene."

"I think it's unfortunate that children were there to witness grown men in leotards and thongs, spread eagle in front of children," said Robert Knisley, a Lancaster parent and member of Fairfield County Conservatives, referring to the screenshot below taken from a video captured during Lite the Nite. "It's very unfortunate that those children were harmed in that way, to see that kind of behavior in public."

However, Stephanie Hall, Lancaster's city law director, said during a Sept. 23 council meeting that the photo "is tasteless, but it lacks context," and that drag shows are generally included in a broad spectrum of "legally permissible behavior that is protected by the First Amendment."

"The video from that night shows the performer in question was in that position for a split second while performing a dance routine. Dance, like speech, is an expression that is protected," said Hall. "This is not hardcore pornography. I have been a prosecutor for the past 18 years in Fairfield County, and I know hardcore pornography when I see it. This is not it."

Claims of a 'lewd and obscene' event

The conservative group first spoke out during a Sept. 9 city council meeting, arguing against Lite the Nite and a separate event called "Drag out your Pride" hosted on Sept. 13 at Faux Lounge and Arcade, which has since permanently closed. Chuck Burgoon, the executive director of the Fairfield Family Forum, said these events do "not meet the long-held community standard our citizens have enjoyed for many years as a strong Christian populous."

"The influx of this type of lewd and obscene behavior gives many in our community pause, to how safe we and our children are with the influx of this deviant behavior in our city," said Burgoon, asking city council to take action and "fault further lewd and obscene" events. "These types of pornographic events and parades are philosophical statements. It says there are no rules about sex, sex is trivial, and sex is for entertainment."

Amanda Everitt, executive director of Destination Downtown Lancaster, argued during the meeting that there are multiple Christian events that are hosted on an annual basis in the public square, and those who are not Christian can choose not to attend. The same can be said for LGBTQ+ events and those who are conservative, she said.

"As someone who has attended multiple Pride events, there are so many families there and not all families are like your families," she said. "From an economic development perspective, it is unwise and unloving to not be open, welcoming and affirming to all families, even if they don't look like yours."

When council didn't act to limit drag queens, member of the conservative group attended Lite the Nite and recorded videos of the performances, then posted them to social media. Knisley, one of the group's attendees, said the event was "totally fine" before the show. Problems only arose when a few of the drag queens came out in questionable clothing, he said.

Natalie Noyes, board president of The Rainbow Alliance, said those conservative group members who attended "did not seem to be addressing us." However, the debate intensified on social media when several community members noticed that the group's recordings of the drag queens included the filming of children without parental consent.

"We're upset that there were kiddos included in that video without their parent or caregivers consent," said Noyes. "People and their families deserve to feel safe at our event and deserve to not have some of that treatment, or have their child's face posted all over."

Knisley said he understands the concern, but argued the video and pictures "needed to be shared so that people know what's going on and being presented in front of children in the public square."

'A difference between inappropriate and illegal'

The influx of discourse on social media led to a second impassioned city council meeting on Sept. 23, where for more than an hour members of the conservative group and supporters of the LGBTQ+ community spoke before councilmembers.

The evening was encapsulated by Hall's speech at the end of the meeting, where she affirmed that Lancaster did have two police officers in attendance at Lite the Nite, but they did not make any arrests because they did not see any behavior that rose to the level of public indecency or obscenity.

"Saturday's show was a bit risqué, I never need to see anybody's butt in public. Never ever, regardless of who they are or what they look like," she said. "I think it's completely inappropriate, personally. But professionally, I know that there is a difference between inappropriate and illegal. They are two different things."

Hall explained that the videos and photos were also reviewed by a detective who did not find any instances of behavior that would require law enforcement to intervene or issue any kind of citation. Hall also had two assistant prosecutors, from different sides of the political spectrum, review the material.

"We all three watched the same video and looked at the same pictures and all came to the conclusion that nothing that happened was a chargeable, criminal offense. We did not see anything that amounted to visible genitalia," said Hall. "None of that was present. Didn't see any of it. It was all covered by the performer's actual costume. There was no sexual conduct or sexual contact."

A ban on 'adult cabaret performances'

While Knisley said Hall "made it very clear that there's nothing in the Ohio Revised Code or city ordinances that were violated" during Lite the Nite, he said the conservatives group is advocating for council to adopt a measure prohibiting "adult cabaret performances." The language is the same as a bill proposed at the Ohio Statehouse that seeks to limit drag queen performances in public or where children are present.

House Bill 245 was introduced in July 2023 and defines "adult cabaret performances" as a show "harmful to juveniles" that features "entertainers who exhibit a gender identity that is different from the performers’ or entertainers’ gender assigned at birth." The bill would prohibit these shows in all locations other than "adult cabarets," meaning "a nightclub, bar, juice bar, restaurant, bottle club or similar establishment."

Bellefontaine, a rural Ohio City, was originally supposed to be the first in the state to vote on whether to ban drag queen performances in public. However, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled last October that the proposed ordinance, which also used the "adult cabaret performance" wording, would not appear on the ballot given it was submitted fraudulently.

Knisley said the group would like Lancaster's ordinance to include ID requirements for performances "that could be considered obscene or harmful to juveniles." They are also asking shows to take place in spaces where the event can be ticketed, where age restrictions can be enforced and not in Lancaster's public square.

"When you see a picture of a man wearing a thong spread eagle in the public square, I think most people agree that that is in poor taste," said Knisley. "We're pursuing a legislative solution, and we're encouraging folks to contact their representatives and state senators to support House Bill 245."