The taking of photos inside many pubs that appeared to show “lewd conduct” was one of the major issues that the commentators were unhappy about.
Seattle — On Wednesday, the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Control Board (LCB) conducted new audits of well-known gay bars. During the checks over the weekend, the LCB was looking for proof of “lewd conduct.”
Bar owners were informed on Friday and Saturday that LCB police officials observed violations of the law, which require the protection of certain body parts from customers and employees. A group of Seattle’s gay bar users and a number of well-known LGBTQ+ activists, including Terry Miller and Dan Savage, posted a statement on Instagram expressing concern about what they called “raids” at LGBTQ+ entertainment venues, noting that they stoke decades-old tensions between the area and the LCB.
” These were attacks. Prevent calling them sessions. At Wednesday’s position wine and cannabis conference, Dan Savage argued in a statement that if 10 of the bar’s 10 uniformed attendees with flashlights leave without making a social call, that they would not recognize your presence as a social call. We are winning because the bigots are winning, the message was “if they are raiding gay restaurants in Seattle, they are harassing gay people because they are naked in gay bars in Seattle.”
Historical repercussions of authorities and enforcement systems ‘ attacks were to further police the manifestation of the LGBTQ+ community, violate safe places, and impede the safety of others.
The group “recalls generational pain and homophobia-driven laws of the not so distant past, making the new behavior especially distressing,” the statement read.
The getting of photos inside many restaurants that appeared to show “lewd conduct” was a common issue among speakers during public opinion on Wednesday’s gathering.
Another speech made a remark at the conference, stating that taking photos of gay men without their permission and then publishing those images as evidence is immoral.
Savage stated at the Wednesday meeting that the images can be made public after the research because they are subject to the country’s public disclosure rules.
” That is not a visit that is a infraction”, said Savage.
LCB Director David Postman denied that the organization carried out attacks at another meeting on Tuesday, claiming that potential violations were observed throughout the course of the LCB officials ‘ common police tasks that included eight different organizations. He added that no enforcement actions had been taken. He continued to point out that there has been a long history of interaction between historically gay LCB venues and that the LGBTQ+ community was particularly affected by last weekend’s events. Postman and two other board members contended to take action to prevent another incident from occurring.
The LCB is charged with enforcing a law that would make it illegal for strip clubs to serve alcohol in Washington State. It specifies that covered body parts like nipples and buttocks must be present. Postman acknowledged that the state legislature may have considered whether the law has long past its potential use.
” The lewd conduct law, it’s problematic, just talking about my personal point of view here”, Postman said.
However, Postman said, the LCB is still required to enforce the lewd conduct law while it remains on Washington’s books. Postman argued that education should be the agency’s priority rather than enforcement, and that the LGBTQ+ community should n’t be the focus.
” When there’s laws on the books, it’s really hard to just say’ Well, we’ve decided not to enforce that one ‘- the lawmakers, the legislature does n’t like that, and for good reason”, Postman said. There is no crackdown on gay clubs right now, there is no crackdown on clubs in Seattle or anywhere else, I can tell you. We’re doing our normal business here”.
Postman noted that some of the clubs that owners were made aware of potential lewd conduct violations are known to strictly abide by Washington state’s alcohol laws and have a reputation for being concerned about public safety.
” These are not places where they do n’t care about the law”, Postman said. ” They are important parts of the community”.
Jim Vollendroff, a board member who claimed to have visited several of the bars in question, claimed that the LCB was having internal discussions about training with staff and enforcement, particularly in historically underrepresented communities. He also agreed that the lewd conduct law is “problematic” and should be reviewed.
It’s only natural for the LGBTQ+ community to be concerned about these recent actions, according to Vollendroff, given the recent attacks on the LGBTQ+ community on a federal and state level and the LC B’s own history with the community in Washington.
Put it that way, and you can see why people are concerned about this a lot, Vollendroff said. I believe that whatever we do, we must address it in a way that prevents this from occurring again.
On Friday night in particular, LCB enforcement officers were out as part of the City of Seattle’s Joint Enforcement Team, which includes representatives from the Seattle Police Department, Seattle Fire, code enforcement, finance and transportation. Up to ten people reportedly entered establishments at once. Postman acknowledged how that group of people, particularly law enforcement, may be intimidating to patrons of gay bars especially.
On Tuesday in the Capitol Hill neighborhood, residents were reacting to what happened over the weekend.
” If we are afraid, we are going to get harassed by cops, we do n’t want to go out, I do n’t want to go out. I do n’t want to deal with that”, said Willow Gavette. ” Hopefully, they back off and let Capitol Hill be Capitol Hill”.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell acknowledged the outcry in a statement on Tuesday, acknowledging the outcry, saying” Under my administration, we will not target people or communities based on their sexuality.” He continued, saying” We understand concerns raised by the community based on a perception of violating this principle.”
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