A City in Tennessee Banned Public Homosexuality—and We All Missed It: Murfreesboro, Tennessee, is already beginning to implement the law.

by harsh2k5

47 comments

  1. Sounds like Murfreesboro TN needs a flash downtown pride parade!

  3. I will never understand how people have the time/energy to focus on how love works for **other** people.

  4. That’s an odd one as for TN it really isn’t a terrible town. Middle TN State University is there. They are a former client of mine so I’ve spent a bit of time there. There are far, far worse towns of the same size in TN.

  5. Rutherford County, for which Murfreesboro is the county seat, is the 5th largest county in Tennessee. Murfreesboro itself is also the 6th largest city in Tennessee and is the home of Middle Tennessee State University, a public university with a total enrollment of over 20,000 students.

    I say this to point out that this is not some podunk middle of nowhere town. It is a fairly large city for Tennessee and the fact that they made this move is frightening and disgusting. I have lived in Murfreesboro at two points in my life, once as a kid and once as a young professional. Both times I greatly enjoyed my time there and left with great memories, so this move by the city deeply saddens me.

  6. Ah, yes, the party of less government: “You’re allowed to read any book that we approve”.

    For someone touting less government, they sure do seem to want more control. I wonder when they will start committing bedroom raids to make sure you’re only practicing missionary sex.

  10. >“When have the people who ban books ever been the good guys?” local activist Keri Lambert demanded during the Monday county meeting.

    What a wonderfully direct, appropriate, and largely correct thing to say. It’s the type of quote that changes minds. Bravo to Ms. Lambert.

  12. The Corrupt Sixth Circuit will let them, and SCOTUS is just waiting for this case to get to them so they can take all Civil and Human rights away from LGBTQ+ people.

  13. > In March, the Tennessee House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow people to refuse to perform a marriage if they disagree with it, essentially gutting marriage equality.

    Seems we need some allies to start declining to perform heterosexual marriages.

  16. What if I’m not gay, but I openly kiss another straight guy just to piss them off?

  18. People who think shoving Christian propaganda down your throat will turn you into a good God-fearing Jesus freak also think seeing a rainbow flag will make you suddenly want to get rawdogged by the homies.

  19. That’s weird because when I visited I found a lot of gay people.

  20. >”When have the people who ban books ever been the good guys?” local activist Keri Lambert demanded during the Monday county meeting.

    I can feel the exasperation and disbelief emanating from this quote.

  21. Let me guess if caught death by lynching?

    Perhaps give a bunch of idiots a brown uniform and let this Private group handle enforcing the law.
    Looking Non-CIS is all that is needed to get killed.

  23. What counts as public homosexuality? We talking no pride flags, no PDA or what? Like am I not allowed to platonically hold someone of the same genders hand? If I am flamboyantly dressed is that too far?

  24. Do they define public homosexuality? Are they cracking down on public butt-fucking, or the more nefarious behaviors like Pokémon Go and roller skating?

  25. Time for civil disobedience. Every person there that cares about this issue should make it a point to hold hands with their same-sex friends with frequent other form of affection whenever out in public.

  26. Doesn’t it seem like a clever leftist lawyer could use this to get churches shut down? Strip clubs? Surely there is plenty of opportunities to expose the insane hypocrisy of this?

  28. So the law bans “sexual behavior” in front of children, and homosexuality is identified as an aspect of sexual behavior. Great, I think we can all agree that two men having sex in a library in front of children should be illegal. In fact any number of people of any combination of genders having sex in public in front of children should be illegal.

    But what on earth does that have to do with library books about the topic of sexuality?

    By this standard, we should be removing all books that mentions drugs. Getting rid of any media that mentions theft. And removing all video games.

    According to the people, just the very fact of a gay person existing anywhere at all, even in a piece of fiction, is the equivalent of public sex. How embarrassing for them.

  29. I’m guessing constitutional infringement lawsuits should bankrupt this town in the future, at least that is how it should work for anyone fined or jailed in accordance with this law.

  30. How is it going to be enforced? They now have to create a definition of what homosexuality looks like, in a way that doesn’t infringe on the rights of straight people living there.

    I just can’t see a scenario that isn’t either “the definition is so specific that basically nobody would do that in public anyways” or “so vague that the blowback will target and punish more straight people than gay people”, or “they’ll pick and choose and immediately fall into a 14th amendment violation”.

  31. I don’t understand what “public homosexuality” is. Is it actual gay sex in public? If so, then does that mean they don’t already have laws about public sex on the books, and hetero people are free and clear to do it at the playground in front of the kids??

    If they aren’t actually talking about literal gay sex, then what? Holding hands? Kissing? When I was a kid I would kiss my mom and hold her hand–those are NOT sexual acts. So what exactly does this law ban? If not sex, kissing or holding hands, then–just existing in public as a gay person? What the fuck is happening?

  33. sounds like this city would be a great place for a Gay Pride Parade. Let them try to arrest everyone…

  34. They pull this shit until it’s stopped by the courts.

    That’s why they’re packing the courts.

  35. Let’s all go get arrested in mass for public homosexuality.

  36. Laws against same-sex sexual activity were nationally invalidated with Laurence vs Texas in 2003, and the Supreme Court upheld gay marriage in 2015. We are decades past this. Someone quick go gay smooch in downtown Murfreesboro so they have standing to get this law struck down.

  37. Address to city hall if anyone wants to flood them with letters about “freedom”. 111 West Vine St. Murfreesboro, TN 37133

  38. So nice of Murfreesboro to gift the plaintiff’s bar such an easy lawsuit and settlement.

  39. Just like Pence did to Indiana. This is going to cost them hundreds of thousand in revenue due to their bigotry and phobia. Companies will pull their business. Concerts will be canceled. Tourists revenue lost.

  40. Republicans hacking away at our freedom a little at a time!

  42. What does this even mean? If I wear jeans and a tee shirt in public will I be arrested for being too butch? No rainbow clothing? I mean, I’m pretty sure there is already a law against having sex in public. I wish there was a time machine where we could send all these bozos back to 1823.

  44. Congratulations to the people of Murfreesboro for their future loss of millions of their tax dollars to civil rights violation lawsuits.

  45. we probably missed it because its wildly unconstitutional and will be struck down and cost the city millions if they try and enforce it. anyone with a partner should go there for the easy settlement momey.

  46. How is this not a violation of freedom of speech/ expression?

  47. Sounds like a great spot for a massive gay pride festival.

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