Stripping: The Freedom to Express Yourself
For many strip club patrons in Texas, enjoying a night at a strip club requires a $5 tax until an organization from the strip club industry who believes that stripping is a form of free expression intervened.
Back in 2007, the Texas State Legislature passed a law requiring strip club patrons to pay a 5 dollar tax. According to the legislators who passed this law, the revenue from this tax is used as fund for the treatment and support of the government’s programs on sexual abuse and domestic violence.
In February 2010, the Texas Entertainment Association, an industry association representing strip clubs filed a legal motion to stop the tax. The group argues that exotic dancing and stripping is a “form of free expression,” and that the law is an unconstitutional regulation of free expression.
Yes, indeed! Stripping is a form of expression. In January 2010, German protesters stripped off at airports in Berlin, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf to protest against airports’ move to install full body scanners. In the Philippines, members of a group called Alpha Phi Omega run naked every year to protest against government corruption.
Stripping is a form of artistic expression. Pole dancing for example is now a popular form of exercise enjoyed by women of all ages. We are now in an era where pole dancing has achieved mainstream popularity. Exotic pole dancing videos are now available for women who would like to learn how to pole dance in the comforts of their own homes. Words like “women empowerment” and “equality” are more often than not being associated with pole dancing. Striptease classes are also gaining popularity. Why not? Pole dancing and stripping gives out the sexual, sensual and feminine side of a woman. Women have always been deprived of the freedom to express their sexuality, and their desire to feel sexy in this society. Pole dancing and the art of striptease make many women feel good about their body. The sexiness of exotic dancing gives them confidence – one of the most empowering feeling every person can possess.