Florida has updated its law and increased the minimum age for adult dancers to 21. In response to the same, a 19-year-old stripper from Florida and her employer are suing the state over new age restrictions for adult dancers, claiming the law infringes on her constitutional rights.
Serenity Michelle Bushey alleges she lost her job at Cafe Risque, a Gainesville-area strip club, after a new law raising the minimum age for strippers from 18 to 21 took effect on Monday. The lawsuit, reported by WPLG, was filed in federal court in Tallahassee on behalf of Bushey, the strip club’s owners, and two other adult businesses in Jacksonville. It seeks a permanent injunction to stop the law from being enforced.
Bushey and the strip clubs argue that the law violates their First Amendment right to free speech and their Fourteenth Amendment right to equal protection. The suit states that Bushey and eight other dancers aged between 18 and 21 are now unable to work at Cafe Risque due to the new age requirement, which was signed into law by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in May.
“As with similar performers around the state, Bushey earned her living through her art while providing entertainment for the benefit and enjoyment of her audience,” the suit states. “Plaintiffs have a clear legal right to engage in protected speech of this nature.”
The new law also prohibits adult entertainment businesses from hiring cooks, DJs, waitresses, and security guards under 21. Additionally, businesses cannot use workers under 21 from third-party contractors for tasks such as air conditioning repairs or carpentry, according to the lawsuit.
The Florida Attorney General’s office told WPLG on Tuesday that it had not yet received the lawsuit but intends to defend the new law.
The legislation, which raises the minimum age for workers in adult entertainment from 18 to 21, aims to combat human trafficking in the state. It also requires adult businesses to display signage warning about human trafficking.
“This legislation will help better protect the most vulnerable in our communities. It will ensure that if businesses are not complying with these very modest, reasonable requirements, whether knowingly or unknowingly, they will be held accountable,” DeSantis said when he signed the bill.
