Reject Adult Entertainment Ban

Proposition G on Tuesday’s ballot in Santee seeks to defy the U.S. Constitution and ban all adult entertainment establishments from that city. Nearly 4,000 residents signed petitions calling for the referendum.

The impulse to do this springs from the misguided notion of the Rev. Dorman Owens and others that the harm caused by topless dancing, pornography and the like outweighs the constitutionally protected right to freedom of expression. In a society based on individual freedoms, this is just about as repugnant an argument as can be made.

But if the fact that Proposition G is unconstitutional on its face is not a good enough reason for Santee residents to reject it, they might consider the significant waste of money that would occur once the city had to defend it in court against the inevitable lawsuits, especially if it chose to fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Santee already has the most restrictive adult entertainment ordinance in the county. As long as that ordinance is held to be constitutional, we have no quarrel with the city trying to maintain a decent environment. But, as the Santee City Council has recognized in refusing to adopt a ban on adult entertainment, launching a kamikaze mission against the U.S. Constitution would simply be a frustrating and expensive embarrassment.