End to Washington's lewd conduct law could bring booze back to strip clubs

End of WA lewd conduct law could mean strip clubs can begin serving alcohol

Following a firestorm of complaints from the LGBTQ+ community, the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board took drastic action this week.

SEATTLE - Following a firestorm of complaints from the LGBTQ+ community, the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board took drastic action this week.

In a letter addressed to Governor Inslee, the board temporarily suspended Washington's "lewd conduct law," a decision that could open the door to allowing local strip clubs to sell booze.

The law that affects those queer venues is one of the same laws that affects strip clubs," explained dancer and advocate, Madison Zuk-Wu. "It’s the lewd conduct act and it basically says if you have an alcohol-serving venue you can’t have sexual expression, nudity, all these things."

Washington is the only state in the nation that bans the sale of alcohol in adult entertainment venues. According to Zuk-Wu, this constraint has caused the industry to shrink.

Right now, there are only 11 operating strip clubs in Washington.

"How are strip clubs supposed to be profitable if they’re not selling food and drink?," questioned Zuk-Wu. "People are easily able to drink at a bar or in their car which is very unsafe and come into the club. They might even seem sober if they’re binge drinking and then immediately coming in so there’s really no way to account for that."

As campaign manager for the ‘Strippers are Workers’ movement, Zuk-Wu regularly testifies in Olympia on this issue. Most recently, she’s been pushing for Senate Bill 6105.

"We are fighting so hard to make these changes," said Zuk-Wu. "The industry in Washington has been bad for decades but especially since COVID it’s been getting so much worse."