With the 2024 Presidential Election just weeks away, the “Find Your Friends, Know Your Enemies” seminar aimed to enlighten attendees on the efforts by the “Zealous Right” to put adult businesses out of business. This seminar featured ACE Executive Director Angelina Spencer-Crisp, new ACE President Joey Bien, and noted First Amendment attorney Brad Shafer.
(NOTE: This story appears in the Nov 2024 issue of ED Magazine.)
At the heart of the 2024 ED Gentlemen’s Club EXPO in Dallas, a lively and eye-opening discussion unfolded that left a memorable impression on all in attendance.
The panel, titled “Know Your Enemy, Find Your Friends,” featured a powerhouse trio of experts: New ACE National President Joey Bien, renowned First Amendment attorney Brad Shafer, and ACE Executive Director Angelina Spencer-Crisp, also known for her intelligence work and best-selling writing under the pseudonym B.A. Crisp.
Moderated by Bien, the session exposed the escalating threats that the adult entertainment industry faces from powerful political and religious forces.
As Bien candidly opened the discussion, he reminded the audience of the relentless pressure facing club owners: “There’s a group of people on the zealot-religious side that wants to take everything we have and make it go away.”
He highlighted how little the outside world understands about the challenges faced by adult club operators, something he heard firsthand from executives at Joe Hand Promotions, when they noticed how much this industry faces in terms of restrictions and what club owners must fight against to remain in business.
The threat of Project 2025 and the ‘Zealous Right’
The conversation took a sharp turn when Crisp read a direct quote from Project 2025, a far-right agenda that aims to eradicate the adult industry entirely:
“The people who produce and distribute adult entertainment should be imprisoned … telecommunications and technology firms that facilitate the spread of pornography (which includes adult entertainment in the eyes of the religious right) should be shuttered.”
This ominous statement sparked a deeper discussion on the political machinations that threaten the livelihood of club owners.
Crisp laid bare the intricate workings of groups like the Family Research Council, who, with 42 state chapters, have been stealthily pushing model legislation that restricts adult businesses.
“Their job is to ensure every American lives under their interpretation of Biblical law,” she noted, underscoring the powerful, yet often hidden, influence these groups wield.
“They honestly believe they are not called but appointed by God to rule over the rest of us,” she added. “…and that means all Americans. They say that if people fail to adopt their subjective biblical interpretations, they will force God upon the people.”
The industry’s response: Unity and community engagement
Facing these coordinated attacks, the panelists emphasized the necessity of unity.
Crisp urged the audience, “United, we stand. Divided, we fall.” She highlighted the importance of fighting back by building relationships with local authorities and politicians, rather than simply relying on charm or hoping for public sympathy. “And they love to divide the dancers against the club owners to eventually put everyone out of work. It’s a strategy.”
Moreover, Crisp shared concrete examples of successful community engagement, such as free flu shots and senior lunches at clubs, and discounts for veterans, which have helped soften perceptions of the industry. “Make friends,” she said. “Treat your staff and dancers better than well.”
One particularly poignant example came from David Slim Baucom, an ACE board member and owner of MAL Entertainment, who, in an act of goodwill, partnered with a local church to minister to his dancers and even donated a safe house for sex trafficking victims to the church. This unusual alliance has built a mutual respect between his club and the church community, a testament to the power of creating unexpected yet effective partnerships. In fact, church members once testified in opposition against a local adult club ordinance that included a six-foot rule because it would have destroyed their ability to minister.
Bien added his own example of community involvement: his club’s work with an abused women’s shelter in Horry County, where they’ve raised funds through motorcycle auctions.
“We’ve been involved politically and civically … we’re also friends with the police,” he shared, emphasizing the importance of transparency and cooperation with law enforcement.
Their job is to ensure every American lives under their interpretation of Biblical law. They honestly believe they are not called but appointed by God to rule over the rest of us, and that means all Americans. They say that if people fail to adopt their subjective biblical interpretations, they will force God upon the people.
– Angelina Spencer-Crisp
The legal landscape: A constant battle
The discussion would not have been complete without Shafer’s insights into the legal battles that clubs face. With his decades of expertise, Shafer warned about the impact of upcoming Supreme Court decisions on age verification laws and restrictions on exotic dancers under 21.
He lamented the increasing difficulty of defending adult businesses in a judicial landscape that is growing ever more hostile under right-wing influence.
“If Donald Trump wins, this audience is relegated by his minions to becoming second-class citizens,” Shafer cautioned.
However, despite the uphill legal battle, Shafer emphasized the importance of preparing for the long game, especially as moral opportunists continue to wield influence over elected officials.
Additionally, he offered valuable legal explanations to the audience regarding legal scrutiny.
“I assume most of you attended the legal panel here at EXPO. And my good friend from Cleveland, Mike Murray, gave a little presentation about constitutional law, and he took time to go into the nuances of the law, but I want to just kind of summarize where we are with the protections that you guys have, at least today, under the Constitution.
“The First Amendment to the United States Constitution starts out by saying Congress shall apply or add no law abridging the freedom of speech. That’s it. That’s freedom of speech. Over the years, speech has been expanded by certain courts to include various things, art, entertainment, and in 1991 in my case, Barnes v. Glenn Theater, the US Supreme Court extended constitutional protections under the First Amendment to nude Dancing.
“It was a mixed bag decision, but at least we got the constitutional protections… I was hoping that I would be able to retire from the practice of law with this decision, with bars or theaters still intact.
“But that’s becoming very debatable. My client here, Curtis Wise in the second row, referred to me two nights ago at dinner as ‘Mr. Doom and Gloom.’ I’m not here to do doom and gloom. In addition to being a lawyer, I’m also an Eagle Scout 608 in Detroit. I was a scout leader for 10 years. I was elected as the top scout leader of the entire Mid-Michigan area. So, I’m obligated to tell the truth, and that’s what I’m going to do. If you don’t like my truth, that’s okay.
“So, Michael Murray mentions phrases such as strict scrutiny and rational basis. Whatever we lawyers say or whatever laws are enacted, we lawyers must go to court, and we must challenge these laws and each law, depending on how it’s written, or what it applies to, is subject to a different level of constitutional scrutiny. You don’t have to understand what those levels of scrutiny are. All you must understand is that if a law is subject to strict scrutiny, we win. The law is stricken as being unconstitutional.
“However, if a law falls under intermediate scrutiny, we always lose because the law is upheld and you must, you must comply with it.
The religious right wants to put all of you out of business, and they have invaded the Republican Party. And the dominating parties pick the judges that rule against you and they pick the legislators that pass the regulations against you.
– Brad Shafer
“So, Mike Murray was talking about the age verification bill, the new law out of the state of Texas. And the state of Texas also decided that people who wanted to access pornography, or adult entertainment on the internet, had to go through a verification process by uploading their ID to a company that the state of Texas contracted with.
“I don’t know if anyone else listened to Howard Stern. Stern had a rant on this a couple of months ago, where he said, ‘No fucking way am I uploading my ID to some state ID website!’
“And that’s the problem … a law like this is not going to protect minors from accessing pornography or adult entertainment or erotica. It’s going to affect the adults, because a lot of people just don’t want to give that information to the government, regardless of how the state of Texas claims it is protected.
“So, this law was challenging when I went to the Fifth Circuit US Court of Appeals, and now this case has been accepted for review by the US Supreme Court for what we call the October term.
“The terms of the Supreme Court go from October to June, so this case will be argued sometime in that term. We will get a decision before next June.
“But what you need to know is what the argument is of the state of Texas, and it’s very simple: this law is subject to rational basis scrutiny, which means that end of story, it will be upheld, and depending upon the way that decision comes out, that could affect a whole range of things.
“And right behind that is another case from Texas where they increased the age for exotic dancers to a minimum of 21, decided on some intermediate basis scrutiny, where remember, we lose.
“The religious right wants to put all of you out of business,” Shafer bluntly concluded. “And they have invaded the Republican Party. And the dominating parties pick the judges that rule against you and they pick the legislators that pass the regulations against you.”
“They’re a boil on the party’s ass,” Crisp added. “And Brad and I don’t always agree. I’ve worked with Republicans and in a couple of cases, spearheaded inaugural campaigns for Republican candidates. But he’s right. The religious opportunists aren’t going away anytime soon. They get a lot of attention from the Republican Party who wants their money and their votes. Groups like the Family Research Council are well funded to the tune of about $100 million per year. They have legal teams and PR firms. They run the narrative … but all is not well within their ranks.”
Strategic action: Moving forward
As the session ended, the panelists fielded questions from the audience, focusing on practical steps club owners can take to safeguard their businesses against moral opportunists.
Bien and Crisp highlighted the importance of proactive risk mitigation through initiatives like COAST (Club Operators Against Sex Trafficking), which has trained over 25,000 industry workers on human trafficking prevention since 2009.
“I cannot stress how helpful COAST stats and the government’s data are,” Crisp emphasized, describing how these initiatives help club owners counter the unfounded sex trafficking accusations often leveled against them.
Another crucial strategy discussed was the need for club operators to get involved in local and national politics—and work to change the narrative.
“Campaign contributions and lobbying matter,” Shafer agreed, encouraging club owners to make their voices heard through legal and financial support for sympathetic politicians and supporting worthwhile causes.
Crisp echoed this sentiment, noting the success of prior initiatives where club owners bought tables at anti-human trafficking events, putting a human face on their businesses and garnering respect from local leaders.
In the end, the message was clear: the adult entertainment industry must adapt, unite, and take control of its narrative.
As Crisp poignantly put it, “You’re crusaders of freedom, and we are getting those freedoms stripped away by the day.”
As the industry braces for future battles, the 2024 EXPO’s “Know Your Enemy, Find Your Friends” panel offered both a sobering reminder of the challenges ahead and an inspiring call to action.
With powerful voices like Bien, Crisp, and Shafer helping lead the charge, the path forward is one of resilience, good business, strategy, and unwavering unity.
