At the 9/21 Northampton City Council meeting, a new adult-use zoning ordinance proposal is on the agenda:
Amend Appendix A § 2.1 and 5.2 Regulate the location and size of adult entertainment (to be referred to Ordinance Committee and Economic Development, Housing and Land Use Committee)
The public is welcome to attend this meeting, which takes place at 212 Main Street behind City Hall. The public comment period begins at 7:15pm.
We will provide you with details of the new proposed ordinance as soon as we can.
I appreciate your opinions and the need to try to mobilize support, but sorry, I can’t be behind your effort. I’m not a porn person myself. I have a lovely wife who “does it ” for me, but there have been times in the past when that wasn’t the case. I’ve read research that there is absolutely no correlation between porn and sexual violence or acting out and so I ask myself why are people so worked up about Porn? Even the old thing about exploiting women’s bodies is not an established fact; maybe sometimes and certainly not in others. So again, I ask myself why people are so worked up about this and the answer I come to is that it’s another form of Puritanism. Is there something wrong with sex out of the normal( ie married bedroom) avenue? I’ll bet you guys think there is.
I hope you’ll share the research you read on porn and it’s effects. Please note if it’s funded by the porn industry, its lawyers, or other participants in the porn revenue stream.
In the meantime, I hope you’ll consider this evidence for our side:
New York City Planners Document Secondary Effects of Adult Uses, Support Zoning
Impact of Porn Shops on a Community
Des Moines: Adult Uses Cause Business Failures, Scare People Away
Law Article: “Preventing the Secondary Effects of Adult Entertainment Establishments: Is Zoning the Solution?”
US Court of Appeals Upholds Minneapolis Regulation of Porn Viewing Booths
The Kittery Experience
The Blaine Experience
Sex becomes troubling when it’s coupled with abuse, violence, miseducation, and actions that can harm relationships (like cheating). This is not Puritanism, it’s humanity.