The War on Porn Regular Updates about the Assault on The Adult Industry
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Attorneys representing a group of New York City adult businesses are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take up their case after a lower court cleared the way for enforcing a 2001 zoning law designed to push adult retailers out of most of the city. It’s the latest chapter in a fight that has stretched long enough to outlive entire eras of the city’s cultural identity.
The story goes back nearly three decades, when New York City’s zoning rules first targeted adult entertainment venues. The law banned these businesses from large swaths of the city — especially midtown Manhattan — in a bid to “clean up” Times Square. Under that original framework, a shop qualified as an adult establishment if 40% or more of its space or stock involved sexual content.
In 2001, the city came back with a sharper blade. They scrapped the 40% rule, calling it too easy to game, and instead went after any business that “primarily” marketed adult entertainment — whether that meant strip clubs, video stores, or a bookstore with one too many risqué shelves.
That shift sparked a legal war lasting more than twenty years. Adult businesses argued the amendment violated constitutional protections, including free speech and equal protection rights. For many, the fight wasn’t just about geography — it was about whether sexual expression could be zoned out of public existence.
In 2024, a district court sided with the city, ruling New York has the authority to enforce the amendment. Under this decision, even businesses that technically met the old 60/40 threshold could be pushed into the small pockets still zoned for adult entertainment — or pushed out of the city entirely.
The businesses appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, but a three-judge panel rejected the challenge in July.
They tried again — this time asking the full 2nd Circuit to rehear the case. That request was denied in August.
By October, the 2nd Circuit wasn’t just saying no — it issued a judgment mandate giving New York City full permission to enforce the law while the legal process played out.
On October 31, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied the request for an injunction pending the filing of a petition for certiorari. That means enforcement continues for now, even as higher courts consider whether to intervene.
According to attorney Edward Rudofsky, the plaintiffs filed their petition on November 19, and the Court has given the City until December 22 to respond.
If the Supreme Court declines to hear the case, the legal road ends there.
Even in areas where zoning technically allows adult businesses, another maze of rules kicks in — distance requirements from residential neighborhoods, schools, other adult establishments, and houses of worship. Put together, these restrictions make finding a legal location less like choosing a storefront and more like playing a citywide game of Minesweeper.
Which raises the question: when regulation leaves no place left to exist, is the point compliance — or erasure?
