The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said on X, formerly Twitter, that it is suing the State of Tennessee over a law meant to prevent people from knowingly spreading HIV.
“BREAKING: We’re suing Tennessee for their ‘aggravated prostitution’ statute that targets people with HIV with harsh punishment and lifetime sex offender registration. This law is unconstitutional and disproportionately affects Black and transgender women,” the group said Tuesday afternoon. “The law elevates engaging in sex work from a misdemeanor to a felony based on someone’s HIV status – a protected disability.”
The law elevates engaging in sex work from a misdemeanor to a felony based on someone's HIV status – a protected disability.
— ACLU (@ACLU) October 24, 2023
“People who are convicted must register as violent sex offenders for the rest of their lives, restricting their access to housing, employment, and social services,” the group continued. “Instead of criminalizing HIV, which disproportionately targets people who are already socially and financially marginalized, lawmakers should invest in evidence-based public health support for people with HIV. Tennessee, we’ll see you in court.”
Instead of criminalizing HIV, which disproportionately targets people who are already socially and financially marginalized, lawmakers should invest in evidence-based public health support for people with HIV.
Tennessee, we'll see you in court.
— ACLU (@ACLU) October 24, 2023
The ACLU’s complaint also claims that some transgender people are forced into sex work because of discrimination.
“A 2019 qualitative study of 14 individuals arrested for Aggravated Prostitution found that many defendants, and transgender women in particular, were engaging in sex work to earn money to survive ‘due to transphobia and discrimination that prevented them from obtaining employment.’ 126 Indeed, at least 30% of people charged with Aggravated Prostitution in Nashville from 2000 to 2010 were listed as unhoused,” the complaint says.
Ricardo Mimbela, a spokesperson for the ACLU, told The Tennessee Star that the group is not implying a higher rate of HIV among black and transgender people, but rather it is alleging “that black and transgender people are disproportionately targeted and convicted of aggravated prostitution.”
Conservative commentator and attorney Mike Cernovich addressed the lawsuit in a now-viral tweet.
“Does the ACLU realize what it’s saying here?” he asked, suggesting that the ACLU is saying that black and transgender women have higher rates of HIV than others.
Does the ACLU realize what it’s saying here? pic.twitter.com/StRojUCFXD
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) October 24, 2023
The lawsuit is another in a string of legal actions filed by the left-wing legal organization in Tennessee.
Earlier this month, the ACLU sued the City of Murfreesboro after the city allegedly tried to stop drag queens from publicly dancing for children.
“Leading up to the 2022 BoroPride Festival, Murfreesboro City officials, including Mayor Shane McFarland, received emails urging them to cancel the festival and falsely complaining that drag shows, which would be part of the event, necessarily entailed ‘indecent behavior’ that ‘exploits,’ ‘harms’ and ‘contributes to the sexualization’ of children and exposes them to lewd and obscene acts,’” that lawsuit says.
In September, it filed a similar lawsuit in Blount County.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on X / Twitter.
