WYNWOOD, Fla. – The administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is targeting a local bar for what he believes is indecent exposure.
The establishment in Wynwood offers weekend drag shows the governor says are sexually explicit and should not be conducted in the presence of young children.
The Governor hinted R House could lose its liquor license over this.
Colorful and very popular drag shows is what R House is best known for.
It’s also why it’s now the target of an investigation by the state.
DeSantis points to social media videos showing children in the presence of drag queens in shows at the Wynwood bar and restaurant that he believes are as sexually explicit.
“There was a video out of Dallas where they had all these young kids, putting money in the underwear of these drag queens,” DeSantis said. “Having kids involved in this is wrong. That is not consistent with our law and policy in the state of Florida.”
DeSantis says agents with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation visited the venue.
“What they found was not only were there minors there for some of these, and these are sexually explicit drag shows, the bar had a children’s menu,” he said.
Alex Fernandez, who performs at R House under the stage name Maritrini, says the drag shows are a form of art and are not sexually explicit content.
He believes it should be up to each parent to decide what’s appropriate for their children.
R House owners did not respond to Local 10 News’ request for an on-camera interview, but did send us a statement that read:
“We are aware of the complaint and are currently working with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, through our attorney, to rectify the situation. We are hopeful that Governor DeSantis, a vociferous supporter and champion of Florida’s hospitality industry and small businesses, will see this as what it is, a misunderstanding, and that the matter will be resolved positively and promptly.”