An Albany Park exotic dance club failed to protect dancers from “dangerous, harassing, and sometimes violent” behavior from customers, retaliated against a dancer who reported the harassment to her supervisor and discriminated against Black dancers by pushing them into less lucrative shifts, a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleges.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday, alleges dancers at the Admiral Theatre experienced “frequent unwelcome touching” while at work including harassing and aggressive sexual behavior.
Representatives for the Admiral did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.
The club refused to take steps to protect dancers from the unwanted touching, the lawsuit alleges, even though the club nominally prohibited customers from touching dancers, and even when dancers reported the customers’ behavior to the club’s security staff or managers.
The lawsuit also alleges the club discriminated against Black dancers, who were subject to appearance standards that the club did not enforce for white dancers. Black dancers, for instance, were required to straighten their hair or wear wigs, the EEOC alleged. The club also allegedly refused to allow Black dancers to perform consecutively and did not let Black dancers perform during peak hours, limiting their ability to make tips.
The Admiral allegedly prohibited dancers from performing to rap or hip-hop music, telling them the club owners did not want the club to become “too ghetto.” Admiral managers and employees also made “offensive racial comments” and used racial slurs, including the N-word, the lawsuit alleged.
The lawsuit alleges the Admiral retaliated against one dancer by terminating her from the club after she complained to her supervisor about nonconsensual sexual touching and harassment from customers.
According to the lawsuit, the dancer, DeCarri Robinson, also created a Change.org petition calling for changes to discriminatory practices at exotic dance clubs and emailed the petition to Admiral manager Nick Cecola in July 2020. In her email, Robinson asked Cecola to provide “sexual assault awareness” training.
When, during the same month, the club started contacting dancers to return to the club after its COVID-19 closure, it did not contact Robinson, the lawsuit alleges.
The Admiral acted “with malice or with reckless indifference to the federally protected rights,” of Black and female employees, the EEOC alleged.
The agency filed the lawsuit Thursday in federal court in Chicago after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement with the Admiral. The lawsuit alleges the club violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on sex and race. The EEOC is seeking back pay and damages for a group of dancers at the club, the agency said.
During the course of the agency’s investigation into the Admiral, the club objected to a subpoena issued by the EEOC, arguing it should not have to produce information for dancers because it considered them independent contractors. But last February, a federal judge ruled to enforce the agency’s subpoena.
“Choosing to work in adult entertainment does not mean consenting to harassment and assault,” EEOC regional attorney Greg Gochanour said in a statement. “This lawsuit sends a clear message to the adult entertainment industry that Title VII protects all employees, no matter who they are, or what kind of work they perform.”
Last year, four former dancers sued River North strip club Rick’s Cabaret, alleging club management regularly allowed customers to physically and sexually assault them at work. That case is still pending in federal court in Chicago, with a status hearing scheduled next month.
