FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Can you envision a 300-pound statue of a 6-foot-high pink penis on display in a public park at Fort Lauderdale’s famed corner at Las Olas and A1A?
Chaz Stevens can.
The rabble-rousing atheist from Boca Raton, a First Amendment activist with a long resume of poking fun at government officials who dare to ignore the separation of church and state, is at it again.
Stevens, the same man who made headlines a decade ago after winning permission to put up a beer-can themed Festivus pole at the state Capitol, is now seeking permission from Fort Lauderdale and eight other cities to erect a 6-foot-high custom-made penis statue at various local town squares.
So far, Stevens says he’s gotten a no from Deerfield Beach and a possible maybe from Fort Lauderdale.
Stevens, who fired off requests by email over the past couple weeks, says his latest quest was inspired by Japan’s Shinto Kanamara Matsuri (Festival of the Steel Phallus), an event held yearly in Kawasaki in celebration of love, fertility and the male genitalia. The festival, which happens to be popular with LGBTQ communities, is held on the first Sunday of April at the Kanayama Shrine.
Stevens is still waiting to hear from seven other cities, including Miami Beach, Wilton Manors (where he’s proposing a special Pride-painted effigy), Hallandale Beach, Deerfield Beach, Margate, Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Baltimore. Why Baltimore? It’s the sister city to Kawasaki.
‘Let him sue us’
Stevens hopes to display his phallic statue on April 2 at Fort Lauderdale’s Las Olas Oceanside Park, where the city recently showcased a Christmas tree and menorah display. Stevens argues that his statue is a religious display, just like a Christmas tree or menorah.
If he gets the city’s blessing, he says he plans to hire an off-duty cop to protect his investment from theft and vandalism.
The statues don’t come cheap, Stevens says. Each one will cost around $8,000, including the cross-country shipping from the manufacturer in Ogden, Utah.
Stevens, accustomed to being ignored by stoic government officials offended by his crass brand of political activism, was jubilant Friday when he got a reply from a Fort Lauderdale parks official requesting he submit an outdoor event application.
But he’ll still need to get permission from an events committee and the city commission before it’s a done deal, a city official told the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Robert Walsh, a Fort Lauderdale activist, says he hopes the city tells Stevens no.
“Let him sue us,” Walsh said. “It’s beyond vulgar. It’s not art. Children are going to see that. It’s just not appropriate for Las Olas. He’s just doing this for his own narcissistic tendencies, so everyone is looking at Chaz again.”
The cities that put up holiday displays at the end of the year might find themselves in a bit of a pickle, said Bob Jarvis, a constitutional law professor at Nova Southeastern University.
“The First Amendment says the government cannot censor speech but it does not protect obscenity and pornography,” Jarvis said. “You could make the argument that it’s a piece of artwork. And this penis statue clearly has redeeming social value because it celebrates this Japanese holiday celebrating fertility and the coming of spring.”
City Hall might require Stevens to install a visual barrier around the statue along with signs warning the public that an R-rated statue is up ahead, Jarvis said.
“It doesn’t stop you from exercising your First Amendment rights but it does protect others from seeing it,” Jarvis said. “You can’t unring a bell. You can’t unsee a sex object. As long as all that is done, I don’t see how the city can stop him.”
Might cause an accident
But Deerfield Beach has given Stevens a definitive no right out of the gate, citing concern for children and also drivers who might be distracted by such a display at the busy corner of U.S. 1 and Hillsboro Boulevard.
“The city finds that your proposed display is obscene,” City Manager David Santucci told Stevens in an email on Thursday. “Additionally, the city believes that permitting such [an] installation would create a safety hazard, significant driver distraction, and interference with the free flow of vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Further, based on our research, the Shinto Kanamara Matsuri festival and the inclusion of a phallus appear to be considered more of an aspect of Japanese culture rather than a religious ceremony. Accordingly, your request is hereby denied.”
Stevens has this retort: “Pally, Shinto is the national religion of Japan. You’ll be hearing from our attorney.”
His attorney, Tom Wright, says he plans to send a more formal response next week.
“They say it’s not a religious thing,” Stevens told the Sun Sentinel. “So the government is now telling us what is a religion and what is not. Hello, you’re supposed to stay the [expletive] out of it.”
Stevens set up a GoFundMe page with a goal of $25,000 to help him raise money for the pricey penis statues. On Friday, his goal shot up to $250,000 to help raise money for a possible lawsuit against Deerfield Beach and other cities that deny his request.
Stevens has made national and international news successfully driving home arguments about the separation of church and state.
He’s perhaps best known for the "Seinfeld"-inspired Festivus poles he’s installed on government-owned property across the state, parodying the winter holidays with “a Festivus for the rest of us.”
He’s also stopped prayer at local government meetings from Dania Beach to Deerfield Beach by asking to say his own satanic prayer to kick off meetings. And seven years ago, he got permission to install a large upside-down cross outside Hallandale Beach City Hall after the city used taxpayer dollars to put up Christmas and menorah displays.
‘We need to draw the line’
Stevens’ penis sculpture, born of hand-drawn artwork rendered into a 3D model, would be carved out of a big block of CNC foam, then covered with a polyurea coating and air-brushed hot pink.
In the emails sent to the various City Halls, Stevens made his intentions clear: “Our mission? To boldly take on blurred lines of religion by placing a larger-than-life, 6 foot tall pink penis in the public square.”
Stevens says he’s enlisted the help of his attorney to make sure he’s taken seriously.
“I’m the one who gets responses and Chaz usually gets blown off,” Wright said on Friday.
Like Stevens, his attorney interpreted Fort Lauderdale’s request for $200 and an event application as a good sign.
“It sounds like a yes from Fort Lauderdale,” Wright said. “I’m assuming we’ll get approved for four to six of these things.”
If not, Stevens might take his fight to court, Wright said.
“They have to make the decision, is this religious liberty,” Stevens said.
Dean Trantalis, Fort Lauderdale’s first openly gay mayor, found out about Stevens’ request from the Sun Sentinel.
Trantalis says he can appreciate the individual expression of beliefs but doesn’t think the statue should be on public display.
“Fort Lauderdale embraces diversity, but at some point we need to draw a line between expression and decency,” he said. “All Mr. Stevens is trying to do is draw attention to himself.
“I would not be in favor of it. The city of Fort Lauderdale tries to maintain a family-friendly environment. We’re not the stage for personal excesses.”
Wilton Manors Mayor Scott Newton said he had no idea what Stevens was up to, until he got a call from the Sun Sentinel.
He laughed when told Stevens was hoping to put up a hot pink penis sculpture. Then he got serious.
“First thing I’ve heard about it,” Newton said. “And I’ll tell you right now it’s not going to happen in my city if I have anything to do with it.”
Not welcome in my city
Newton was not swayed when told the statue would be painted in Pride colors and only be on display for a day.
“I don’t care what color it’s painted,” he said. “I wouldn’t want it in my city. It shouldn’t be up for a minute or a day. It’s disrespectful.”
Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Steve Glassman agreed, but said it’s a question for the city attorney.
“I’m not an attorney so I can’t opine on what is lawful and not lawful in terms of public displays,” Glassman said. “That’s for the city attorney to figure out.”
Pamela Beasley-Pittman, an ordained minister and newly elected Fort Lauderdale commissioner, was hoping to bring prayer back to government meetings. She made the inquiry during a City Hall meeting on Tuesday.
D’Wayne Spence, Fort Lauderdale’s interim city attorney, warned the commission about Stevens and his recent request.
“I do suspect we’ll be hearing from him if we reinstitute invocations,” Spence said.
In that case, Beasley-Pittman said she’d be happy with a moment of silence.
As for the penis statue, she does not want to see it on public display anywhere in her city.
“I don’t see how that would be a symbol of something that would welcome families,” she said. “They might wonder what will be on display the next time they visit Fort Lauderdale.”
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