The March equinox, also known as the vernal equinox, is a significant event in pagan traditions.
Paganism is an umbrella term used to describe various nature-based spiritual practices that predate organized religions. These practices often revolve around the cycles of nature and the changing seasons.
The March equinox marks the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, bringing a balance between light and darkness, and symbolizing renewal and rebirth. Pagans celebrate this event as a time of fertility, growth, and the awakening of nature.
One common pagan tradition associated with the March equinox is the observation of Ostara, a festival named after the Germanic goddess of the same name.
One common pagan tradition associated with the March equinox is the observation of Ostara, a festival named after the Germanic goddess of the same name. Ostara is linked to the hare and the egg, symbols of fertility and new beginnings.
During this festival, pagans engage in rituals and practices that align with the themes of the March equinox.
Magic Tavern dancers striking to be second unionized club in US
Within months of Magic Tavern opening in November 2022, dancers at the Portland strip club said they realized it had significant security and safety issues.
When some dancers spoke up, management fired or removed them from the schedule for “excessive complaining and inappropriate comments,” dancers said.
Workers went on strike April 4, calling attention to what they describe as unsafe and hostile working conditions and demanding the owner increase protective measures. Four days later, the workers decided to form a union — which, if approved by workers, will make Magic Tavern only the second unionized strip club in the United States.
Since going on strike and filing for a union election, dancers said management responded with radio silence.
“They haven't put out any official statements,” Nyx, a Magic Tavern dancer currently on strike, said. “They did, after we sent the letter and went public about unionizing, delete their Instagram.”
The club remains open, with some customers pushing past the picket line of dancers and labor allies toting signs that say “Strippers united will never be divided” or “Strippers need safety now.”
Nyx, who started at the club when it opened last November, said by March, it was apparent Magic Tavern was an unsafe workplace.
Magic Tavern dancers, including Nyx, who asked Street Roots to use her dancer name due to safety concerns, say the owner, Benjamin Donohue, failed to install cameras in the club, a major safety issue in the high-risk industry. Workers also say the owner incorrectly installed the stage floor and pole, and hired only one security guard.
“He was also the person who would be doing the DJ work, or he'd be cooking in the back,” Creature, another Magic Tavern dancer who asked to use her dancer name, said. “It's really hard to protect your girls when you're making a burger for a customer.”
As a result of the poor security measures, one dancer was drugged, according to workers. Dancers say a hospital test confirmed the dancer had gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) in her system. Still, management allegedly told her she had “too much to drink” and discouraged reporting the incident. Further, because of the lack of cameras, there was no video footage to identify who drugged her.
Dancers also say Donohue is racist towards Black dancers, disparaging them for using hip-hop music for their sets and accusing them of shorting him on their 10% tip out.
When reached by phone, a Magic Tavern staff person told Street Roots Donohue was unavailable before promptly hanging up.
Strippers on strike
When safety issues built to an untenable fever pitch, Magic Tavern dancers decided it was time to strike.
“Sex work is work, and as workers, we deserve to be treated with respect — not have our jobs threatened when we ask for the bare minimum: safety and dignity,” the dancers said in an April 4 statement to Donohue and the public.
To return to work, dancers demand an official contract with the club, a dedicated booking manager, an appropriate amount of adequately trained security, fixing physical safety issues like the stage flooring and an equitable environment for queer dancers and dancers of color.
(Photo by Allison Barr)
Instead of meeting with the dancers to discuss their concerns, dancers say Donohue went radio silent, deleted the club’s social media accounts and hired new dancers to cross the picket line and take the striking dancers’ places.
Actors’ Equity contacted workers April 8 about forming a union. Less than two months later, they filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board on June 6. According to Actors’ Equity, 23 of the 29, or 80% of dancers eligible to vote, support the union.
If workers approve the union, Magic Tavern will become only the second currently unionized strip club in the United States.
Workers at Star Garden in North Hollywood, California — the only unionized strip club in the United States — unionized last month with Actors’ Equity after a 15-month campaign.
“It really feels like a dream come true and a miracle that we were able to pull it off at Star Garden,” Velveeta, a Star Garden dancer and Actors’ Equity representative who asked to use her dancer name, said.
Their victory led the way for Magic Tavern dancers, though it’s no surprise that a club in Portland — believed to be the city with the most strip clubs per capita in the United States — was next to join the movement.
“We've been really grateful to have the support of the Star Garden dancers and Actors’ Equity because they have laid so much of the groundwork and done so much of the research already,” Nyx said.
Star Garden may be the only unionized strip club in the United States, but it’s not the first. Both Star Garden and Magic Tavern fit into a history of dancers fighting for union protections.
‘Live nude girls unite!’
In 1996, San Francisco’s Lusty Lady became the first U.S. strip club to unionize, forming the Exotic Dancers Alliance.
In her documentary, “Live Nude Girls Unite!” Lusty Lady dancer Julia Query details her and her coworkers' fight for representation while facing perennial labor issues like high turnover, fear of retaliation and dismissive management.
The documentary ends with Lusty Lady dancers and organizers traveling around the United States to help dancers nationwide start union campaigns in their clubs. The optimistic ending didn’t pan out. Lusty Lady closed in the 2000s, taking the first and only dancers' union with it for the next 20 years.
Lusty Lady dancers proved unionizing was possible in a strip club, so why did it take nearly three decades for the second dancers' union to succeed?
As the first of their kind, Lusty Lady dancers dealt with issues the labor movement had never seen before. Their first challenge was finding a union willing to take on their fight. No union had experience organizing at a strip club; they weren’t sure it could be done.
Service Employees International Union Local 790 took on the challenge. However, dancers still faced the unique stigma surrounding their industry; a stigma dancers say still acts as a barrier to organizing in strip clubs today.
“I think with the way people think (about) dancers, people assume that this isn't something we can do,” Creature said.
Not many other industries have to argue their work is valid labor when campaigning for a union.
“Stigma is one of the biggest barriers that we face uniquely,” Velveeta said.
Because many dancers keep their profession and identities private, a public organizing campaign comes with a lot of risks that other industry workers don’t have to consider when unionizing.
“Considering that this is a highly stigmatized job, those of us who make ourselves public have put ourselves in very vulnerable positions when we talk to the media, which may be another factor why dancers have not done this since the Lusty Lady,” Daphne, a Magic Tavern dancer, said. “Many dancers have not come out to their friends, family, may be in college, or desire jobs eventually outside of sex work.”
Organizing can be difficult when workers don’t see stripping as a long-term career.
“A lot of dancers don't identify as career strippers, so they aren't really invested in the job,” Velveeta said.
The industry also thrives on pitting dancers against each other, making it harder for dancers to unite with their coworkers.
“It helps management if we see each other as competition instead of allies,” Nyx said. “They don't want us talking and being against (management).”
The shadowy taboo of the industry often keeps dancers from talking about their working conditions, siloing workers within their clubs and industrywide.
“Generally, when you're looking for a club to work at, it's not really finding a club that actually has everything great about it,” Creature said. “It's finding the one that has the least issues, unfortunately, and this one was just bad enough that it couldn't be left unsaid. If we don't do something, newer dancers come in and end up working here, thinking that this is the expectation, and it's not.”
‘Right to a safe workplace’
With a significant labor boom across the United States and a fresh union victory in their back pocket, dancers say now’s the time to start organizing in the strip club scene.
“I feel like a lot of (the barrier) is this idea that it's always been like this and ‘Well, that's how it is, and there's nothing we can really do about it,’” Nyx said. “I think especially seeing what Star Garden has done is starting to show people that you can stand up. It doesn't matter what industry you're in; you can still fight for your right to a safe workplace.”
Whether or not unionizing is the right choice for every strip club, knowledge is power, Creature said.
“The goal here isn't to push anyone to run their clubs one way or another outside of safety,” she said. “It's not necessarily us pushing for every club to unionize, for example, or be paid benefited employees. It's an option if people want to become a union, they absolutely can. It's about making that more of an option for people and giving them the resources.”
Dancers and supporters protest working conditions at Magic Tavern on Sunday, June 11.
(Photo by Allison Barr)
Because of Portland’s strip club density, organizing is more of an option, Daphne said.
“I don't think there were (successful) campaigns after the Lusty Lady strictly for the reason that this is a survival industry," she said. "Strippers have to work to eat, pay rent, and often care for their children. Most places in the U.S. do not have the same kind of industry Portland does in terms of options of places to work. There will often be one strip club in town.”
What makes the Star Garden and Magic Tavern campaigns different?
“Well, for starters you're looking at a different generation of humans,” Daphne said. “We are mainly millennials and Gen Zers. Dancers now have grown up and come of age through a recession and COVID-19.”
Daphne said these factors, combined with the historic high in unionization efforts, make organizing seem more achievable but also necessary.
“A motivating factor for a lot of us, including myself, was that many of our dancers had only been dancing a few months,” she said. “They did not know this was abnormal and the rest of us refused to let that harm continue to new dancers where they would think mistreatment was normal.”
With the increase in labor support comes more community support for sex workers’ rights, Daphne said.
“The historic high in unionization efforts I think is the reason why so many people are actually supportive of our efforts,” she said. “We have all been very brave and also privileged to do this. We are motivated by the future, protecting one another and ensuring club owners are held accountable.”
Street Roots is an award-winning weekly investigative publication covering economic, environmental and social inequity. The newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning an income with dignity. Street Roots newspaper operates independently of Street Roots advocacy and is a part of the Street Roots organization. Learn more about Street Roots. Support your community newspaper by making a one-time or recurring gift today.
Magic Tavern dancers, including Nyx, who asked Street Roots to use her dancer name due to safety concerns, say the owner, Benjamin Donohue, failed to install cameras in the club, a major safety issue in the high-risk industry. Workers also say the owner incorrectly installed the stage floor and pole, and hired only one security guard.
They may decorate eggs, plant seeds, and perform ceremonies that honor the earth and its cycles. It is a time to connect with nature, give thanks for the changing seasons, and set intentions for the coming months.
Overall, the March equinox holds great significance in pagan traditions as a time of transition and celebration. It represents the arrival of spring and the renewal of life, symbolizing the cycles of nature and the interconnectedness of all living things. It is a time for pagans to reconnect with the natural world and honor its rhythms..
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