Love Thy Neighbor – The Club Next Door

by Peter Dziedzic

In early February, a story emerged out of Stone Park, Illinois, that a new strip club is being built next to a convent of Roman Catholic nuns. The strip club – to be named “Get It” and to offer forms of adult entertainment – is still under construction, but is will be situated adjacent to a convent that includes a complex for elderly sisters and another building for younger women considering the Roman Catholic sisterhood with the Missionary Sisters of Saint Charles Borromeo-Scalabrinians.

While the nuns have reported moral objections to the site, the club owner, Mr. Bob Itzkow, has obtained legal rights to the property from the city. The nuns claim that they were not properly notified of the project. Itzkow claims that the club will be beneficial to the community and says that, while he will take steps to limit the amount of noise and light coming from the club, he is ready to legally defend his project against lawsuits.

There is no question that the construction of the strip club is civically legal, but other questions remain. Is there an ethical obligation for Mr. Itzkow to relocate? Does the moral character of the Stone Park community need to first be taken into consideration, and is this project even a moral threat to the community? Is the project an infringement upon the religious rights of the Catholic sisters? While these are very broad questions and demand deep prayer, thought, or reflection, I want to focus on the last question. What are the religious rights of the Catholic sisters in this situation, and are they being infringed upon?

While it may be true that the nuns were not properly notified, and thus, could not voice their concerns before construction, the owner has a strip club does have a right to construct on that property. The nuns do not have control over the zoning of their neighborhood, and just as they have a secular, legal right to maintain certain practices and habits on their property, so do other individuals enjoy the same right. While I do not support that societal affects that often accompany the promulgation of such establishments as strip clubs, casinos, and night clubs, I have to support the rights of Mr. Itzkow in this situation.

This, however, does not absolve the fact that Itzkow did not take into consideration the religious and moral values of their adjacent neighbors, and this is a sad and unfortunate reality that has popped up in other communities across the country. While Itzkow has indeed said he will accommodate for the sisters, this did not go far enough – he should have discussed the plans and implications of the project with the sisters before hand. While there is no legal infringement on the rights of the community of sisters, aspects of their identity were not acknowledged or responsibly considered in the process. This speaks to a profound lack of religious literacy or consideration that exists in our society.

This lack of religious literacy and consideration does not promote proper community- building, something that many American communities have been suffering from. Instead of engaging our neighbors, we sometimes ensure our own success and viability through avoidance. Incidents such as the situation in Stone Park reveal the sad state that results in a decline in communal identity. While religious freedoms were not directly impeded upon, what is to be done when there is a clash of values in a community, especially in an inherently and profoundly pluralistic society such as the United States? There are two options – domination or dialogue. Obviously, both realities exist side-by-side, and
the narrative of the United States is still being written. Will the act of domination and silencing control the narrative of a society that’s lost a sense of communal identity, or will processes of consideration, discussion, and compassion define our legacy? The situation in Stone Park reveals the unfortunate state of affairs that arises when the former is pursued. Get It is under construction, and the nuns are still grappling with their options, but the discourse will sadly be dominated by mistrust among neighbors.