Bikini-clad mannequin making waves in Virginia town

By The Associated Press

11.17.01

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HOPEWELL, Va. — A bikini-clad mannequin with a “Terrorists Kiss This!” sign on its posterior has become the object of a free-speech fight between the antique dealer who owns it and residents who find it offensive.

Kim Pinkleton, owner of the Bargain Bazaar, has used the toe-touching, bent-over mannequin as a sidewalk sign for years, often displaying the message “Rock Bottom Prices.” Pinkleton changed the message after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Pinkleton intended to take the sign down early this month, but then city officials came to her shop and asked her to remove it, citing complaints from residents.

Now, Pinkleton said Nov. 14, “I’m not going to move it.”

“There are a few people that won’t let it die,” she said in a telephone interview. “It’s a shame they aren’t spending their time on more important city issues.”

The American Civil Liberties Union has joined the fight, warning Hopewell Mayor Anthony Zevgolis in a letter this week that forcing Pinkleton to remove the sign is “an invitation for legal action” against the city on First Amendment grounds.

The mannequin was designed as a swimsuit model, which is why it’s in a ready-to-dive position, Pinkleton said. Besides bikinis, it has also been dressed in sequined gowns and featured other signs such as “Red Hot Sale Prices,” she said.

Instead of objecting, shoppers have come to appreciate the shop for its creative sidewalk displays, including past incarnations of the bent-over mannequin, Pinkleton said, and almost all of them have sided with the shop in the controversy.

Zevgolis called the display “obscene,” “lewd,” and “degrading to women,” and he reiterated his disdain for the mannequin at a council meeting Nov. 13. The council agreed to look into the matter.