RuPaul Speaks Out Against Anti-Drag Bills In The US

Drag icon RuPaul has spoken out against the recent anti-trans and anti-drag legislation introduced by conservative Republicans in the United States. 

The 12-time Emmy Award winner posted a video to his Instagram account last Wednesday describing the Republican lawmakers who had passed anti-transgender and anti-drag performance bills as “bullies”. 

“Hey, look over there! A classic distraction technique, distracting us away from the real issues that they were voted into office to focus on: Jobs, healthcare, keeping our children safe from harm at their own school,” RuPaul said in his video. 

Attacking The Rights Of LGBTQI People

"They think our love, our light, our laughter, and our joy are signs of weakness but they're wrong because that is our strength." 🔁: @RuPaul pic.twitter.com/5uDcBI8SQa

— RuPaul's Drag Race (@RuPaulsDragRace) March 8, 2023

The television personality stated that “bullies” were “incompetent at solving real issues”, and criticised the conservative lawmakers for attacking the rights of LGBTQI people. 

“They [Republican politicians] look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective. They think our love, our light, our laughter and our joy are signs of weakness,” RuPaul said. 

In the United States, Republican lawmakers have recently attempted to prevent ban drag performances in public places. 

One Arkansas Republican state Representative Mary Bentley is the primary sponsor of House Bill 1156. This bill would further undermine school children’s accessibility to bathrooms based on their gender assigned at birth. Bentley also co-sponsored a bill to ban children from watching drag shows that might affect student performances, under the guise of “protecting our kids”. 

Laws Liken Drag To Pornography

Three states that have passed bills banning the public performance of drag shows are Tennessee, Kentucky and Montana. 

According to Holly Dickson, executive director of the Arkansas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union,  Senate Bill 43’s definition of drag performances likens it to pornography, strip clubs and sexually explicit activities, which is “a danger” to trans and non-binary Americans. 

“Under the language of the bill, it seems like there could be no place for a trans person … to be allowed to perform in any way — karaoke, poetry readings, church choir, school plays, Pride events, the Miss Gay America pageant and other forms of artistic and free expression that are protected by the First Amendment,” Dickson said.

‘Don’t Be Distracted’

RuPaul asserted that the legislators were wrong in their thinking of expressions of queer love and creativity, stating that it was “our strength”. 

“Drag queens are the Marines of the queer movement. Don’t get it twisted and don’t be distracted”, he said. 

The model called upon American citizens to register to vote in a bid to “get these stunt queens out of office and put some smart people with real solutions into government” instead. 

“And by the way, a social media post has never been as powerful as a registered vote”, he added. 

According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), there are currently 391 anti-LGBTQI+ bills in the United States. Several tropes, including accusations of queer people being predators of sexual grooming, have been taken up by the conservative right to lay the false claim that LGBTQI+ people are a threat to children. 

Anti-LGBTQI Bills Are Hypocritical, Says BenDeLaCreme

Ru Paul’s Drag Race star BenDeLaCreme criticised the anti-trans and anti-gay bills as hypocritical. 

DeLa spoke with Jonathan Capehart on MSNBC to discuss Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming healthcare for transgender children and teenagers, calling it a “really terrifying time for the queer community”.

She described the legislation as being responsible for fuelling “this fire of violence, this perception that trans people are less than, that trans people are somehow trying to disrupt society, trying to do something to your children or your way of life, rather than trying to go around their own business.”

“There are places where we can embrace them and we can give visibility that these kids might need…I would argue that seeing drag queens, seeing queer people, people from other walks of life, is essential to children,” DeLa declared.