“Drag is joy, but it’s under attack. Our very existence, our self-expression, our art — all of it is being threatened. And we’ve had enough.”
That’s the opening salvo of Qommittee, a group of drag performers banding together to protect and promote their art form, as it announced its formation ahead of June’s LGBTQ+ Pride Month.
“We’ve always had to fight tooth and nail for our place in this world,” the group said in a news release Wednesday. “But now, we’re also battling a tidal wave of hate — doxxing, harassment, death threats, armed protests, bombings, and even shootings.”
Qommittee consists of about 10 drag performers nationwide who have experienced, directly or indirectly, threats, harassment or violence related to their art form. One had a venue firebombed in Ohio; one performed at Club Q in Colorado Springs and helped victims the night of the shooting there that killed five people; and one worked at Club Q and at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, where a gunman killed 49 people in 2016.
I’m not especially big on guns, but I wonder if gun-themed drag shows might be illustrative…
The only thing a drag show with guns would do is have conservatives frothing at the mouth saying that only Christian white men can be trusted with guns and laws would soon follow.
You don’t see gun manufacturers participating in Pride month.
They know their customers.
Reagan started calling for gun control while governor of California when the Black Panthers started arming themselves.
Be interesting to see what comes out of that as a theme
I live in a strange area of the US that has an equal amount of drag shows and gun bashes. Combining the two would be incredible.