It’s hard to argue with this noble purpose but right-wing critics of DQSH certainly do. To the (very) proudly progressive activists who loudly champion these events, they represent an opportunity to expand children’s understanding of those whom they might otherwise view as “different” (including, perhaps, themselves). Of course, both the Left and the Right-the (for want of better terms) “woke” and “unwoke”-have significantly different understandings of Drag Queen Story Hour. The books featured at these events often have a queer-friendly angle aimed at children, as with: Cinderelliot: A Scrumptious Fairytale, If You’re a Drag Queen and You Know It, and The Gender Wheel. It then spread to public libraries and educational institutions across North America. And I first heard of it maybe five years ago.ĭrag Queen Story Hour was reportedly invented by a lesbian poet named Michelle Tea, in 2015. I’ve been doing drag for nearly 40 years. In case you haven’t heard, this is an event that features drag queens, often in a library or school setting, reading stories to little children. Like many queer people today, she’s become a victim of a homophobic backlash resulting from the popularization of Drag Queen Story Hour, or DQSH. “My mother always made sure we washed behind the ears!” But she couldn’t help hilariously and pointedly misunderstanding the protesters. There were protesters carrying signs with slogans such as “Protect our children from groomers!” Kenadie defended her participation in that event, clarifying that it was restricted to patrons over 18. Kenadie spoke of an experience she had earlier that day at a club in another Ontario city, Niagara Falls. It just means that the evening is all play, and all fun-a game and a performance-and that the drag queens love you. For this does not mean you are safe from insult, verbal abuse, racism, sexism, or any other ism out there. But if you are generally secure, you can rest assured that there is no malice here, and that you are “safe.” This is not a “woke” kind of safe though. They make you feel uncomfortable, but only in a very comfortable way. Drag queens are sexy, flirty, and obscene. This is the usual atmosphere at a gay drag bar: that is, anything goes. At one point, while flirting with a lesbian in the front row, she made a reference to her vagina-making it clear, however, that she doesn’t have one, because, as she said, “Down there is just duct tape.” Louis-based entertainer has gigantic, real (I think) breasts, and refers to herself as female, but definitely identifies as a drag queen. I don’t know who-or quite what-Kenadie St. But incidents were rare until last fall – a change that the secretary general of the Swedish Library Association, Karin Linder, links to the far right's breakthrough in local and regional elections on September 11, 2022.I was recently at my favourite Hamilton gay bar (which is also, to my knowledge, Hamilton’s only gay bar) watching the incomparable Kenadie St. Several times, the Nordic Resistance Movement (NMR), a neo-Nazi organization, has tried to disrupt events. In Malmö, Lady Busty and Miss Shameless read fairy tales in the municipal libraries. A theater company in Stockholm offers performances. In the Scandinavian kingdom, several groups of artists have been established. Two years earlier, in San Francisco, author Michelle Tea launched the "drag queen story hour" movement to promote reading and diversity. Yet such performances have existed in Sweden since 2017. To Green Party leader Märta Stenevi, who reminded him of the sacrosanct principle of the strong separation between culture and politics in Sweden, SD leader Jimmie Akesson retorted, "And what would you do if some woman had the idea of asking a Nazi to come and read fairy tales to children?" She feigned astonishment: Would Akesson rather see "a Nazi than a drag queen"? Quickly, the debate got out of hand. The Swedish far right isn't hiding from it anymore: The "culture war" is in full swing, and this time, "conservatism will win," said MP Björn Söder (Sweden Democrats, SD) on Monday, May 8, in a tweet announcing the end of the "decadent cultural policy of the left" resulting from "unbridled socialist influence" and a "castrated right." The priority for the party, which is a member of the government coalition but has no seats in the cabinet, is to ban children's shows by drag queens in the country's libraries. LETTER FROM STOCKHOLM Drag queens Lady Busty and Miss Shameless read fairy tales at the city library in Malmo, Sweden, during drag queen story hour. Since last fall, threats against children's shows by drag queens in libraries have increased, raising fears about the freedom of the cultural sector.īy Anne-Françoise Hivert (Malmö (Sweden) correspondent) Published on May 11, 2023, at 4:00 am (Paris) The Swedish far right's culture war against drag queens
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