This announcement of an upcoming Drag Story Hour/Cabaret for Kids at the New York State Museum in Albany, NY is probably the best thing about this year’s Pride Month, and it’s being helmed by two of my favorite performers – Frieda Munchon and Carmie Hope. While the Republican Party is currently doing its best to alienate itself from the most basic tenets of human decency, it has turned its wayward focus to attacking drag performers. The last hundred reports of adults sexually abusing children I’ve heard about were perpetrated by straight white men. Not one of those was a drag queen. But the GOP is going off the deep end and most sane people are beginning to see that, so to be attacked and vilified by them is now a mark of honor and, dare I say, respectability.
As for a drag queen story hour for kids, I only wish someone had taken me to something like this when I was a kid. Children can usually detect authenticity, and they often respond with unspoken respect and adoration to those who are most themselves, even and especially when what they’re doing makes them different from other people. To be a drag queen takes the courage and determination to be what you absolutely have to be no matter how much shit you will inevitably get from certain hateful sectors of the world. To be a drag queen takes the bravery and nobility to stay true to yourself in the face of others who may never understand or accept or simply leave you alone. To be a drag queen is to embrace a spirit of fun and beauty and open-heartedness that makes this world a better place.
I can’t think of a better role model for a child to have.
{The Drag Story Hour/Cabaret for Families and Kids will take place on June 24, 2023 at the Huxley Theater at the New York State Museum, 260 Madison Avenue, Albany, NY. The event is free and runs from 1 to 4 PM.}
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