RIBA - Architecture day for children featuring a Drag queen

[AlsoNotAGirl]

Royal Institute of Architecture (RIBA) is having a family fun book day tomorrow introducing architecture and buildings to children. Lots of great activities…

except the last activity of the day is with the Drag Queen story time Aida-H-Dee
No connection to rest of the day
www.architecture.com/whats-on/family-fun-day-architecture-book-day-2022

I think it was Aida-H-Dee that was being discussed on a thread on here, when one poster said something the lines of 'if any other sort of children's entertainer had that sort of content on their social media they would be crucified'.....

And this ended up as a headline on Pink News of 'Mumsnetters call for Drag Queens crucifixion 🤣🤣🤣

It's actually one of my favourite Mumsnet moments ever!

@EeeICouldRipATissue

I see the rainbow yfronts flag fluttering over construction sites - yes your average construction site worked is exactly who you’d expect would be voting for this. It’s bonkers!

Rainbow Y fronts flag?
Also that's a bit of a stereotypical generalisation - are all construction workers '' macho men '' who just scratch their bollocks, show their arse builders bum wise and think LGBT is a load of shit?!

My grandad worked on sites and my dad too (even my brother when he was a student). Not ‘blokes who scratched their arses’ (whose stereotyping there?) just men who would have thought this was utter virtue signalling.

Whenever I’ve seen drag queens it’s been in 18+ venues with alcohol licences

My sister used to be in a drag act in a gay bar (well the other part of the act was actually a man dressed as a woman dressed as a man ) anyway - the kings were silly and jokey - like playing WW2 pilots call Bunny and Wiffy in cardboard places dancing to the flight of the dam busters - the queen acts were just unpleasant.

Planes not places

Not ‘blokes who scratched their arses’ (whose stereotyping there?
I was just trying to get into your mindset as you were the one reducing construction workers to some kind of macho borg mindset of don't agree with LGBT issues.

None of the men I mentioned would have been described as macho - I was actually considering today that all of them would be considered as ‘gender non conforming’. Maybe grandpa not so much (he was a soldier too). Why assume site workers are macho? Why wouldn’t dad or my bro agree with LGB issue - we have several gay people on the family (and dads best mate was gay). The new extension of ‘the community’ is viewed by many as homophobic and this is the flag I see.

I work with a fair amount of construction and industry workers and they would be more interested in supporting the charities that support MH issues in the industry which is quite an issue.

I just sent a follow up to the safeguarding lead at RIBA:

Thank you for responding to my complaint. However, your response has not addressed my central safeguarding concern, which is the exposure of children to a sexualised performance in somewhere that should be a safe space.

To say that the performance will be in a private room and parents will be aware of the format in advance does not reassure me that you have adequately considered the RIBA's safeguarding responsibilities. You are putting responsibility on parents to decide whether or not the act is suitable, but you are not giving them the information they need to make this decision (the man is an adult entertainer with a hypersexualised appearance and his genitals on view) and, importantly, parents will assume that all the activities on this day will be child-friendly and suitable for all because the performance is being hosted by a respected public institution, on Family Day.

You say that you booked the drag performer to make the RIBA's World Book Day Event more inclusive. This begs the question, more inclusive of whom? Not inclusive of the broadest spectrum of children and families. If this booking is intended to signal LGBT inclusivity, do you believe that drag represents the LGBT community?

Not ‘blokes who scratched their arses’ (whose stereotyping there?)

Well quite.

I was just trying to get into your mindset

We can all see what you wrote.

I want to reassure you that tomorrow's performance has been clearly advertised to include this performance, so all those booking were aware of the format. It will be in a room with restricted access and all children will be attending the event together with a responsible adult who will be able to make a decision as to whether the performance is appropriate for their child.

This somehow makes it worse. It’s like ‘for all the children who have parents successfully brainwashed into thinking this is a good idea, further legitimized by our involvement, we’ve got a nice private room set up.’

We can all see what you wrote
Errr... good?!
Next you might able to actually engage properly with it.

@LovedayCL

I want to reassure you that tomorrow's performance has been clearly advertised to include this performance, so all those booking were aware of the format. It will be in a room with restricted access and all children will be attending the event together with a responsible adult who will be able to make a decision as to whether the performance is appropriate for their child.

This somehow makes it worse. It’s like ‘for all the children who have parents successfully brainwashed into thinking this is a good idea, further legitimized by our involvement, we’ve got a nice private room set up.’

Yes, totally. 'a room with restricted access'

Yes, totally. 'a room with restricted access' confused
What?
Just shows how we read different things into the same sentence.
I read it, seeing as it's in reference to a safeguarding concern, see it means that the room is not accessible to anyone just walking through, that it's safe.
Others see it as what? Drag queen squirrelled away in a private room with the kids, OMG?
I mean, WTF if so?
It says parents are there too.
The drag queen is literally reading a story.

Today is the day I learnt there are drag Queens called Miss Carriage, Anna Bortion and, when I googled to see if those were actually genuine Molestia Child.

But obviously those are all humerus names and it's all just a bit of fun, because who doesn't find miscarriages, abortion and child molestation funny.

Aida H Dee seems quite lighthearted in comparison.

Those names are absolutely repugnant.
So is anyone who decides on a name like that - and those who support them.

so focused on imposing their views on everyone else!

The irony.

@EeeICouldRipATissue

Yes, totally. 'a room with restricted access' confused What? Just shows how we read different things into the same sentence. I read it, seeing as it's in reference to a safeguarding concern, see it means that the room is not accessible to anyone just walking through, that it's safe. Others see it as what? Drag queen squirrelled away in a private room with the kids, OMG? I mean, WTF if so? It says parents are there too. The drag queen is literally reading a story.

The room is ‘safe.’ Safe from what? The response from the organisers that’s presumably supposed to reassure is saying there’s ‘restricted access’ with parents that are well aware of the specific arranged activity. So yes, there’s multiple ways to read the explanations for the drag act reading a story at a children’s architecture event. Nothing to see here folks! He’s just reading some nice stories about architecture!

@DamnYouAutoCarRental

Today is the day I learnt there are drag Queens called Miss Carriage, Anna Bortion and, when I googled to see if those were actually genuine Molestia Child.

But obviously those are all humerus names and it's all just a bit of fun, because who doesn't find miscarriages, abortion and child molestation funny.

Aida H Dee seems quite lighthearted in comparison.

Those names are really repugnant. Who finds them amusing? Who would take their children to see one of these “acts”?

The misogyny is just breathtaking.

Linking @KittenKong's thread here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/4497058-Rivetting-documentary-Drag-Queen-Story-Time-Child-Grooming-In-Plain-Sight

Send them that link.

Fucking idiots.

I work with these people - and RIBA. Also the ICE but I haven’t dared to look to see if they are insulting women too. The AEC industry do seem to have had their heads turned by - I’m guessing stonewall is at the root of it. So many rainbowed logos…

And RICS not and RIBA

Reminds me of a woman’s event we used to attend - celebrating women in the industry. I went took at the event site as I wanted to get my female MD to host a panel talk on women in the industry.

From one year to the next they had decided to admit ‘all women’ into the award categories.

Well their covid restrictions are somewhat onerous track and trace doing LFT beforehand etc RIBA are an odd bunch

How many girls hate men in drag and would have been put off by this? I certainly would, it always made me feel uncomfortable even before I started going to lesbian and gay clubs and found out directly how unpleasant a lot of it was. If I'd been interested in architecture (or any other subject for that matter), this would have made me feel that it wasn't for me.