Drag Queen Story Time

[LizzyStrata]

First time posting here, so not sure of the etiquette. My apologies if this is the wrong place to raise these concerns.

Reading Borough Council is planning to hold Drag Queen Story Hour events in our libraries during the summer holidays. I’ve written to my MP, my councillors, and the Head of the Library Service to raise concerns. I think drag is entirely inappropriate for children, as it is a form of adult entertainment, highly sexualised and misogynistic, that blurs boundaries and undermines safeguarding.

The response Ive had is simply that they have received very few complaints so no reason to cancel.

Has anyone had any experience of tackling their local library over this issue? Grateful for any tips.

Also, if you live in Berkshire ,would you be willing to write and share your concerns?

thanks!

I've just seen this video from yesterday of the Reading DQSH and am convinced the two brave women must be mumsnetters.

Brilliant. I admire their guts. Some many police called for what appeared to be two women in the library. But when there are attacks on local young people, no police.

So many…not some many.

They were brave.

But it was upsetting to see the child, in what appeared to be a disability pushchair, having to be taken out although they did sound like they were distressed at the start of the video.

Brave? Shouting about autogynephilia in a room full of children and clearly upsetting them?

The drag queen in that video isn't the one who should stay away from children.

I couldn't believe they called the police on two women and a small child, it's totally ridiculous.

100% agree. If an unhinged person shouting about paedophilia and autogynephilia in a room full of babies and toddlers is your idea of a hero, you need to reevaluate your standards. Demented behaviour.

It's easy to sit behind a keyboard and blather on twitter/MN every day, but it takes real guts to get out there and spread the GC message in real life.

"I mean, if its just fun dressing up would there be anything wrong in that?"

Yep, it is just fun dressing up and that is why I have no problem with drag queens. Glad you finally got there.

"No, it is not implicit on this thread that the existence of LGBT people is a child safety concern."

It very much is. If drags queens were straight we would not be having this discussion and idiots would not be charging into these events shouting "PEADOPHILES" at them.

Are ASBOs still a thing? If so she definitely deserves one.

No one should go into a room of children and shout "Who knows what paedophiles are?"

It very much is. If drags queens were straight we would not be having this discussion and idiots would not be charging into these events shouting "PEADOPHILES" at them.

Absolute bollocks. MALES prancing about in drag blurring the boundaries involving young children are the problem whether gay or straight.

It very much is. If drags queens were straight we would not be having this discussion

Speaking as a lesbian, my objection to drag queens are nothing to do with their sexuality. I'm objecting to men performing to children by reading stories wearing often inappropriate garb and with a dodgy online presence / history that renders them unsuitable role models.

What an absurd statement. It doesn’t matter a jot whether they are gay or straight. What matters is that drag is deliberately transgressive behaviour which depends for its meaning on gender stereotypes. There is no benefit to children in involving them in it; it is being done purely to satisfy adult agendas.

Plenty of drag queens are straight, it's not exclusively gay men. Some might also be bisexual of course.

This insistence of referring to men who do drag as LGBT+ as a whole descriptor is weird. It's certainly got nothing to do with lesbians (yes I know there are drag kings but they are not relevant here), nothing to do with bisexuals, and I don't think that transgender people would accept drag queens as representative of them. And of course plenty of gay men have nothing to do with drag, certainly all the ones that I know personally.

Oh Stella Creasy. Sorry if this has already been posted.

'And others will as many posters are on here claiming all (gay) men are paedophiles'

Gosh, @antifascist , I'm so glad to see you're back to fight the fascists on this board, your voice is much needed in this echo chamber, you're one of the very few to provide the much-needed balance. Thank you!

NB Have you ever considered journalism, you're destined to shine!

All that libraries should be doing at the moment is promoting the summer reading scheme and offering events related to the theme for that.
My local library is offering lots of different activities over the summer, surely the whole point of a library is to get people to read books, keep people returning to the service and improve literacy within the community.
If this puts even one person off from using the public library which it obviously is doing, it is not inclusive.

It very much is. If drags queens were straight we would not be having this discussion and idiots would not be charging into these events shouting "PEADOPHILES" at them.

Actually a heterosexual drag queen who wants to read to children would be MUCH more alarming to me than a gay drag queen who wants to read to children, but I’d have questions about both of them on account of being performers in an adult genre who think it’s appropriate for children.

Can’t believe* how many police turned up to provide a ‘protective’ cordon around the drag performer and carry his bag to the car (was his car waiting on double yellow lines?)

Did that many police turn up to protect women when the ‘A Woman’s Place’ event in Reading was protested by a aggressive group of trans activists banging on the windows and shouting abuse?

*Sadly I can well believe it, the menz get protected, women don’t

Stella Creasy made me laugh - she tagged a man in Pittsburg and not the drag act. Poor bloke won’t have a clue why 2 British MPs (Nadia Whitemore joined in) are fawning over him and saying how good he is at entertaining children.

😁🤭 did she! That's very funny.

Have I the permission to use this video clip in a debating site / Facebook?