NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� As the cast of 鈥淩uPaul's Drag Race鈥� celebrated the new season, they credited the show's creator with popularizing drag and expressed concern about at the heart of the long-running series.
鈥淩uPaul really brought drag into the mainstream, truly made people aware that it's an art form more than anything鈥� contestant Marcia Marcia Marcia told The Associated Press at Thursday's season 15 premiere in New York. The new season starts Friday on MTV.
鈥淚 think everyone was like fine with drag for a little bit," said the drag queen with the 鈥淏rady Bunch鈥�-inspired name. "And now history is repeating itself and people are speaking out against it, which I think is so silly."
With a long and rich history, drag 鈥� the often for performance 鈥� has been attacked by right-wing politicians and activists who have it with the 鈥渟exualization鈥� and 鈥済rooming鈥� of children. In recent months, protesters 鈥� sometimes bearing guns 鈥� during which performers read books to children. Bans on children at drag events have been floated. In late November, a shooter at a Colorado Springs nightclub and was
Another contestant, Jax, said the were 鈥渄isheartening鈥� but not surprising: 鈥淛ust like being a person of color, being a minority, growing up in certain communities, it鈥檚 something that I鈥檝e had to undergo my entire life.鈥�
鈥淏ut we always prevail,鈥� Jax added. "We always prevail and we鈥檙e always going to come out on top because we鈥檙e on the right side of history and we love what we do and we鈥檙e not doing anything to harm anybody. We鈥檙e just trying to bring love to everything.鈥�
To contestant Loosey LaDuca, as well, this is nothing new: 鈥淚t is really unfortunate that during this time, drag queens have become the new target. But LGBT people are no stranger to being the, you know, the public enemy."
Meeting threats with caution is fine, LaDuca said, but 鈥渨e鈥檒l never be scared.鈥�
Last month, New York City Councilman Erik Bottcher attended a drag story hour in his district. He filmed and posted video of 鈥渄ozens of homophobic protesters outside with the most disgusting signs verbally attacking the families and the drag queen.鈥� Two days later, he said, anti-drag activists vandalized the hallway outside his office and gained entry to his apartment building.
鈥淭wo of them were arrested. A third was arrested for assaulting one of my neighbors," he told the AP at the premiere. "This is all an attempt to intimidate those of us supporting drag story hour.鈥�
Contestant Irene Dubois has a theory about what's behind the vitriol aimed at drag performers.
鈥淚 think a man in women鈥檚 clothing is inherently hilarious just because we're like, (gasps) 鈥楾hat鈥檚 not supposed to happen!'鈥� Dubois hypothesized. "And it鈥檚 when the men in women鈥檚 clothing stop sort of doing the nudge, nudge, wink, wink and start actually enjoying the way they look in the women鈥檚 clothing that people start to sort of say, 鈥榃ait, hold on, hold on, hold on. You鈥檙e supposed to be laughing at yourself. And if you鈥檙e not laughing at yourself, we don鈥檛 like it.鈥欌��
鈥淩uPaul鈥檚 Drag Race鈥� judge Ross Mathews paints the progress and regression as 鈥渁 pendulum swinging.鈥�
鈥淭he further we advance and the more that we are embraced, accepted, celebrated that pendulum 鈥� they鈥檙e going to try to swing it back, to move our movement back,鈥� he says of anti-drag activists. 鈥淏ut you cannot put this genie back in the bottle. Darling, we are fabulous.鈥�
Marcia Marcia Marcia had a simple message for critics of drag, which she says is 鈥渁ll about fun and expression": 鈥淚f you have a problem with those things, I think you need to reevaluate.鈥�
In the end, contestant Princess Poppy hopes that it's the impact has made on culture with 鈥淒rag Race鈥� that will prevail.
鈥淚 feel like it鈥檚 helped a lot of people who don鈥檛 really quite understand drag people or gay people or drag queens," she said. "They don鈥檛 really understand because they don鈥檛 really understand what we鈥檙e doing. But the show, it humanizes us, and it shows that we鈥檙e people, too.鈥�
John Carucci, The Associated Press
