It's been a long time since I've been to a meetup with this group, so I decided to attend a gathering at a bar where Drag Queen Bingo was going on. I guess I'm confident enough in my presentation that I wouldn't been seen as anything but a lady (albeit transgender) when in the presence of a man exaggerating feminine mannerisms and styles.
Drag is an art. And, as such, should be protected by the US Constitution. Unfortunately, anything that is "Gender Variant" is being attacked in GOP states. Attacking transgenders is easy for them to consider, as many of us simply wish to be left alone to live our lives and do not yet have the critical mass of defenders to repel these attacks.
Many transgender children are at risk because of laws being passed in the GOP states. Their religious leaders are preaching messages of hatred, giving their parishioners permission to unleash their hatred at these defenseless children. Many parents are both taking these children to other states for gender related treatment, and are moving their families so that their children will not become victims of the cultural war.
As much as I would have liked to visit my cisgender female friends from Texas in their home town, I could not assume I could safely take the risk. Texas has passed a law requiring that people wear "gender appropriate" clothing - and as a pre-op/non-op transgender person, I could get into serious trouble. So, we're meeting up in Chicago instead.
But back to Drag Queen Bingo....
In a way, it takes balls for a man to go on stage and present as a female. The art of drag has been with us for ages, and is quite entertaining because it pokes fun at gender roles. It subverts those roles while allowing us to examine what is real, and what is not. As such, it is fun to watch when it is done well.
In the long term, I will try to defend those drag queens - especially when they are reading stories to children at the local library. Children are not afraid or offended of what drag queens are. Why should the rest of us be so?
