With the recent club shooting at Club Q in Colorado, and the GOP militia group The Proud Boys harassing drag queens while carrying semiautomatic weapons, some of your favorite Drag Race queens have hired extra security while on tour.
Drag Race season 5 and All Stars 7 winner Jinkx Monsoon, who is currently touring alongside Drag Race alum Ben DeLaCreme revealed to NBC News that they travel with armed guards, use metal detectors, and have venue escape routes at their shows in the US, should something pop off.
Season 11 winner Yvie Oddly revealed that her management company “sent her and other drag performers an email saying they had requested extra security staff at their shows and will have the security teams check patrons for guns.”
Alaska, who is currently touring the US with her latest album Red 4 Filth asked, “Why do we have to be worried about where the exits are and where a safe route to get to safety is? It’s terrifying, but that’s the reality of it.”
Latrice Royale believes she has theory on why there seems to be so much pushback against drag queens as of late: “Before drag was so mainstream (…), we were underground. Everything happened at night, at nightclubs, in the wee hours of the morning. It was not accessible to the mainstream of the world.”
But Shea Coulee, who's set to star in the upcoming Ironheart series for Disney+ said this is not the time to be afraid:
“You can’t shake a b*tch that’s not afraid of you. I can get maybe a disapproving glance, but the moment I look them dead-ass in the eye and make eye contact, who do you think is the one looking down at the ground first? Them.”
Shea is right. With all the craziness happening to thengays, from drag queens being harassed, mass shooters entering our safe spaces, and a serial killer invading gay bars in Hell's Kitchen where he's robbing and drugging patrons, this is the time to be alert and vigilant.
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