A row has erupted over a drag queen storytelling event in east Belfast last week.
The event, hosted by Eastside Partnership, took place in Holywood Arches Library and featured two drag queens reading stories to children.
The event was advertised as ‘suitable for all ages and families’ and aimed to ‘champion individuality and inclusivity amongst its young audiences, featuring sing-alongs and dancing.’
Lady Portia read storybooks to the children, while Miss Dora Belle interpreted the stories into British Sign Language (BSL).
It’s understood some local parents had concerns about the event and staged a protest outside the library.
The PSNI confirmed they attended the event after a report of a “small demonstration” and two people were escorted from the building to ensure there would be “no breach of the peace”.
A PSNI spokesperson said, “Police attended a report of a small demonstration at the Holywood Arches area of east Belfast on Friday 1st August, shortly after 1:40pm and engaged with those present.
“Two people were escorted from the building to further ensure that there would be no breach of the peace.
"At this stage, no offences were determined to have taken place.”
In footage circulating on social media from the event, a number of protestors can be heard making clear their opposition to the drag queens reading stories to the children at the event with shouts of “leave our kids alone” and “you do your thing but leave our kids alone” as they were leaving the venue, prompting Lady Portia to identify the story read to the children and to offer to meet the protestors.
The Belfast Telegraph has contacted both drag queens who took part in the event, with Lady Portia asking for privacy at this time and Miss Dora Belle has yet to respond to our request at the time of publishing.
TUV MLA Timothy Gaston voiced his concerns to Communities Minister Gordon Lyons — whose department is in charge of libraries — following the event.
“I must ask whether you consider this an appropriate use of Libraries NI premises. In my view, it most certainly is not.
“Drag performance, by its very nature, is a sexualised and exaggerated parody of womanhood — rooted in adult entertainment and gender subversion.
“Why then is it considered acceptable for someone best-known for adult-themed performances to adopt the same persona while reading stories to children?” he said.
Belfast Green councillor Anthony Flynn told the Belfast Telegraph those protesting outside drag queen story time events were "trying to disguise their vile hatred as concern".
"These events are safe, joyful, and inclusive. What those protesting actually fear is a world where kids can grow up free to be themselves."
"Their agenda is ugly and rooted in a deep-seated intolerance that has no place in a decent society."
In a statement Eastside Partnership said: "EastSide Arts Festival is an annual celebration of arts, culture and community in east Belfast.
“Over the past 14 years, we have developed festival programmes which are inclusive, diverse and reflective of the interests and feedback from those who attend our events.
"The ‘Drag Queen Storytime with BSL Interpretation’ event is one of our longest running events and returns every year based on the positive feedback from those who attend and engage with the event.
"Over the years we have worked alongside the artists involved to ensure we provide a safe, welcoming and accessible environment for families to listen to age appropriate stories.
“During one of our recent storytelling events, we were made aware of an incident outside of the event venue. To ensure safety and to minimise disruption we worked with local authorities to manage a safe exit for our attending families, staff and artists.
“EastSide Arts Festival is committed to continue to develop a diverse, inclusive, safe, accessible and welcoming festival programme that celebrates and reflects all aspects of the community.”
The Department of Communities was also contacted for comment.
by pist0lpete87
39 comments
More issues with drag queens telling stories than actually dealing with actual issues bloody hell are we turning into little america.
Folks who let men in dresses preach to children every Sunday, men with an institutional history of being a danger to kids, somehow don’t like men with no history of being a danger to kids telling them some stories.
This is bordering on clickbait, the first person to drop a perspective on this is going to be flamed & roasted until nicely done.
Oh look, Gaston again reminding everyone he’s still a gobshite.
Frankly, I’d have killed for a drag queen story hour as a kid.
sequins, sass, and a proper sense of theatre..
Instead, we were graced with the joyless drone of a retired Red Cross nurse whose dentures clacked like castanets and once launched themselves mid-sneeze into someone’s lap like a low-rent missile.
Absolute carnage. No glitter, just gingivitis.
Sigh.
Gaston needs a hug.
The media bandwidth this issue has occupied for the last 10 years is utterly disproportionate. It’s a manufactured distraction to divert your attention from the real villains among us.
The only people doing anything worrying with children in this story seem to be the protesting parents, who will absolutely have scared the shit out of the kids inside?
Fuck it bring on the downvotes but I see absolutely no benefit in drag Queens reading stories to kids. What’s the goal? What are they supposed to gain from this experience that someone not in drag reading a story would have brought?
Edit: yes as expected! If it’s a guy dressed as a woman in some kind of Sunday church type dress then yeah, maybe not the worst. If its anything like 90% of the drag queen’s I seen at Pride where they dress like the sluttiest woman imaginable (to the point I’d also judge any woman dressed like that in front of kids during the day) then for me there’s an issue.
What is it with drag that it also has to involve suspenders, corsets and various other items of inappropriate lingerie? As some have helpfully pointed out no I don’t have an issue with drag in panto because its part of the fun and generally dressed appropriately. I dont agree with these borderline exhibitionists who it seems it may be part of their kink to dress and act inappropriately around people for the reaction.
“Drag performance, by its very nature, is a sexualised and exaggerated parody of womanhood — rooted in adult entertainment and gender subversion.
“Why then is it considered acceptable for someone best-known for adult-themed performances to adopt the same persona while reading stories to children?”
Guess I just imagined the last 30+ years of May McFetridge doing kids entertainment then, did I? Don’t recall anyone complaining about it back then, so it’s not like it’s suddenly a new concept…
bigotry alive and well north & south, oh yeah we are more united than ever :-/
Problem: Don’t want a drag queen reading stories to your wians.
Solution: Don’t send your wians to the drag queen story reading.
Let’s hope that none of the protestors ever find out about pantomime and the gender subversion of widow fucking twanky.
https://preview.redd.it/ue5liqvjz1hf1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0f89c5ddeee18e6c96e6f74f90a918f8517be9d0
Just incase anyone is wondering about the deleted comments here it is
Same knuckle draggers can be seen bringing their kids to drag cabaret shows in Benidorm
For years we had pantomimes with people in drag and had no issues there. Plus Ive yet to see a drag artist to be done sexaul assault. But politicians, church goers and the like well that’s a different story isn’t it?
The issue bigots like the TUV have is that they can’t divorce the performance of femininity with sexuality. These drag queens obviously aren’t going to be doing adult jokes or sexual gags in front of children in a library. they’ll be dressed as women, as a performance piece, as characters. Not as sex objects. But bigots see anything queer such as gender subversion in drag as perversion. Ffs. I would have loved this as a kid. Sad to see Belfast is stuck in the 1970s.
Sounds like Tennessee. I know this is technically an NI sub, so my apologies for lurking from afar. But I was raised in the US South with my dad openly gay since I was 5 and we went to our area’s Pride parade every year and we watched RuPaul’s Drag Race together when I was a teen and guess what?….I still turned out to be a straight man married to a straight woman! Shocking I know. I just like to throw it in the faces of the crowd that says the “drag queens are indoctrinating the kids” line.
Such a shame that these poor kids were kidnapped in front of their parents and forced to listen to drag queens read children stories.
Like I understand if you personally don’t want your children to be influenced by drag queens when they’re that young and impressionable. But it’s not mandatory. So why protest against an event that you or your children don’t have to be anywhere near? Just take the long way to the dole office for once.
> Drag performance, by its very nature, is a sexualised and exaggerated parody of womanhood – rooted in adult entertainment and gender subversion.
Guy’s going to lose his mind when he goes to the panto at Christmas.
The Venn diagram of people who love Mrs Brown’s Boys because it’s “like the good old days before woke ruined comedy”, and people who would protest drag queen storytime is a circle.
Perhaps they should change tactic and tell stories to the homeless or elderly instead of children.
So its bad when drag queens influence children but perfectly acceptable when racist paramilitaries do?
[removed]
Ok so you’ve saved the children from hearing a story, since you seem to care about the children can we address the housing crisis , the exorbitant cost of education, the lack of jobs and the climate disasters they will have to face?
Who was the uda leader who performed as a drag queen for the British Army? Sammy Duddy I think
It’s just plain silly as well as hateful. How different is this from the pantomimes they watch at Christmas? It certainly isn’t going to turn any kids gay. Some of these parents probably bring their kids to anti-catholic riots.
Drag, especially here, has always been theatre. I remember as a youngin going to May McFetterige 8n the Grand Opera house and having a blast. Mrs Brown’s boys? Theatre. Mrs Doubtfire? Theatre.
The only reason these inbreds oppose this is because it stirs *their* sexualisation of drag….ergo, they be getting arroused and don’t like it.
What are the odds of a few of the protestors are on some sort of registry?
Why do we always seem to copy the worst cultural aspects of the Americans?
And yet Mrs Brown hasn’t been cancelled.
*Clowns at circuses, parodying humanity in full make up, and having a fear dedicated to them?*
“Yeah that’s cool. Hell, let’s hire them for kids birthday parties!”
*Drag queens, older than Shakespeare in the arts, building tolerance and acceptance In a free society?*
“Nooo I have strange sex fantasies that I project as a danger to children”
Id prefer kids to be read books by drag queens over them being subjected to bigotry at Bonfires and Marches tbf
These knuckle dragging fools are the same idiots who had absolutely no problem with going to see may mcfettridge in panto when they were children.
r/nottheonion
Is anyone looking forward to Christmas at the Grand Opera House, with May McFettridge quickly leaving the back entrance after the McGammons turn up?
Long as its PG, its fine. If parents disagree they have a right to object but not to force views on others who gave premission for thier kids to watch it.
Yea it depends on the stories being told, I’m not so much against the drag queens themselves as long as it’s child friendly but pushing transgender and queer stuff on young kids crosses the line for me.
Leave that stuff until they are old enough to make their own decisions.
They’re so right! Let’s keep the kids out of the libraries! Yeah, out of the libraries and back on the streets where they can remain disenfranchised by life! yeah !!!!
These are the same dickheads “patrolling” east Belfast.
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