Bianca Del Rio at Capital Pride 2014
By Metro Weekly Contributor
on
June 10, 2014
Bianca Del Rio performs at the 2014 Capital Pride Festival in Washington, D.C. [NSFW]
Drag artists and advocates fighting back in the culture war against drag and LGBTQ rights have seen triumphs and setbacks this summer. Two recent federal court decisions -- one in Florida, the other in Texas -- illustrate opposite shifts in the war being waged over anti-drag laws in states around the nation.
In August, a federal appeals court upheld Florida's law that bans performers or venues from conducting any "adult live performance" in the presence of a minor. The law defines "adult live performance" in terms loose enough to apply to practically any performer who appears in drag in a public space -- from a drag brunch to a Pride parade -- where a minor could be present, even with their parent or guardian's consent.
Reality TV works in mysterious ways. An ostensible loss can quickly and unexpectedly be transformed into a win, especially in the hands of a queen who's prepared. RuPaul's Drag Race favorite Salina EsTitties, a.k.a. Jason De Puy, was heartbroken, she says, that her run on the recent All Stars season 11 came to an end in her first round of competition.
The feisty Latina performer, who first competed on Drag Race proper three years ago, returned for All Stars with fierce new looks and a fierce attitude, but still missed the cut of queens who made it out of their bracket to the Merge, where finalists would compete.
For the second time this summer, Ariana Grande has rebuked President Donald Trump's administration for using her music in a social media post.
The latest dispute erupted after the Team Trump account added Grande's 2024 hit "We Can't Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)" to a TikTok post that repurposed one of its lyrics.
The post quotes the lyric "Me and my truth we sit in silence..." before adding: "...men can't have babies and should never compete in women's sports."
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