Drag panic

[6] Drag panic has been suggested as a motivator for the fire bombing of an Oklahoma doughnut shop and the Club Q mass shooting, among other violent incidents.

[15][16][17] As such laws were relaxed in the second half of the 20th century, drag appeared in works of wide popular relevance, such as Some Like It Hot (1959) and The Birdcage (1996), and the Australian film The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994).

[26][30][31] Subsequently, a number of American states (with a Republican majority)[32][33] proposed and approved laws intended to limit drag queen performances in public.

[37] Similar anti-drag protests, sometimes amounting to threats or violence, have since been made in Australia,[38] Canada,[39] the UK[40][41] and elsewhere, often influenced by these American right-wing figures.

"[37] The report also stated incidents included "armed white supremacists demonstrating in Texas and the firebombing of a Tulsa donut shop that had hosted a drag event in October.

[48] Protesters accused the organizers and performers of "grooming" children and objected to a sign in the background of the club that read, "It’s Not Gonna Lick Itself".

[51] In May 2023, masked neo-Nazi groups in Ohio protested a drag event in Columbus, carrying anti-drag and anti-trans banners, such as one that read, "there will be blood.

[58] In mid-June 2022, the far-right Twitter account Libs of TikTok condemned the upcoming Coeur d'Alene, Idaho's "Pride in the Park" festival due to a "family-friendly drag performance.

"[59] On June 11, 2022, during the pride event, law enforcement arrested 31 members of the white nationalist hate group Patriot Front, later charging them with conspiracy to riot.

[69] Also in November 2022, an event at Kelseys Original Roadhouse in Burlington, featuring Guelph drag queen Crystal Quartz was canceled following threats made towards the restaurant.

[72][73] Events in January, February, March, May, and June 2023 by performer Betty Baker were protested at the Peterborough Public Library in Ontario by Kevin Goudreau, Save Canada, and other individuals.

[76] A 2023 report from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue noted an increase in extremist groups targeting LGBTQ+ and drag storytime events in the UK, and accused Conservative MPs of contributing to growing hostility towards LGBTQ+ people in the country.

Report author Aoife Gallagher said, "These incidents should not be viewed in isolation; they speak to a wider anti-LGBTQ+ mobilisation in the UK and they raise concerns about a backsliding trend in LGBTQ+ rights.

The documentary contained scenes where a child danced at a nightclub and received a tip from a drag queen, which Children's Ombudsman Elina Pekkarinen considered inappropriate and sexualizing.

[95] On September 30, 2022, a family-friendly youth festival in Moonee Ponds, Melbourne was cut short when the white supremacist National Socialist Network, a group of Australian neo-Nazis founded by convicted criminal Thomas Sewell, interrupted the event because it hosted drag performers.

[97] On December 8, 2022, the Glitter Nova event (aimed at people aged 16–25) scheduled at Victorian Pride Centre was postponed following threats of protest from neo-Nazis.

One person had claimed they could track the performers' home addresses via their car license plates when they arrived at the venue; another said "As they crumble, you’re smiling like a shark, predators become prey" on Telegram.

[99] Also in April 2023, a Monash City Council meeting was interrupted by protestors who called councillors "pedophiles" for refusing to cancel a drag queen event planned for Oakleigh Library.

[103] In February 2024, a drag story time event in Rockdale Library in southern Sydney, which was going to be broadcast by ABC, was canceled after being targeted by far-right groups and individuals.

[104] In a statement, the network condemned the "hateful and offensive" response they had received and said they were considering how to hold the event at another location to ensure the safety of those involved.

[110] On 26 March, a drag storytime event at Gisborne's library attracted opposition from members of Destiny Church, who also painted over a rainbow crossing.

[114] Following the Gisborne protest, the Hastings District Council canceled an upcoming Erika and CoCo Flash Rainbow Story event, citing safety concerns following a large volume of "threatening and intimidating" messages.

Police described the vandalism as a "hate crime" while Radio New Zealand linked the incident to the protest against the drag queen storytime event in Gisborne.

[116] On 15 April Ford O'Connor, a member of Destiny Church who is married to Tamaki's granddaughter, pleaded guilty to vandalizing the Karangahape Road rainbow crossing and was fined $16,093 to cover the repair costs.

"[117] In late April 2024, Rainbow Storytime NZ's founder Sunita Torrance cancelled a nationwide tour scheduled to pursue a defamation case against Destiny Church.