Religious Conservatives Protest a Drag Queen Story Time at Pennsylvania Library

Protesters came to this drag queen storytelling event that was all about getting kids to accept themselves and others.

Activists picketed Balena Canto’s storytime at a Pennsylvania library.

“I came in dress. I drove very quickly past them. I didn’t really want to interact, to be honest,” she stated. “It was the first time that I actually had protestors at one of the storytimes.”

Drag queens or drag kings express different sides of their gender and personality through dressing up, performing, marching in parades, and volunteering. Anyone can participate in drag regardless of how they identify.

“Really, it’s just a person dressing up as a character. It’s extremely fun,” explained. Balena. “Drag Queen Story Hour is like any storytime except the person leading it is, basically, a drag queen. And it focuses on themes of love and acceptance, diversity.”

More than one-third of LGBTQ+ youth are bulled at school. One supportive person can decrease on LGBTQ+ young person’s risk of suicide by 30%.

Drag Queen Story Hour was created by Michelle Tea and RADAR Productions. Starting in San Francisco there are now Drag queen Story Hour chapters all around the world.

“It’s a storytime where children get to have a positive LGBTQIA role model,” said Balena.

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