CINCINNATI — Data shows drag performances face some of the highest rates of anti-LGBTQ+ hate, but it’s not deterring local performers from owning who they are.
“I am a performer at heart,” said drag performer The Lady Phaedra.
She’s been performing for years after she was dared at a friend’s party in college.
“A star was born,” she said.
The Anti-Defamation League and GLAAD tracked more than 350 incidents of harassment, vandalism and assault against members of the LGBTQ+ community between June 2022 and April 2023.
“I think that it becomes really scary,” said Kelly Fishman, regional director with the Anti-Defamation League. “Because it often happens in places people should feel a sense of safety.”
Drag events were listed as the most targeted.
“Drag Queens, whether accidentally or on purpose, are at the frontlines of the queer community,” The Lady Phaedra said. “We are often the defenders. We are the mother hens. We are the first line of defense.”
Fishman points to rising trends of violence against the LGTBQ+ community, and an increase in legislation targeting members of it.
Ohio lawmakers heard testimony Wednesday in support of a bill that would ban drag performances in public spaces where children may be present if that performance is deemed “harmful to juveniles or obscene.”
If it becomes the law, the bill would ban certain drag performances outside bars and nightclubs.
Lawmakers in support of the bill argue it protects kids.
“We're just playing with makeup, hair and outfits,” said performer Brock Leah Spears. “There's really no difference between hiring a clown for a birthday party.”
She said she thinks people fear what they don’t understand.
“We are entertainers,” The Lady Phaedra said. “I don't go to the grocery store dressed like this. I get on stage. I tell jokes. I tell stories.”
Both performers told us Cincinnati has welcomed them with open arms. They know not everyone is so lucky.
“It's an age-old stigma of people comparing people that do bad things to people that just stand out,” Brock Leah Spears said.
“Pride at its core is a demonstration,” said The Lady Phaedra. “It's a protest. It's a way of reminding the world that we're not going anywhere. We're here to be who we are.”
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