RuPaul’s Drag Race has become a home for self-expression, love, and acceptance. Throughout the years, the show has grown to bring us an amazing array of queens from all different backgrounds and finally brought us our first trans queens taking home the crown. Kylie Sonique Love became an All-Stars legend, and season 14 of the show had a historic cast, including five trans queens, with Willow Pill, who identifies as trans femme, taking home the title.
It’s a show that tells us all to love ourselves and to be kind to one another, and even though there are fights and “shady” moments, the series still teaches us of the family that the drag community provides for so many queer individuals. And anti-trans and anti-drag legislation is threatening its existence. Throughout the country, there are people trying to ban drag as a performance and harming those in the LGBTQ+ community because of their own warped understanding of what joy it all brings to many around the world.
This move, especially with the bans happening in states like Tennessee, is terrifying. In response to how the government is responding to drag performers and the LGBTQ+ community, host and star of RuPaul’s Drag Race himself, RuPaul, took to social media to post a message about voting and making sure to kick out those who are pushing this legislation.
Hey, look over there!
RuPaul used a classic line from season 12, when Jaida Essence Hall was doing her political jokes and said, “Hey, look over there!” much to the amusement of guest judge Jeff Goldblum. It went on to be a meme on the internet, with fans of the show and those who haven’t watched all commenting on it—which is a testament to drag as an art form and the power these performers have, with their enthralling drag identities, to reach audiences that they might not otherwise interact with. But that is all in danger with the new legislation happening in the United States.
“Hey, look over there! A classic distraction technique, distracting us away from the real issues that they were voted into office to focus on: jobs, healthcare, keeping our children safe from harm at their own school,” Ru said in his video message, going on to talk about how we know that those in charge are bullies hiding behind their own inability to solve real issues.
“But we know that bullies are incompetent at solving real issues. They look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective. They think our love, our light, our laughter, and our joy are signs of weakness but they’re wrong because that is our strength. Drag queens are the marines of the queer movement. Don’t get it twisted and don’t be distracted.”
RuPaul encouraged people to register to vote because doing a post on social media is one thing, but actually voting to change those in power is a more powerful tool. Each episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race has been ending with queens dancing with signs, reminding fans of the series to vote so those who want to take drag away from queer communities lose their positions of power, and this video is a powerful reminder of why we need to listen to Mama Ru.
(featured image: Karwai Tang/WireImage)
