Fairfax parents protest Virginia pride celebration over drag queen performance

Dozens of protesters gathered outside Old Town Hall in Fairfax, Virginia, to protest the city’s pride celebration, where drag queens are scheduled to dance.

The event was coordinated by Stacy Langton, the Virginia mother who went viral in 2021 for speaking against phonographic books in front of the Fairfax County school board. Many of the protesters carried either U.S. flags or signs speaking out against drag queens and transgender surgeries for minors.

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“When you have a situation like this, when they’re doing things with children that are not appropriate for children, this is not a minors event,” Langton told the Washington Examiner. “Drag queen shows are for adults.”

Langton pointed out that drag shows are typically held in bars, where a person needs an ID to show they are at least 21 or older. The event being held on Saturday, meanwhile, is “open to the public” and is “specifically geared toward children.”

Asher Notheis/The Washington Examiner

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Langton appeared in several ads for Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) during the 2021 gubernatorial election, which Youngkin won against former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) in an upset victory. Only one year earlier, the state of Virginia went blue during the 2021 presidential election.

Also attending the event was Cynthia Walsh, who is running for the school board in the Sully district of Fairfax county. Walsh told the Washington Examiner she is against drag queen shows for children; she also said she is not against gay or lesbian people, but that she is against transgender surgeries for children.

Fairfax Mayor Catherine Read, who was attending the event, told the Washington Examiner that the city is paying for the event. Other sponsors of the event include George Mason University and Fairfax Ace Hardware.

The signs the protesters carried included signs that read “Leave Our Kids Alone,” “Drag is prostitution,” and “No drag queen story time.”

Asher Notheis/The Washington Examiner

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The subject of drag queen performances in front of children, such as in schools, have become a hot topic in the United States. Many Republican lawmakers are working on legislation to restrict children from attending drag shows. Last month, Montana banned drag queen story hours in publicly-funded libraries and schools in the state after Gov. Greg Gianforte (R-MT) signed legislation into law against it.

Earlier this year, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R-TN) signed a bill criminalizing drag show performances in certain public locations. However, a federal judge ruled on Friday that the law was unconstitutional.