Drag performance is not a crime and, in Florida, it’s here to stay | Opinion
I am a hard worker. I’ve always been. When I was a teen, I worked my butt off to win a full scholarship to Miami’s prestigious New World School of the Arts, where I majored in dance. Through friends there, I discovered the greatest love of my life: drag! Not only did drag allow me to use my dance training, I could be an actor, stand-up comedian, make-up artist, hair stylist and costume designer. It is every single element of the performing arts rolled into one.
I’ve been performing at Lips Drag Queen Show Palace in Fort Lauderdale for 30 years. It still lights the brightest fire in my soul. Saturday nights are always special. It’s a mixed crowd, with the bulk of the audience being heterosexual. I love it because the show truly brings people of all walks of life together to laugh, cheer and have an incredibly fun night together.
Naturally, when I heard about the legislation trying to place restrictions on the art of drag, I was horrified. I simply didn’t understand how anyone can possibly view something I love — something that I’ve seen bring people joy — as harmful.
There are different forms of drag, some that are family-friendly and some meant for mature audiences. Every entertainer I know take the ages of the audience into consideration. My family-friendly performances are absolutely different from my 18 and over shows.
Thank goodness, after a U.S. judge temporarily blocked the law from being implemented, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to reinstate it in November while it is still on appeal in lower courts.
Drag is not a crime. We help people escape from the world’s problems and heal from negative experiences and trauma. It is an amazing form of art and self-expression. We are no different from singers, rappers and actors.
I have built my life on entertaining people with love, passion and heart. At a drag show, everyone in the audience can be who they are without fear or judgment. We’re all a family.
I wake up every morning asking what I did for Gov. Ron DeSantis to target me and my community. He knows nothing about us and, perhaps, has never seen a drag show. It isn’t right that without fact or evidence, he is attempting to destroy who I am as a person — when there are so many more important issues that affect everyone?
Children are told to chase their dreams. I have been a trans showgirl for 31 years. It is my life and my livelihood. If it is taken from me, don’t know how I will survive going forward.
It is not only me. DeSantis’s actions are hurting Florida businesses and the communities that surround them. With insurance prices sky-high and food prices increasing, he needs to stop deflecting from the real issues and find solutions that will help South Florida to prosper.
Parents do not need legislation to tell them how to do their job. They know what is best for their children. If a parent decides a certain drag show is OK for their child to attend, who is DeSantis to say otherwise? Parents should decide.
No matter how hard DeSantis and other government officials try to extinguish it, drag will always bring peace and light to the world.
Daisy Deadpetals has been a performer at Lips for more than seven years.
