Who is the Drag Queen Story Hour leader? History of controversies amid FALSE reports of child porn charges
Drag Queen Story Hour was dragged into a child porn scandal and it didn't long for eagle-eyed readers to realize that it wasn't the leader of the organization who got arrested on those charges. On March 18, 2021, conspiracy right-wing websites spread false information that “Milwaukee Judge and President of Drag Queen Story Hour” had been charged with seven counts of child porn.
Yes, Brett Blomme was arrested on suspicion of possession of child pornography. But no, he isn't the Drag Queen Story Hour leader. Going by his bio, he is the Milwaukee County circuit court judge who also served as a judge in the county’s Children’s Court. The controversy now makes us put on our detective hats to find out who really is the Drag Queen Story Hour leader and what is the organization all about.
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What is Drag Queen Story Hour?
To inspire a love of reading, Drag Queen Story Hour (DQSH), Drag Queen Storytime, and Drag Story Time were first started in 2015 as children's events by author Michelle Tea in San Francisco. The goal was to teach “deeper lessons on diversity, self-love and an appreciation of others.”
Painting stories of gay and lesbian parents and sketching out the idea of an LGBTQ pride parade, DQSH attempts to give kids glamorous and unabashedly queer role models. Meant for children aged three to 11, the events are hosted by drag queens who read children’s books. Not everyone liked the DQSH concept and it was often trolled as drag queens have traditionally been linked to bars and nightlife. Nonetheless, the organization continued to strive towards its goal. To instill gender fluidity among the young ones, DQSH had 35 US and five international chapters by June 2019 and has 50+ chapters after February 2020 in cities ranging from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to Bristol, England.
Children's classics like ‘This Day in June’ and ‘Sewing the Rainbow’ — written by Gayle Pitman — have been included at the events. Although DQSH has the support of a few far-right Christian groups, it has been criticized several times in the past.
Who is the Drag Queen Story Hour leader?
In 2015, Drag Queen Story Hour first began in San Francisco. Created by author Michelle Tea — who was then the Executive Director of the nonprofit Radar Productions — DQSH was spearheaded by Juli Delgado Lopera and Virgie Tovar in San Francisco. The global phenomenon now offers literary and creative programming for kids and teens of all ages.
On its website, DQSH pens down its mission. “Drag Queen Story Hour celebrates reading through the glamorous art of drag,” it reads, adding, “Our chapter network creates diverse, accessible, and cultural inclusive family programming where kids can express their authentic selves and become bright lights of change in their communities.”
The seeds were first sown when Michelle gave birth to her son Atticus. The writer, who identifies as queer, was surprised to find herself at “really straight” storytimes at the library. Imagining diversity and inclusion, she then planned an event that reflected her own family. “It was a huge hit,” Tea told BuzzFeed News, “and then it just spread.” The fantastic idea struck the right chord. Explaining why she chose book reading, she said, “Librarians are the unsung heroes of our culture,” adding, “They are constantly fighting for our freedom of speech. They are on the front lines.”
Why is Drag Queen Story Hour so controversial?
Not everyone seems to have liked the idea of drag queens in a room full of children, reading books to them. “Just like an actor can do an R-rated movie and a G-rated kids’ movie, we have different levels of how we entertain and how we can put on our character as well,” event organizer Rylee Hunty told The Daily Beast, talking about the event.
However, anti-LGBT memes of drag queens in risqué attire were soon spread on social media with captions like: “Do you want these people around your kids?” Expressing her indignancy, Houston mom Courtney Sellers told the news outlet, “They’re never going to show a picture of a drag queen in a beautiful princess dress reading to kids or having fun. They don’t want people to see that.”
In October 2019, a photo of a drag queen clad in a pink miniskirt exposing his crotch went viral. Describing what really happened, Anne Taylor shared photos of Sasha Sota — and said he wore “a sleeveless cut-off t-shirt resembling SpongeBob SquarePants with midriff exposed, a pink mini-skirt, rainbow ankle socks, and black spiked heels that went above six inches.” She added, “The wig he wore was mermaid style crimping in the color of bright orange and makeup that was far too much under the neon lights.”
‘Not all Drag Queens are pedophiles or convicted sex offenders’
Although she did share the photos, she also shed light on her conversation with Sota. “He quickly sat down next to me on a stool. So I inquired how he got started in drag. He told me he loved theatre, and this is merely a way for him to stay connected,” she wrote, remembering how he said, “Oh! I love children!” Calling him a “lost soul”, she wrote, “There was a moment of an awkward pause between myself and Sasha Sota. I could see his vulnerability, his naivety, and sensed a deep wound he was hiding. There were so many other questions I wanted to ask him, but I’m not sure I would have gotten to the truth in those few moments of our time together.”
She then went on to write, “I will point out that not all Drag Queens are pedophiles or convicted sex offenders. Being in theatre during my college years, I noticed that dressing in drag was viewed as an easy out where one could justify these individuals are merely ‘practicing their craft.’ What you don’t see behind the act and the makeup is very dark: self-abuse, drugs, alcohol, and a lot of sex. That IS the nature of the drag community, period.”
Later, when The Blaze reached out to Hennepin County Library, they did stress the need for a dress code. “Partway through this year's schedule, we realized the need for a performer dress code. We followed up right away with each of the performers to ensure that their costumes are appropriate for the audience and activity,” their statement read.
WATCH: The Drag Queens Reading To Kids in Libraries