Local performers respond as Gov. Lee signs anti-drag law

DANIEL DASSOW AND AUTUMN HALL Editor-in-Chief and News Editor

In the days since Gov. Bill Lee signed a bill banning public drag performances on March 2, the legislation, the first of its kind signed into law in the nation, has set off a storm of national headlines highlighting the anti-LGBTQ priorities of the Tennessee General Assembly.

The bill bans drag shows – stated as “adult cabaret performances” that include exotic dancers and “male or female impersonators” – on public property in the state and any location where a minor could be present. A first violation of the law is a misdemeanor, but a second violation is a felony that could result in jail time.

The new law has garnered national attention as outlets like Reuters and The New York Times connect it to a larger wave of conservative attempts to target drag shows. The state legislature even became the butt of the joke in Saturday Night Live’s Week- end Update as co-host Colin Jost poked fun at the premise of the new law.

“A Tennessee state senator said the bill will prevent kids from being ‘blindsided by a sexualized performance in public,’” Jost said. “What are you talking about? Drag shows don’t just pop up like flash mobs and sprinkle gay dust on your kids.”

The drag bill is just one of the pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation currently proposed in the Tennessee legislature. Along with the anti-drag bill, Lee also signed a bill banning gender-affirming health care for transgender minors.

Members of the Knoxville LGBTQ community and its allies have been vocal in opposing the slate of anti-trans and anti-drag bills since the bill was first introduced. Many have expressed concerns that the bill could jeopardize the ability of transgender individuals to be in public without facing a misdemeanor for “impersonation.”

“The message is that queer people, especially trans people and gender non-conforming people, are not welcome and are not safe in Tennessee,” said Story VanNess, assistant center director and program di- rector for trans and non-binary support services at Knox Pride. “That’s what they want us to know.”

VanNess has performed in local drag shows as The Lady Viktra since 2003, and has seen drag become more mainstream, mainly through the Emmy-winning reality TV series RuPaul Drag’s Race. But with the increased visibility of the drag community, she said, has come a change in the understanding of what drag is.

“Drag is art, it is culture, but it’s also a political statement. It was counterculture in the truest sense of the word … and now it’s become pop culture,” VanNess said.

Knox Pride, formally known as the East Tennessee Equality Council, is a community resource for LGBTQ individuals, and hosts the annual Knox Pride Festival, the largest public event featuring drag performances in the city and one of the largest in the state.

In February, the group announced it would cancel the festival if the bill was signed into law. VanNess said the festival will not happen as usual this year, but will be replaced by a series of protests and demonstrations. On its website, Knox Pride offers resources which help community members contact their legislators to ask them to oppose further legislation targeting gender-affirming healthcare and drag performances.

At a rally hosted by Knox Pride downtown on Feb. 13, local activist Kim Spoon delivered a speech about the bill which went viral on TikTok, reaching hundreds of thousands of viewers. VanNess herself has appeared on national television, including CNN, to discuss the law.

“Pride is a protest. It began as a protest, it should always be a protest, and it will be a protest again. We are not going to take this lying down,” VanNess said.

All-ages drag performances have become increasingly rare in the state as the community fears legal repercussions. VanNess said that public shows and even bar performances are held to standards laid out by the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Commission, and the common sense of performers who know children may be around.

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Editorial

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Daniel Dassow

MANAGING EDITOR: Abby Ann Ramsey

COPY CHIEF: Olivia Hayes

NEWS EDITOR: Autumn Hall

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR: Emma Co�ey

SPORTS EDITOR: Andrew Peters

ASST. SPORTS EDITOR: Eric Woods

PHOTO EDITOR: Ericksen Gomez-Villeda

DESIGN EDITOR: Bella Hughes

PAGE DESIGNERS: Emma Fingeret, Rhylee Gross, Julia Paulman, Chloe Black

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER: Jackie Dremel

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