Some say the event is overly sexualized for children, while others say it could help children navigate their gender identity at an early age.
According to the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL), a “Drag Queen Story Hour” will be held for children on June 15 at 2 p.m. at the Pio Pico Koreatown Library.
A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes.
According to the library, the event will feature Joe Farragher (Pickle, a drag queen), a well-known drag queen who specializes in reading children’s books. Pickle has been with Drag Queen Story Hour for two and a half years and is credited with revitalizing drag queen story times in L.A. County.
“It’s literally a program where a drag queen reads progressive children’s literature to children,” said a library spokesperson. “Drag Queen Story Hour is supported by the LAPL Foundation because it has all the ingredients to entertain children through humor, play, fantasy, and more.”
LAPL has been supporting events at city libraries since 2017. Following the Atwater Village Library in January, the program will visit the Sherman Oaks Martin Pollard Library next month on March 22, and Koreatown in June for the first time.
The program has already generated controversy among parents and the Christian community.
“The drag queen costumes and images are very sexualized and I don’t think it will have a positive impact on children who are yet unaware of concepts of sex and gender,” said Jinwoo Kim (45-LA). “I can’t believe it’s happening in Korean American neighborhoods.”
Others argue that the event is educationally necessary.
“If you consider the reality of this generation, diversity is becoming an important factor. And by the time these children become adults, there will be more of them,” said Pastor Kwak Gun-yong Kwak of LA Hyangryn Church. “If we can educate gender sensitivity by naturally creating more opportunities to experience diversity from a young age, then it is necessary.”
The Drag Queen Story Hour program has been extremely controversial, with protests already taking place in Korean American neighborhoods and elsewhere.
In February, the Los Angeles Times published an article titled “How Drag Queen Story Hour Became a Target of Right-Wing Attacks.”
“In the past two years, a growing number of libraries, schools and other organizations across the country have hosted drag queen storytelling events featuring drag queens,” the publication reported, “a practice that has drawn the ire of conservative parents, sparked debate over whether it encourages pedophilia, and has become an issue in political circles.”
According to the LGBTQ+ rights organization GLAAD, there were a total of 141 protests against drag queen storytelling events across the country in 2022. The controversy has become so intense that 14 states, including Texas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Carolina, have introduced bills to ban drag queen events in venues where people under the age of 18 gather.
The news of a drag queen storytime at the Pio Pico Koreatown Library has sparked protests in Korean American neighborhoods.
“The library should consider the impact it has on children growing up,” said Rev. Jung-myung Song of the Mississippi Seonghwa Movement, “and if they decide to proceed, we will protest for the sake of the church to stop them.”
Meanwhile, the LA Public Library, which is run by the city of Los Angeles, operates 72 libraries, including the Pio Pico Koreatown Library. The Drag Queen Story Hour started in San Francisco in 2015 and was organized by Julián Delgado Lopera, Virgie Tovar, Michelle Tea, and other prominent LGBTQ+ writers.
BY JANG YEOL [jang.yeol@koreadaily.com]
