Houston Drag Queen Story Time Calls It Quits Over Backlash
"We believe in what we're doing, but we don't believe in putting our friends, our families, or our children in danger."
Houston's Drag Queen Story Time is calling it quits, following controversy, including a lawsuit, and landing in a political ad critical of the event.
The readings launched in September 2017, at the Freed-Montrose Library, to little fanfare. The event grew in popularity, and began to draw local media attention, which in turn brought critics.
The situation got worse when it was discovered, and publicly revealed, that one of the drag queens that had volunteered to read at a few events had been convicted of sexually abusing a child.The Houston Public Library apologized and said it had failed to complete a background check on the individual, Alberto Garza, which runs counter to their own guidelines. Organizers also expressed their regret at the situation.
"It was devastating," they said. "We had insisted and insisted that what we were doing was safe for children, and yet here was a performer who had been charged with sexual assault of a minor. We didn't know about the conviction prior to last week, but it would have come up if a background check had been conducted. It was a systematic mistake."
Due to the events that have unfolded, they said they feel it is best to discontinue the readings.
"What started as a fun community event shared between us, a couple of drag queens and kings, and a few families has become a national controversy. People are being threatened. People are being hurt. We believe in what we're doing, but we don't believe in putting our friends, our families, or our children in danger."
http://www.newnownext.com/houston-drag-queen-story-time-houston/03/2019/
