It is ironic that last week’s Lancaster Library Drag Queen storytime was so pointlessly vilified that someone called in a bomb threat to ensure the event’s cancellation. In a so-called attempt to “protect” the youth, a bomb was potentially placed in a frequented community space.
In collaboration between Lancaster Pride and the Lancaster Public Library, a Drag Story Time with Miss Amie Vanité was originally planned as a fun community event that would be open to and bring together the public. To elaborate, a Drag Story Time is an educational and energetic story reading that provides a creative space and encourages freedom of expression and identity for listeners in attendance. Its set-up includes book readings, costumes, and humorous renditions of beloved children’s book characters. Although drag shows can be a tad risqué, as they are intended, a Drag Story Time is completely age appropriate content.
After opposition arose at a Marathon County Commissioners meeting the previous Wednesday, during which a Republican commissioner declared the event “inappropriate,” numerous protesters continued picketing the event, armed with posters and one memorably large sign declaring “Know the God of the Bible.” One could have visited the library to “know” this God through actually reading the Bible. Unfortunately, the Lancaster library had to close down on Saturday at 9:00 AM after a suspicious package was delivered and a bomb threat emails flooded the library inbox. Police were called onto the scene, and the Story Time was ultimately canceled. A state police bomb squad cleared the area, and investigations lasted for several hours.
Although last week’s events are ironic, since whoever orchestrated the bomb threat wrongly believes they are protecting their community by planting explosives, they are also depressing. The intolerance of a community towards its own members will ultimately destroy the overall community itself. And in the words of Wanda Sykes, “Until a drag queen walks into a school and beats eight kids to death with a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird, I think you’re focusing on the wrong thing.”
Sophomore Teagan Durkin is the Opinions Editor. Her email is tdurkin@fandm.edu.