LGBTQ+ = Adult-Oriented Entertainment

That is the thinking of the right-wing conservatives, that anything LGBTQ+ means that it has to be banned. I don’t know about you but I have attended dozens of drag shows and I do not see anything adult-oriented entertainment about lip-syncing in drag.

Drag show fallout: Bartlesville City Council to dig into public space regulations Nov. 7
Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise
By Andy Dossett
October 8, 2022


After Bartlesville residents spoke out about last month's Pride drag show during Monday's Bartlesville City Council meeting, officials announced that city attorney Jess Kane will prepare a presentation for the Nov. 7 meeting about what the city can or cannot do to regulate such events in public spaces.

On Monday, local resident Shannon King presented a petition with more than 2,000 signatures asking the city to prohibit adult-oriented entertainment in a public space. The petition was specifically targeted at a public drag show performed at Unity Square last month during Oklahomans for Equality Bartlesville's Pride event.

Most speakers complained the drag show exposed children to sexually charged entertainment that doesn't belong in public spaces. More than 200 residents attended the overflow meeting specifically for the public comment portion.

Somehow, I think there is a lot more to the story than this…

 "There were inappropriate things that happened there. They were by the protestors. They used a bullhorn to go into graphic detail about different sex acts and yelled that at a bounce house for the kids," he said. "Later on, the more disturbing thing was they were handing out pamphlets to kids that looked like coloring books and when you opened them up they had pictures of aborted babies in them."

I think that I would have to hear the other side, what do the performers have to say?

Fox News 23 had this to say,

“I just want to counteract their sign, it’s just awful, it’s awful and hateful and this is such a beautiful event,” said Lovell.

Morgan Lawrence-Hayes is from Oklahomans For Equality Bartlesville. She said the event in Unity square in downtown Bartlesville was definitely family friendly.

“I think their issue is more with the costumes and who’s wearing it than it actually is with the content of the performance,” Lawrence-Hayes.

She said a few voices won’t drown out the large crowd, who just by showing up, declared love wins.

“You’re going to see a lot of uplifting and inspiring numbers from these queens, it’s really meant to be a unifying experience and just a fun upbeat positive performance for everyone,” said Lawrence-Hayes.

Adeline Northam was at the event with her family and said everyone of all ages 

“Everything I’ve seen so far is family friendly, I’ve got all my grandkids here and my kids, I’ve got three of them, my seven children and I got thirteen grandchildren, and I would have everyone of them here…I mean it’s no different than Mrs. Doubtfire,” said Northam.

The people behind Bartlesville Pride said they’ve had a lot of support from the community, and that they just want to love and live like everyone else.

It seems to me that these conservatives label anything LGBTQ+ as adult entertainment. They just plan ordinary bigots. In another Fox 23 article...

Some said the petition was disguised homophobia, others quoted Bible verses and said the show wasn’t appropriate for children or in public space.

The drag show was originally performed during a Pride event in downtown Bartlesville in early September.

[…]

Bartlesville resident Joel Rabin is backing the petition. Rabin said it’s about community standards.

“It’s really about community standards, and it’s the free speech issue, the city issues permits, which means the city can choose not issue permits, which means there’s a limit to what you can do and not do,” he said.

Hmm… I wonder if they had a referendum on this or is a bunch of right-winger saying that their view is the only that they will accept?

After the meeting, Lawrence-Hayes told FOX23 what she hopes the city will now do.

“I hope that the city reviews it, takes a look at the facts that were clearly stated by us tonight, and finds the same conclusion that we have found and everything was very child friendly, and was family appropriate, and come to the conclusion that we will still be able to use the space in the years to come,” Lawrence-Hayes said.

Also notice that this flap comes right before the elections! They want to stir up the voters anger to get them out to vote!