A festive “Holi-Drag Storytime” in Columbus, Ohio was canceled on Saturday morning as right-wing protesters, including Proud Boys members, followed through on threats to protest the event. Many showed up with arms, including with long guns, according to NBC.
The event, which was organized by Red Oak Community School, a K-5 institution run by the city's First Unitarian Church, was canceled at the last minute. The school’s manager Cheryl Ryan appeared on the stage where the event was to take place Saturday to read a statement from the school, telling those present that it had been canceled for safety reasons. Ryan was emotional as she read the statement.
“When the Proud Boys stated they would show up to intimidate and harass and bully our attendees and organizers, we had to make a decision about how we were going to keep everyone safe,” she said. “I spent a week calling our police department and leaving voicemails about the reports we had seen. After a week, I was told we could hire a special duty officer who may or may not show up because they were understaffed.”
According to Ryan, about 100 safety volunteers had shown up to help create a human perimeter around the event.
The presence of the right-wing protesters, who wielded signs as well as weaponry, stopped the festive events. Over 50 people showed up in opposition to the show.
Ironically, in some videos of the protesters circulating online, members of the Proud Boys are seen dancing to the gay anthem “YMCA” while expressing their dislike of the intended drag event inside.
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Videos shared on social media by independent reporter Brendan Gutenschwager showed protesters with guns and signs saying “Groomers are child abusers.” At one point, a police officer approached the group to speak to them and said, “We don’t have any problem with you guys being out here. Just make sure that you’re practicing safe firearms.”
In anticipation of the event and the potential for violence, statewide LGBTQ+ organization Equality Ohio urged LGBTQ+ people not to show up and counterprotest.
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“This situation is potentially volatile and dangerous,” the organization said in a statement, and urged people who wish to show support to livestream the event or donate to its fundraiser.
The protest came less than two weeks after a gunman opened fire at the LGBTQ+ bar Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colorado, killing five and injuring at least 25 more. It also comes after months of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has invaded conservative circles, fueled by accounts like Libs of TikTok, whose social media crusades against drag events, children’s hospitals, and more has found favor with people like Fox News’s Tucker Carlson.
In the past two months alone, Texas lawmakers have proposed legislation to classify drag performances as a “sexually oriented business,” while armed protesters showed up to a drag bingo event at a church in Katy, Texas. An Oklahoma donut shop hosting a drag event was firebombed in early November. And shortly after the midterm elections, the Tennessee state legislature introduced two new bills, one of which put criminal penalties on public drag performances.
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