State leader Premier Daniel Andrews has gone on the political offensive in the culture wars inviting five cross-dressers to Parliament House in response to the cancellation of drag storytime events across Melbourne.
On May 17, the drag queens were hosted by the Victorian Labor premier and Minister for Equality, Harriet Shing, to celebrate the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia.
“Nobody shows up quite the way that a drag queen does,” Shing told reporters and members of the LGBT community and their children.
“When the morning teas weren’t going ahead and the story times weren’t going ahead, I thought, well, let’s get five [drag performers] and see if we can’t make Parliament more extravagantly sequined than it’s ever been,” she said reported The Age newspaper.
Premier Digs In on LGBT Rights
Premier Andrews has taken a strong stance on the drag queen storytime issue after community members reacted negatively to the events, forcing their cancellation across several taxpayer-funded libraries.“We want you to remember this. People who are driven by hate will always be overcome by people driven by love. In Victoria, you can be whoever you want to be,” he added.
The government also pledged $1.85 million (US$1.23 million) to Rainbow Health Australia for inclusion training to service organisations and $700,000 in grants to the LGBT community.
The state’s opposition backed the events complaining that they did not receive an invitation.
On the same day, 79 local councils across Victoria raised the rainbow flag while also holding meetings to discuss the alleged targeting by “right-wing fringe groups” of the drag storytime events.
This week, three events were either cancelled or moved online after Victorian Police advised organisers of potential safety threats.
“The wonderful Eltham Library have been forced to move their Drag Storytime online due to Victoria Police advice,” the Rainbow Community Angels group wrote on Facebook.
In response to the parliamentary event, Victorian Senator Ralph Babet said it was nothing more than a distraction from the state of Victoria’s budget.
“This government has blown out our debt to a dangerous level. Our state’s debt is expected to grow beyond $165 billion (US$109 billion) by 2025-26, more than Queensland, New South Wales, and Tasmania combined!” he told The Epoch Times in a statement.
Babet also defended the protest actions against drag storytime while calling on the Victorian Liberal Party to do the same.
“These parents are not bigots, they are civilised citizens who believe in protecting our most vulnerable children from adult themes,” he said. “Since drawing a line in the sand to protect children from sexualised content, my office has been inundated with support from mums and dads right across the state.”
Drag Storytimes Prevalent Across Australia But Facing Push Back
Drag storytime events have popped up all around Australia, sparking a strong response from local communities.In January 2020, students from the University of Queensland’s Liberal National Club—headed by Wilson Gavin—protested such an event at the Brisbane Square council library located in the CBD.
Yet local council member, Vicki Howard, criticised the group calling them “narrow-minded” and reiterating that the Club no longer had an affiliation with the state’s opposition Liberal-National party.
Meanwhile, in Adelaide in March, death threats were issued against staff at the Mount Gambier Library over a drag storytime event featuring Dolly Diamond.