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WATCH: Sasha Velour on how drag gives queer people ‘permission to be ourselves’

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Drag, by multiple measures, is everywhere. For Sasha Velour, a genderfluid performer who turned to the art form as a means of expression years ago, said the awareness around drag is a recent and welcome development.

“It feels exciting because we remember being kids and not having the same access to that knowledge,” Velour said of drag’s acceptance today. “And when we finally did learn about it, how that changed our lives and finally gave us permission to be ourselves.”

Velour herself contributed to that increased visibility as the winner of the ninth season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” The artist also explores the art and history of drag in a new book, “The Big Reveal.”

That wider acceptance of drag, though, has led to others’ seeing the form of expression as a threat, she added.

In recent years, there’s been a record number of GOP-led bills targeting the lives of LGBTQ+ people. In the months before this year’s Pride, state lawmakers across the country have sought to restrict the rights of trans people, as well as limit, or ban, drag performances or queer-themed books from classrooms and libraries.

Velour said the backlash against drag is connected to the backlash against trans people and is a larger reaction to the recent shift in acceptance of the art form and of the LGBTQ+ community.

“The hopeful thing is that so many minds have been changed already,” she said. “And it's not a question for us. This is not a debate. We know that our identities are real, and our community helps people and saves lives.”

“It's going to be impossible to go backwards,” she added.


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