Stilettos and Drag Queens
“Look how much better we can do feminine than them.” - Dr. Lady J.
Who is “them,” you ask? Dr. Lady is talking about cis-women, but read on. There’s much more.
I have the best memories of Robin Williams. I remember watching my dad tear up during Good Morning, Vietnam …and Good Will Hunting. Robin Williams was a light. To not have known him while also being such a mainstay in our childhood is a fascinating ride back in time.
Photo by The New Yorker
I remember going to the movies to see Mrs. Doubtfire. I can watch it today, and belly laugh at his initial shock when Uncle Frank (Harvey Fierstein) did Paper Mache on his face to depict what was ultimately an older woman who was meant to take care of his children so he can spend time with them. His children who were experiencing divorce right along with Robin’s character and his wife, played by Sally Field, that is.
What happened to Sally “Steel Magnolias Still Makes Me Cry” Fields??? Not Without My Daughter is also ingrained in my head, but that’s another story for another time.
I am sure my dad took me to see that, too. One of the many memories I have with my father is watching movies. Most wouldn’t dare take their kid to see Boyz n the Hood or even Shawshank Redemption, but I saw both with my dad. It became a conversation piece about upbringing, different worlds, and how to view the world, but I digress.
In the case of Robin Williams and Mrs. Doubtfire, a man being “dressed up” like a woman was not a conversation between my dad and I. Robin was an entertainer. He made us laugh and cry and think. All I can remember my father saying about Robin Williams was how much he appreciated him. Mrs. Doubtfire was the first time I ever saw a man in drag, but the art form certainly did not begin in 1993. Of course there are others including Martin as Shanaynay, Tom Hanks as Buffy, and Flip Wilson as Geraldine Jones.
Dr. Lady J (the first PhD holding person to receive their doctorate in drag queens**) shares in their work that the term “drag” actually points back to the 1800s when petticoats dragged on the floor.** It was a form of entertainment, as it is today. There is a history here that I cannot make black or white, but it seems the idea of modern-day drag queens has turned into a caricature of itself. Not because the art form or the people who do it masterfully wanted it this way, quite the contrary, but I assert that politics always needs a fall guy. We (humans, I mean 😏) can have an opinion about life without making others wrong, but we haven't quite nailed that skill.
This time, they chose the Queens to be the fall guy queen.
I ain’t here to paint the history or present day experience of Drag as snow white. Drag queens have a sorted history of racism. It is hard to unravel anything in history without talking about racism. In its time, there were minstrel shows.
I pronounced it menstrual in my head and giggled when I first saw it like a 13-year-old boy, but alas, it is pronounced men-strel.
Yes drag is entertainment, but in the 1800s, these shows were for informational purposes, as well. Today, they are believed to have shared the news of the day through the lens of white patriarchy. The shows usually included white men dressed up in Asian or Black faces to educate the masses. Men would often dress up in what we define as women’s clothing. In DC, William Dorsey (a black man who was enslaved) is the first person you can document as being a drag queen in the States. Of course, people started to find out about Dorsey’s secret “events”, and the cops shut it down. Dorsey, a trendsetter by all accounts, led the way for what we now see as modern-day advocacy for the queer community. He fought for the queer community’s right to assemble. History is really badass—crazy, wild, violent, hard to fathom, and BAD ASS.
People have been dressing up to entertain since time immemorial. We are talking 17th/18th century Japan to Shakespeare dressed in drag. Most of the men in Shakespeare’s plays played women. Gotta throw misogyny in there for good measure, as women weren't always seen as capable enough to perform on the stage.
We all have ways we express ourselves. Now, some have decided to break out of what we grew up believing is acceptable, and others express it using societal rules and religious doctrine. Still, we are all putting on a show occasionally. I love a stiletto nail, a necklace I picked up from a local thrift store, and some heels I cannot walk in longer than 20 minutes, but even if it is a one-woman show, I do it because I enjoy it, and sometimes, ya girl enjoys putting on a little show.
Drag is not the same as being a transgender man, woman, or non-binary person. Drag queens and kings are entertainers. Being trans is one’s gender identity. As mentioned, Dr. Lady J. shared that quote to indicate what a silly notion it is to think that Queens and/or transgender women think they do it better than cis-women. I mean as a cis woman, I have seen first hand what a beautiful sense of creative expression drag queens give to community. The point I gleaned from Dr. Lady J. is we gotta mind our damn business and let drag queens be the entertainers they want (and perhaps are meant) to be. Of course, they are so much more, but we will dig into that another time.
Well, maybe one quick point. Do we, tax paying, working our 9a to 5p or 7p to 6a or on the weekends or 7 days straight, paying $7 dollars for a dozen eggs unless you own some chickens, want politically savvy storytelling to bait us into thinking we care that much about drag queens? Maybe some of us do.
Some folks reading this will “get it.” Some will have questions. Comment and question below. Research to come. In the meantime, check out our newest episode about Nicole Halliwell and her business as a drag queen.
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