Drag queen

Drag queens are performers - usually gay men, sometimes transgendered women - who dress in "drag," clothing associated with the female gender, usually highly exaggerated versions thereof. Drag queens often do drag to perform, singing or lip-syncing and dancing, participating in events such as gay pride parades, cabarets, discotheques, and other celebrations and venues.

Opinions

Drag queens are often rejected by parts of the transgender community - especially, but not exclusively, by many transsexual women - because those people are afraid that they might also be stereotyped as Drag Queens, which they are not. (Canadian transgender activist Star Maris wrote a song entitled I'm Not A Fucking Drag Queen to express her feelings on the subject.)

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Some feminists believe that drag promotes harmful stereotypes of women. Most drag artists would respond that drag is a very specific aesthetic and is not meant to satirize women in general. Many gender theorists see drag as a subversion of gender roles.

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However, many drag queen character creations are obviously satirical of femininity and make no apology in sending up femininity.

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Many drag queens also dress to challenge societies rather regimental attitudes on what should constitute the outward appearance of male and female. European society seems particularly regimental in this respect. Some drag queens who are fairly 'convincing' delight in momentarily confusing members of the public who are not expecting to see them in a normal situation.

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There is actually quite alot of cross-over within the world of drag/cross dressing. Many drag queens can move quite easily between a larger than life costume artist-type look and a more standard, feminine image. Although many drag queens invent 'show-biz' type characters and perform, many too have also transvestite leanings and will swap about with characters as the mood chooses. Many transvestites are heterosexual, but not all are. A quick trawl through any t-girl contact site will confirm this, and the huge range of degrees of dressing and sexualities.

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Some members of the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community also disdain drag queens. Some are distressed by the participation of drag queens in pride parades, believing that this projects a harmful image of the LGB community and impedes acceptance. However, others see this point of view as intolerant of the diversity in the community, and still others simply regard drag as traditional fun that need not be politically analyzed.

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