Sasha Colby wants Tennessee frat boys arrested for appropriating drag on Halloween: 'What are they going to do?'
RuPaul's Drag Race star (and Drag President) Sasha Colby wants to neck-crack down on anti-drag culture — starting with straight frat boys appropriating the art form on Halloween.
In an exclusive interview on EW's Quick Drag podcast (below), the mother of the House of Colby — and season 15 top-four contender — hits back at conservative politicians pushing harmful legislation in states like Tennessee, where a bill severely limiting drag performances was signed into law in early March.
"I'm very nervous that these politicians and people in power, they know what they're doing. They know that they're programming the mass. I genuinely think that all they're trying to do is get that narrative out, despite the harm it does to any of us. It's going to create a bunch of not-good people," she says. "So, we have this juxtaposition of trying to make the generation well, but this whole other yin and yang of, well, we want to leave this world worse than when we found it, and people are okay with that."
Sasha, however, isn't okay with it, and she has a half-serious proposal for how to point out glaring ridiculousness in Tennessee's new laws, which restrict drag from public spaces where children might be present — even if the show is family-friendly, like the drag story hour events.
"You're not taking a kid to a 21-and-over place. It's wild, there are spaces and there are children who are open and parents who are welcoming, and these are the kids who watch Drag Race and are fans!" Sasha continues, responding to a note about art forms like film and television adapting for their audience with adults-only ratings for specific titles. "What are we all going to do on Halloween when they all want to dress up in drag? I'd love to go to Tennessee and arrest everybody who's in drag. College boys walking around in their girlfriends' cheerleading outfit? What are they going to do? Everybody should be arrested."
She finishes, "As President Sasha, I would love to issue a mandatory costume for this year, that everybody in the world dresses up in drag for Halloween, and let's see what happens!"
The queens of #DragRaceVegas break down how we can all keep fighting the heinous anti-drag and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation sweeping our country through our votes, volunteer work, and more. ❤️@cocomontrese @DeJaSkye @DerrickBarry @ShannelOfficial @AlexisMateo79 @aquariaofficial pic.twitter.com/2lvxnmmYqw
— World of Wonder (@WorldOfWonder) March 26, 2023
Sasha's Drag Race family — including production company World of Wonder — recently partnered with the ACLU to establish the Drag Defense Fund, which aims to raise money for those impacted by recent onslaught of drag-based legislation.
EW also exclusively revealed that queer stars and RuPaul's Drag Race winners would unite for the Drag Isn't Dangerous digital telethon on May 7, which will benefit charities that support LGBTQ causes and drag performers in need.
In a statement about anti-drag politics, RuPaul slammed conservative politicians as bullies targeting an increasingly vulnerable community.
MTV / World of Wonder Sasha Colby as God on 'RuPaul's Drag Race.'
"'Hey, look over there!' — a classic distraction technique, distracting us away from the real issues that they were voted into office to focus on: jobs, healthcare, keeping our children safe from harm at their own school," the Emmy-winning Drag Race host said in an Instagram video, referencing Drag Race winner Jaida Essence Hall's legendary quote from the season 12 debate challenge (also starring Jeff Goldblum). "We know that bullies are incompetent at solving real issues. They look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective. They think our love, our light, our laughter, and our joy are signs of weakness, but they're wrong, because that is our strength. Drag queens are the marines of the queer movement. Don't get it twisted and don't be distracted. Register to vote so we can get these stunt queens out of office and put some smart people with real solutions into government."
RuPaul's Drag Race continues Fridays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on MTV. Listen to Sasha's full Quick Drag interview above, and check out more from the season 15 cast in the podcast feed below.
Subscribe to EW's Quick Drag podcast for recaps of RuPaul's Drag Race, including reactions with the cast, special guests, and more.
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