Drag Kings and Queens are Combatting multiple forms of Oppressive Gender Norms
An analysis of the drag communities' efforts to combat oppressive gender norms.
Men shouldn't be seen in public wearing what is thought to be “women’s clothing”, makeup, fake eyelashes and acrylic nails. Society pressures us to believe statements like this are true, maintaining a divide in society for what is thought to be acceptable behaviour for a man and a woman. I think it is acceptable to identify however you're personally most comfortable while not being tied down to the gender you were assigned at birth. How do you feel? Well, this is already happening, started in North America and has since been gaining popularity globally, it’s called “Drag”.
Drag kings and queens are women and men, binary or non, performing exaggerated roles of the opposite gender on stage, either in front of a live audience or to be broadcasted on TV. Drag kings are often times women and drag queens are often times men.
The drag community prides itself in accepting anyone who wants to partake in the art, no matter their age, gender, race and sexual identity. With virtually anyone accepted to take part in the art and performances, drag has begun to shed light on oppressive circumstances faced by these performers and begun incorporating that into their on stage roles. Drag performers are challenging oppressive gender norms caused by society, through their performances and their costumes while doing so.
The drag community provides a safe, inclusive environment for anyone, where they're able to perform their art. It’s crucial to have a place like this, for so long drag performers were constantly harassed by law enforcement with a skew of charges, including “Impersonation of a Woman”, we speak about this topic as if no one has ever been prosecuted for their beliefs…it has been going on for decades and needs to stop. José Sarria, a godmother of drag was one of the men often finding himself in trouble with the law due to his performances. José grew so tiresome of this that he began to bear a button that read “I am a Boy” in order to exempt himself from the ridiculous law.
Drag kings and queens gain an enormous amount of confidence through the art, they use drag as there tool to fight back and individualize themselves.
a point argued by Erika Morris’ publication in Archer Magazine.
“it’s a tool for people to take gender into their own hands and really think of what it means to them, and than present that on stage.”
The popularity in drag is growing extremely fast, from everyone not only members of the LGBTQ+ community. the reasoning is pretty simple, these queens and kings are able to intelligently and hilariously dismantle the oppressive gender norms caused by society. Kings and queens are able to do this because they usually draw inspiration for their roles from strong female role models in their lives.
Drag doesn't conform itself to society's norms in any way, instead they play with them. Men and Women are held to an immense amount of pressure on how to carry themselves in certain public places in their lives. Men, they're expected to have a clean, short, hair cut and a well tailored suit while sporting a watch and cologne. For women, hair neatly done, makeup, perfume and form fitting clothing. I find it to completely unnecessary to conform our bodies to this and instead we need to find our own comfortability and live our lives through that motion.
If a man can wear a face full of makeup, women’s clothing and wear what is commonly thought of as “beauty enhancing” accessories all while still being a man says something. Superficial qualities are not what dictates gender, it’s so much deeper than the clothing we wear and drag encourages everyone to think about that.
“I think something like [Drag Race] makes it even more open for a younger generation to experience who they are and live their lives way more comfortably than any other generations before”
As a society we use clothing as too strict of a guideline when identifying someones gender, this leads to so many problems, the two most significant is pressure and exclusion. Exclusion to those not conforming and an immense amount of pressure on those who are. We need to accept that gender is perceived in so many different ways and that it is ok to break down and experiment with who we really are. Something drag evidently shows us.
“I got my butch on as [Dani Boi], he wore a denim dress, plastic choker and cowboy boots as [Beth Western] and in that moment we went from a seemingly straight couple to a gender bending duo”
Any person no matter their sexual identity could struggle with gender due to the oppressive norms that are inflicted upon us. Drag provides a voice to fight back for people who have struggled, continue to struggle and will struggle in the future, a much needed stepping stone needed in society towards accepting everyone.
The drag community is breaking down borders of gender through their performances and with their costumes while performing. They are able to prove that the mainstream idea of man or woman truly has nothing to do with the clothing you're wearing or the way you're perceived by others, it’s so much deeper than that. As the world continue to evolves so will drag alongside providing this safe haven while fighting back against oppressions.
