WILTON MANORS, FLORIDA — A cross-dressing man suspects a sinister agenda lurks behind a new bill aiming to protect children from exposure to adult content at drag shows.
“It starts with the drag queens, it starts with the transgendered people and then all of us are next,” the man told attendees of “The March in Heels” LGBTQ rally on Sunday. “These bills are just the beginning of a much bigger picture to try to eradicate people like us from existence because we don’t align with a straight, white Christian nation.”
The man admitted that children should not be permitted at drag shows, saying “the things I do are of adult nature,” but suggested the Protection of Children bill (HB 1423) is a Trojan horse for a wide-reaching attack.
“The reason for this bill is the problem, because clearly the language is so intentionally vague that it also puts an attack on transgendered individuals as well,” he continued. “[The bill is] basically saying if somebody sees someone out in public that does not match the gender of their birth… those people could be arrested, they could be attacked… a number of other things.”
“It starts with the drag queens. It starts with transgendered people, then all of us are next.”
— Chris Nelson 🇺🇸 🏝 (@ReOpenChris) March 26, 2023
Drag queen tells demonstrators bills backed by @GovRonDeSantis are part of a “much bigger picture to eradicate people like us from existence” that are not “straight, white, Christian” pic.twitter.com/PZYyOdFPid
Roughly 500 people attended the event, according to independent reporter and activist Chris Nelson.
PROTECTION OF CHILDREN
Neither bill discusses gender identity or sexual orientation, as indicated by the March in Heels speaker. They also do not permit unprovoked attacks on any individual, even if that person was in violation of the proposed law.
The twin bills specify that “adult live performance” refers to shows that “depicts or simulates nudity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement, specific sexual activities lewd conduct, or the lewd exposure of prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts.” The text adds that sexualizing children in this way “constitutes an immediate, serious danger to the public.”
Rep. Randy Fine (R-Brevard) is sponsoring HB 1423, while Sen. Clay Yarborough (R-Jacksonville) filed SB 1438.
READ MORE: New Florida Bill: Admitting Kids to Drag Shows May Land You in Prison
Discussing the bill in a committee meeting last week, Fine said: “I think we have reached a point in our society where we’re having debates over things I never even imagined we’d be debating when I ran for office eight years ago. And that's whether it’s a good idea to take little children to events of this lewd nature.”
“Do what you want if you're an adult. Just because I don't want to go, I will defend your right to go to an event to the death,” Fine added. “The question today is not why do we want to stop this. The question is why some people are so determined to do this to children.”
