RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE: Toxicity Surrounding

RuPaul’s Drag Race is an American reality competition tv show that has been running since 2009. RuPaul’s Drag Race is named after the ‘Queen of Drag,’ RuPaul Charles, who produces, judges and hosts the show. He has turned the underground world of drag into a mainstream hit, establishing the show as one of the most notable LGBTQ+ shows.

It’s clear RuPaul’s Drag Race has positively impacted the queer community. The show has broken stereotypes and given audiences a new perspective on drag, and everyone has fallen in love. Throughout the 15 seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race, RuPaul has acclaimed hundreds of Drag Queens, taking them from small clubs in cities around America to the main stage. Queens have been given a platform to grow their businesses and media presence. They have influenced pop culture for years and continue expanding into cosmetics, beauty, fashion and podcasts.

RuPaul’s Drag Race consists of challenges that push Queens out of their comfort zones. From fashion challenges to acting, RuPaul’s Drag Race has it all. In addition to the competition, the Queens on RuPaul’s Drag Race communicate the struggles of being queer in America. The majority of the Queens have experienced hardship and oppression themselves. Many of them struggled coming out as young adults and teens, and the realization that their first bully was their parents is something that many young queer Americans can relate to.

What sparked the idea of this article was the opinion of an older gay man at my work in the Gay Village. I asked him what he thought about RuPaul’s Drag Race, and shockingly he responded by saying: “I don’t like the way the competition pins the queens against each other, it creates a very competitive and toxic drag community. The [drag] community originated out of love and sisterhood but the show takes away from that.” https://medium.com/@shawnbanks18/everything-wrong-with-the-universeof-rupauls-drag-race-f3dd6ad39a63 | https://dbknews.com/0999/12/31/ arc-ja75ekmzcrhbtmw7jikbh3l7ya/

Prior to the conversation, I never thought anything about RuPaul’s Drag Race could be controversial. But he was right, a community born out of oppression and homophobia, whose philosophy is to spread love, has lost itself.

I began to think about the toxicity spreading throughout the community; the audience associated with RuPaul’s Drag Race is young and known to be very toxic. The fans are ruthless and are quick to destroy any Queen’s career. Most drag queens have an online presence where they share content, advertise their brands and interact with fans. The media likes to create drama, and often, this causes conflict between the Queens. To the extent that Queens will avoid performing with each other and start rumours too, for lack of better words, ‘cancel’ their platforms. Drag has always been about family and inclusivity, so the toxicity derived from the show is damaging.

Overall, the show has benefited the drag community by exposing audiences to a beautiful aspect of queer culture, encouraging inclusivity and growth. Unfortunately, RuPaul’s Drag Race has allowed an aroma of hate and toxicity to suffocate the community. The increasing amount of toxicity online from fans has ended many Queens’ careers and encouraged hate backstage between performers. RuPaul has created a franchise that has not only established names like Trixie Mattel, Bianca Del Rio and Shangela (to name a few) into American households but has also given so many other upcoming performers a career. If you let it, RuPaul’s Drag Race will continue to spread love throughout every household worldwide.