- Early in the 2023 legislative session, at least 26 bills have been introduced in 14 states by Republican legislators taking aim at drag events — an abrupt movement that has emerged this year amid a wider conservative backlash to expanded LGBTQ rights.
- There’s no recent precedent for the bills, which seek to ban children from drag performances, block the shows from public venues or force locales that host drag events to register as “adult-oriented businesses,” according to LGBTQ advocacy groups.
- A Washington Post analysis of state legislation dating to 2015 shows the first bill in that period seeking broad restrictions on drag shows was pre-filed in November for this year’s legislative session.
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14 GOP-Led States Pushing Laws Against Drag Shows For Minors
