Stars of RuPaul's Drag Race are using their platform to bring awareness to the Black Lives Matter movement. In a recent video, Bob the Drag Queen and Peppermint explain why it's important for people to say "Black Lives Matter" and post about it on social media.
Bob the Drag Queen won season 8 of Drag Race and Peppermint was runner-up on season 9. The reality TV stars and activists are not only using their platform to explain to fans the importance of speaking up about the Black Lives Matter movement, they also speak about their white Drag Race co-stars and how they have to educate them on why it matters that they post about it.
In the hour-long YouTube video, Bob and Peppermint discuss the recent killings of black civilians at the hands of the police. They discuss their experiences as a black man and a black trans woman in America and the importance of intersectionality, which is a topic they just released another video about. That can be found here. Peppermint says "I am not a gay man, but I marched for marriage equality." The drag superstars also delve into the power of their white Drag Race sisters have and why it's important for them to use that power. Bob references Katya, one of the most famous queens from the show. He says that he explained to Katya that when she posts Black Lives Matter she is making a statement that hundreds of young white girls who follow her are now receiving. Katya has the power to send a message to a demographic of people that Bob and Peppermint do not have access to. Bob points out that some of these young white girls who follow Katya have white mothers who are racist and that is an avenue for discussion and change. Bob goes on to say that "12% of the population can not change the racism problem in America." The rest of the nation has to help make this change happen.
Trixie Mattel and Katya released statements on Twitter in support of Black Lives Matter after admitting that they were afraid of sounding like passive social media activists who are not actually helping. Peppermint points out in this video that white fear of saying the wrong thing can not be the center of this discussion. RuPaul has yet to make a statement on the Black Lives Matter movement. She has not been active on Twitter for several months. In the midst of this important time in history, JK Rowling took to Twitter to make an ignorant statement about the lives of transgender people. It appears as though Peppermint and Bob may need to make videos every week until the white people in power stop steering the conversation away from the issue at hand: Black Lives Matter. Black Trans Lives Matter. If anyone reading this would like to get involved, this is a GoFundMe supporting Black Trans Women.
Source: Bob the Drag Queen
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