“Bridesmaids” actress Melissa McCarthy has come under fire for an Instagram post she shared that appears to promote drag but really just illustrates several significant issues with the current state of drag performances.
“You’ve been entertained by drag queens your whole life,” the post says. “Don’t pretend it’s a problem now.” The photo includes a montage of Robin Williams as Mrs. Doubtfire, “Monty Python” star John Cleese, Bugs Bunny from “Looney Tunes,” Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in “Some Like It Hot,” and others dressed in drag.
View this post on Instagram
McCarthy’s meme, which was simply captioned, “This,” quickly went viral after she posted it yesterday. Fan reviews were mixed, however, with many commenters claiming drag of yesteryear was mainly done as comedy, not because anyone was trying to say men could literally become women.
“And it was all comedic in nature…god forbid if anyone laughed today…,” one account observed.
Others pointed out that the actress’s examples didn’t show the highly sexualized version of drag that’s being promoted for children. This is becoming the target of legislative efforts in several states, including Tennessee, where Republican Governor Bill Lee just signed two pieces of legislation into law Thursday protecting children from sex-change procedures and sexually explicit drag shows.
“How is this the same as the men who are pole dancing and writhing around in bondage gear and thongs in front of children? I’m so f***ing disappointed. I was such a fan,” one user wrote, referencing a previous incident of a sexually explicit drag show in London that was promoted specifically for babies and toddlers.
“Oh honey, watch some of those videos,” another fan wrote. “These guys’ shows are highly sexualized performances. It’s not ‘The Birdcage’ anymore. Even then it was adult cabaret. ADULT ENTERTAINMENT. As a lifelong liberal democrat, I find these performances today are entirely inappropriate for children. I love you, but open you [sic] freakin eyes, girl.”
“Drag isn’t the issue,” a third person shared. “…The half naked men practicality giving lap dances to children… that’s the issue. Along with trying to convince children that they don’t know what gender they are. When all they SHOULD be learning are their alphabets and such. It’s sick.”