Five people were killed and 18 were injured after a gunman opened fire at Club Q, an LGBTQ nightspot in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Nov. 19
people.com
By
Christine Pelisek December 2, 2022
Jinkx Monsoon; Alaska Thunderf--- 5000. PHOTO: ASTRID STAWIARZ/GETTY; EMMA MCINTYRE/GETTY
Ever since the Nov. 19
mass shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colo., some of the nation's top drag performers have increased their security at performances, according to an
NBC News report.
"We're trying to smile and make people happy for the holidays, and in the back of our heads we're thinking, 'I hope I don't get shot,'"
Jinkx Monsoon, the two-time
RuPaul's Drag Race winner, told NBC News.
Monsoon, who is set to become the first drag performer to
take on the role of Matron "Mama" Morton in
Chicago on
Broadway, said she has hired armed security and banned re-entries once her performances begin.
For months, she has employed metal detectors at the doors of her U.S. engagements and she has plotted escape routes.''
Drag performer Alaska Thunderf--- 5000, said that since the Club Q shooting, police cars have been positioned down the street from some of her shows.
"It's mortifying that we even have to think about these things for something as joyous and celebratory as a drag show," Alaska said, NBC News reported. "Why do we have to be worried about where the exits are and where a safe route to get to safety is? It's terrifying, but that's the reality of it."
On Nov. 22,
LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD released a report that found 124 incidents in 2022 of anti-LGBTQ protests and threats targeting specific drag events. The report said the bulk of the incidents occurred during Pride festivities.
The "violent rhetoric and incidents," have continued to increase, GLAAD wrote.
According to GLAAD, there have been eight anti-drag bills proposed this year.''
