RuPaul’s Drag Race star Yvie Oddly has expertly shut down Oklahoma state representative Justin Humphries, who demanded that The University of Oklahoma’s president be “instantly terminated” for allowing Oddly to perform at the annual drag show, Crimson & Queens.
While the event was described as one of the university’s most popular, Humphries claimed that the university had lost its moral compass and was pushing a “woke and perverted agenda”. However, it’s unlikely that his issue was the $18,000 fee paid to Yvie Oddly, who he reportedly feels is a “pervert”.
Yvie Oddly has responded to Humphries’ attack with a statement on Twitter, suggesting that politicians use social fear as an easy way to rile up their constituents and win another term. She reminded her followers that Oklahoma currently ranks in the bottom half of all 50 US states when it comes to education, healthcare, crime, the economy and more.
“It’s ludicrous that any lawmaker would be this deeply concerned with how student groups choose to spend their budgets,” Yvie added, noting how the show was paid for by student activity fees, rather than state student tuition funds.
Yvie also pointed out that she is an openly queer celebrity and has never been paid as much as her straight counterparts. She believes that politicians are more concerned with controlling people they don’t understand instead of focusing on the difficult, life-threatening issues they’ve been unable to fix.
In recent months, anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been pushed forward in many states across the US, with Tennessee becoming the first state to outlaw public drag performances. In February, Oklahoma Republican state representative Kevin West put forward a bill that would criminalize drag shows considered “harmful to minors”.
Yvie Oddly’s performance at The University of Oklahoma’s Crimson & Queens has sparked a conversation about LGBTQ+ rights and the challenges faced by queer artists in today’s political climate.
