Breccan F. Thies
New York City’s public schools are using tax money to pay drag queens to perform for children, often without parental knowledge or consent, according to city records.
Since its creation in 2018, Drag Queen Story Hour NYC — which recently changed its name to Drag Story Hour NYC — has received $207,000 in taxpayer funds.
In the month of May alone, the drag group received $46,000 from the city for their services, which includes performing in front of children as young as three years old, the New York Post reported.
The Post also reported that since January, the drag group has performed 49 times at 34 different city schools that range from elementary to high school.
“I can’t believe this. I am shocked,” Helen Qiu, a mom whose 11-year-old son attends a city public school, said. “I would be furious if he was exposed without my consent. This is not part of the curriculum.” Qiu is also a candidate for New York state’s assembly.
The breakdown of expenditures includes $50,000 from the state government’s Council on the Arts, as well as $157,000 from city government agencies like the Departments of Education, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Community Development, and Transportation, according to the Post.
Republican city council member Vickie Paladino, who represents Queens, said she is considering action against schools that book drag shows for children.
“I am considering pulling funding to any school in my district that is implementing Drag Queen Story Hour,” Paladino said. “We are taking hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the pockets of hardworking New York taxpayers … to fund a program teaching little children about their gender fluidity? Not. On. My. Watch.”
Drag queen story hours have been controversial for years, often being set up in public libraries for children to hear drag queens tell stories and read books, often times exposing them to gender ideology and other adult sexual topics. One common book, The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish, outrightly targets children with gender fluidity ideology.
Breccan F. Thies is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter @BreccanFThies.