In honor of October being LGBTQ History Month, GLAAD is uplifting the stories of those who paved the path for queer people around the world.
To kick off this celebration, GLAAD joined six of Rupaul’s Drag Race’s most iconic queens behind the scenes of their shoot, to talk about their Asian identities and the importance of learning LGBTQ history.
Drag superstar and recording artist Jujubee kicked off the conversation sharing, “I celebrate Asian Drag Excellence every single day because that’s what my life is all about. I’m an Asian drag queen, a person of Lao descendant. There’s nothing I can hide about this and I wouldn’t want to. So I stand proud and really loud.”
On the importance of learning LGBTQ history, Jujubee adds, “If you don’t know where you come from, how are you going to move into the future?”
Vietnamese drag royalty Plastique Tiara talks about the importance of representation. “I used to be a very scared lonely little kid who just wanted to express myself. And when I found drag… drag really saved my life. So, I’m here to tell that those little Vietnamese boys or who are scared that you can do it too. And here it is.”
Season 13 queen Kahmora Hall shares that to her, “Celebrating Asian drag excellence to me means always showcasing my heritage on the runway and life on the street. Being proud of who I am being proud of where I come from, where my parents come from and all the hard work that they’ve done so I can be who I can be today.”
She adds, “Drag may seem very glamorous and beautiful and sparkly, which it is, but at the end of the day, drag has always been political and it’s so important to not forget that like being in drag is a protest going out there in high heels is a protest.” She then reminds fans, “Make sure you vote this fall.”
Drag Race and We’re Here star Priyanka couldn’t agree more. Priyanka says, “You think putting this dress on is easy? This is a protest sitting right here and a corset with my legs out. My foot’s hurting. That’s a protest. But being able to stand around and drag in public, technically a protest.”
Drag Race season 3 winner Raja says that “it’s imperative” that we celebrate and reflect those who made this all possible. “It’s really easy to kind of take for granted the the freedoms that we actually do have now as a culture, as a global community. When in actuality, there were people who did this before us and people who really paved the way and I’m finding myself now to be in sort of that position. And I think it’s super important, we have to know exactly where we came from before we can make any sort of progress in the future.”
Lastly, season 16 winner and the first East Asian winner of the Drag Race franchise Nymphia Wind shares that, “You don’t really see a lot of Asian representation or really strong Asian characters, so, to be able to be in a room full of Asian drag queens is amazing. And what a long way we’ve come finally.” Wind adds, “I feel very honored to be a part of this.”
For more behind-the-scenes content all month long, check out RuPaul’s Drag Race social channels!