Support Your Local Drag Queens

“For 15 years, since Discovery Green opened, we’ve done Pride and Rainbow events,” says Barry Mandel, president and park director of the 12-acre downtown greenspace. “And we’ve always had drag queens.”

This Friday, February 17, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Discovery Green hosts the annual Rainbow on the Rink event, a disco/drag party that has always been a popular evening at the park’s skating rink. So imagine Mandel’s surprise and frustration when park’s Facebook post recently received a barrage of anti-drag comments.

Douglas Saint Louis wrote, “I love to roller skate but this is absolutely gross, just another Sodom and Gomorrah in action again!” And Taylor Patterson posted this: “Brain washing and conditioning of our youth. Trying to normalize mental health issues. Hope they have extra cops in the area.”

Mandel says there have been no physical threats, although he’s taken down the comments that were personal attacks. The park is hiring extra security, and the Houston Police Department will also be monitoring the event. Some people have told Mandel they would be writing their state legislators.

Mandel says they’ve never had a problem before. But this year’s HB 643, filed by Republican Rep. Jared Patterson, would expand the Texas definition of a “sexually oriented business” to include any venue that serves alcohol and hosts a “drag performance.” In turn, a “drag performance” is when “a performer exhibits a gender identity that is different than the performer’s gender assigned at birth using clothing, makeup, or other physical markers and sings, lip syncs, dances, or otherwise performs before an audience for entertainment.” A similar bill, HB 708, has also been filed. Both have sparked national media coverage and stoked the flames of anti-LGBTQ outrage in right-wing circles. This follows a trend of recent protests, some by armed persons, at libraries hosting drag-queen story hours.

At Friday’s event, guests will enjoy music by DJ Joe Ross and performances by local drag queens Angelina DM Trailz, Reign LaRue, and Ericka Sanchez. Admission is free, but skating fees apply. Non-skaters are encouraged to come out as well, both to enjoy the party and to show support for the performers.

Trailz is a popular Lady Gaga impersonator and a classically trained violinist who performed at the very first Rainbow on the Rink event. She studied violin at the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and has been performing for almost 20 years. She will play the violin on Friday while roller skating.

“We really want the community to come out and support these performers,” says Mandel. “The park has always been a welcoming place for all people,” he wrote on the park’s Facebook page. Many of the comments have been very positive, and Mandel is hoping the event will be fun and trouble-free. Rainbow on the Rink is just one of many park events celebrating Discovery Green’s 15th anniversary this year.

What: Rainbow on the Rink
Where: Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney St.
When: February 17, 7:00 to 10:00 p.m.
Info: discoverygreen.com