Regardless of whether you are an avid fan, a casual watcher, or indifferent towards RuPaul’s Drag Race, you cannot deny the impact that it has had on Gen Z culture. For those of you who may think you’ve never seen or even heard of it, various memes and references that have pervaded social media might make you reconsider.
For starters, much of Gen Z lingo gains its traction and popularity through RuPaul’s Drag Race. Terms and phrases like mother, gagged, snatched, it’s giving/serving, I’m living for, and spill the tea were incorporated into mass media mostly after they had been used in the show. Many individuals use phrases that either originated or gained popularity in the program without realizing it.
RuPaul’s Drag Race has a gold mine of memes. Have you ever heard the TikTok audio, “Is it me? Am I the drama? I don’t think I’m the drama,”? That’s a quote from drag queen Scarlet Envy from All Stars season 6. How about, “I have one thing to say: You better work, bitch!”? That’s RuPaul herself in the Supermodel music video. We have the very talented comedy queen Trixie Mattel to thank for her popular quote on the audience she draws in: “I’m big with teens, girls, lesbians, the mentally ill, the very sad, folk music enthusiasts.”
RuPaul’s Drag Race and the drag culture surrounding RuPaul have indeed been snubbed in modern media when it comes to giving proper credit for the jokes and online references that much of Gen Z humor seems to be built on.
Perhaps this is indicative of drag culture in general. Of course, drag has revolutionized fashion and beauty, with queens transforming runways in creative ways by challenging conventions, exploring silhouettes, and celebrating gender expression. Drag queens in high fashion have pushed many individuals and admirers to wear clothing that is more authentic to their persons.
Early drag queens were also pioneers in creating a space in performance and media for queer individuals. RuPaul is often regarded for his efforts and success in removing the taboo of drag. Before him, drag queens were quite stigmatized, but as RuPaul became a TV personality, he was one of the major actors in the queer rights movement who campaigned for acceptance and positivity surrounding drag culture. Thanks to these activists, drag is more widely accepted and now is able to influence modern culture.
On a more serious note, drag queens were heavily involved in the LGBTQIA+ rights movement, especially in the 1960s and 1970s. The Stonewall Riots, for example, were incited by a group of diverse queer individuals, like activists Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and many drag queens. This was a turning point in the fight for a more inclusive future. Again, this paved the way for a pop culture in which drag and queer arts could be brought in and influence the public.
Drag has been around for millennia, dating back to Ancient Greece, where men would play female roles in theater due to restrictions on female participation. It always has and always will be an art form. It’s impossible to argue with the artistry and sheer skill of drag queens, particularly the many who spend hours sewing their garments and learning proper makeup techniques. If you see any look by Arrietty, for example, from season 17 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, it is impossible to deny her talent.
Donald Trump seeks to villainize drag queens. Coupled with extremely conservative news sources, he has made drag culture the subject of hateful rhetoric regarding the preservation of the American family and values and the protection of American children. Don’t the resilient tales of drag queens breaking free from conformity mirror those ideas on which America was first founded? Isn’t it ironic that an alleged rapist seems most concerned about the grooming of American children by drag queens when there is no real data to back these claims?
Trump has recently announced that he will be banning the Kennedy Center from featuring drag shows, and thus, seeks to impose his personal views on drag to the entire American public. This assault on freedom and art certainly comes as no surprise given the ludicrous series of executive orders he has issued, but a stop to drag at the Kennedy Center would nonetheless be a devastating blow to the art and drag communities. The Kennedy Center hosts a plethora of drag performances, from the family-friendly Drag Story Hour to productions of musicals featuring drag like Hairspray. It is difficult to see why this is a priority of the Trump administration when larger problems clearly loom overhead.
Drag is indeed an art, and while we owe a lot of our modern jokes to it, more serious assaults on this art beg for our attention. Please go to a drag show, support local queens, or perhaps just put on an episode of RuPauls Drag Race for a laugh. Censorship is the enemy of true art. Fight it by exposing yourself to diverse perspectives and art forms. It is vital to protect modern culture and not allow the hard work of those activists who came before us to have been in vain.
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