In a message to students, faculty, and staff, West Texas A&M University President Walter Wendler said that drag performances denigrate women and declared that the school will not host a drag performance on campus.
In an Instagram posting, the WTAMU student organization “Spectrum” announced the drag event by noting that it was in collaboration with F1RSTGEN (and other orgs) to produce A Fool’s Drag Race.
Wendler did not condemn drag in his message. He suggested that people send money towards the Trevor Project. This is the organization from which the drag show was to be benefitted.
“West Texas A&M University will not host a drag show on campus,” Wendler wrote. “It was advertised as a fundraiser for The Trevor Project and was scheduled for March 31, 2023. The nonprofit organization focuses on suicide prevention—a noble cause—in the LGBTQ community.”
Drag is a performance that exaggerates aspects of womanhood (sexuality and femininity), which shows stereotypes of women in cartoon-like extremes. It’s intended to amuse others and…
