Philadelphia school to hold drag event for six year olds

Philadelphia’s second most coveted K-8 public school, Albert Greenfield School in the Philadelphia school district, is now hosting Drag Queen Story Hour for first-grade children. 

Alarmed parents reached out to Libs of TikTok after receiving an email Saturday, October 22 stating, “Your child’s classroom will be participating in the Drag Queen Story Hour!” Of course, there was no opt-out option mentioned, no discussion with parents, and no approval process. “We look forward to an energetic, diverse, and inclusive story hour that celebrates every type of family,” the email read.

Greenfield school and schools across the country are holding parents hostage to their desired agenda by creating an atmosphere of fear.  Parents are afraid to speak up. One Philadelphia parent told Libs of TikTok that it feels like she is in a “war zone with no allies.”  We all know what comes with the territory of simply saying you don’t want your 6-year-old exposed to the hyper-sexualization that comes with drag queens — you are immediately ostracized and labeled a homophobic bigot.  

It is still unclear why it is necessary to have a man, dressed as a caricature of a woman, reading to children in order to promote literacy. Thinking about this for only 4.3 seconds, I can think of about a dozen other ways to encourage kids to read.

A parent from the school said she is finally waking up to the real agenda, “It’s got to be everywhere, on repeat, and they have to start them as soon as possible. That is the strategy…remove parents’ authority and rights.” 

The School District of Philadelphia responded to Libs of TikTok’s request for comment by defending the Drag Queen Story Hour for first graders saying they are committed to “inclusivity.” The District also claims that parents have the option to opt out, despite there being no option in the email notification about the event:

“The School District of Philadelphia is proud to collaborate with a variety of community partners to provide an array of events and opportunities. We are committed to teaching inclusivity and acceptance to create positive academic, social and emotional outcomes for our students.

The drag queen story hour, a popular event throughout the City of Philadelphia, is designed as a creative outlet and intended to inspire and uplift students. This has not yet been scheduled with Albert M. Greenfield School. Our schools have an open line of communication with families so information about the event was shared with parents to allow an opportunity for questions. Like any external event or program that is held at school, participation is not required and parents have the opportunity to opt-out.”

We’re not sure what’s “inclusive” about men dressed as women performing for six year olds, but welcome to the new normal.

UPDATE:

Philadelphia Greenfield School released a statement in response to our article about their 6-year-old drag queen story hour.

“Unfortunately, the letter was sent to an organization that has promoted hate against the LGBTQ+ community, particularly towards trans* children and schools that have taken measures to provide a safe space for trans* children. Since then, the letter that was featured on this site was retweeted by prominent anti-LGBTQ accounts and featured in the national news.”

After labeling Libs of TikTok “an organization that has promoted hate against the LGBTQ+ community” they proceeded to rationalize their decision and said the quiet part out loud.

“Ultimately, one of our major goals is to promote a safe environment for our children, and we feel that initiatives such as Drag Queen Story Time do just that. In this case, Drag Queen Story Time is simply an avenue to normalize gender fluidity without explicitly having to teach kids about gender and provide enriched literary experiences with a bit of flair. The idea is to break harmful notions that support the bullying, teasing, and shaming that many trans* students face daily.”

Greenfield School has confirmed for us that drag story hour is intended to “normalize gender fluidity.” Can we call this grooming yet?

You can read the whole statement here.