The taxpayer-funded Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) was forced to cancel a drag queen storytime session for children as young as three after opponents forced a withdrawal.
The four-hour event, held on the outskirts of Sydney, New South Wales, was designed as a gateway to the city’s annual gay and lesbian Mardi Gras week.
A drag performer was scheduled to read aloud to children, sparking outrage from local residents, Christian groups and MPs who questioned whether the session was appropriate for young children.
Some claimed that the incident was a form of “gender indoctrination” based on LGBTQIA+ principles.
File/Drag queens participate in Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is the world’s largest gay and lesbian nighttime parade, attracting more than 600,000 spectators, including thousands of international tourists, in the New South Wales capital. (Paul Jones/AFP via Getty Images)
The ABC is currently considering its options for holding the event following the “hateful and offensive response” it described in its cancellation. announcement:
The ABC condemns the hateful and disgusting responses it has received from some individuals to its call for this event. This event will no longer be held at Rockdale Library and the ABC is considering ways to safely hold it.
ABC invited families within the LGBTQIA+ community to participate in a Drag Queen Story Time event filmed as part of its Mardi Gras coverage. These events are designed for families and are held regularly in public spaces.
ABC is the official host broadcaster of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2024. As part of this partnership, the ABC is showcasing the diversity of the LGBTQIA+ community, in line with its Charter obligation to reflect all Australians.
Kit Kowalski, co-founder of Women’s Rights Network Australia Said sydney daily telegraph The paper said a number of women had raised concerns about the incident to the ABC.
“ABC is going.” [beyond] “We have a duty to reflect our national character by actively organizing controversial events where men wearing sexual caricatures of women read books to children,” Kowarji said.
ABC receive More than $1 billion a year in taxes for Australian taxpayers.
