The city of Philadelphia has set a new Guinness World Record for “Most Attended a Drag Queen Storytime Reading” in celebration of LGBTQ Pride Month, according to organizers.
The event took place at the National Constitution Center on Saturday, and “hundreds of people helped set the record.” report.
Drag queens read children’s books to an audience of 263 people during storytime, organized by Philadelphia Gay News and sponsored by Visit Philadelphia, the city’s official tourism program.
A representative from Guinness World Records was on hand to officially adjudicate the record.
To celebrate Pride 2024, Philadelphia hosted its largest Drag Queen Story Hour event ever.
The United States of America was founded here in 1776. pic.twitter.com/Aw8goRXedI
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) June 2, 2024
“Philadelphia is where our country was founded, where the Declaration of Independence was debated and signed, and where some of the most significant LGBTQIA+ moments in U.S. history happened,” said Mark Segal, publisher of Philadelphia Gay News. statement Obtained From NBC 10 Philadelphia: “The creation of a historic moment like today in a place synonymous with the fight for our nation’s fundamental rights and freedoms is a powerful reminder of the resilience, talent and culture that forms the foundation of a great American city.”
Some social media users said the fact that fewer than 300 people attended the drag queen story hour event in a city of about 1.6 million people showed that a “vocal minority is trying to sexualize children.”
Just 260 people showed up in Philadelphia today, setting a world record for the most attendance at a drag queen story hour.
Again, that’s 260 in a city of about 1.6 million people.
A vocal minority are trying to sexualize children.
Most Americans don’t support it. https://t.co/7GAVuNAWL1 pic.twitter.com/4jIkZNtCPE
— Meg Block (@MegEBrock) June 1, 2024
In Guinness record The most well-attended drag brunch was a June 2023 event hosted by H&M, the Marsha P. Johnson Institute and Gayletter that drew 412 people to New York City.
