Tarrant County鈥檚 top elected official wants the state to investigate a Fort Worth bar that hosted an all-ages drag show in March.
County Judge Tim O鈥橦are asked Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar to investigate whether Tulips was operating 鈥渁s an unlicensed sexually-oriented business.鈥� O鈥橦are shared the letter he sent to Hegar, dated May 4, Wednesday morning.
鈥淓lected officials must take action to protect our children from indecency and sexualization. Their innocence is being stolen,鈥� O鈥橦are tweeted.
Sexually-oriented businesses are usually places like strip clubs. In the case of Tulips, it is a bar and music venue. Sexually-oriented businesses have to pay the state a $5 fee per customer if the business offers 鈥渓ive nude entertainment or live nude performances and authorize on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages,鈥� according to .
四虎影院 reached out to the owner of Tulips via text message to request an interview but did not hear back by this story鈥檚 deadline.
Hegar has initiated investigations into North Texas businesses before for hosting drag performances: and .
The results of those investigations are unclear, as is whether the Comptroller鈥檚 Office will take up O鈥橦are鈥檚 request. Spokespeople for the office didn鈥檛 respond to multiple requests for comment.
Conservative politicians have taken aim at drag shows, especially ones that welcome children, and they鈥檝e moved to . Anti-drag rhetoric often .
GLAAD, a national nonprofit that fights for LGBTQ+ acceptance, reported a sharp uptick in anti-LGBTQ+ protests at drag events last year. at drag events from early 2022 to April 2023.
The March 27 show at Tulips was an all-ages trivia night and drag show , including from conservative political commentator Sara Gonzales, that she tried to enter the show but was denied.
Gonzales, who has more than 315,000 Twitter followers, later retweeted a photo of the show鈥檚 host, drag queen Salem Moon, sitting in a chair. Gonzales and other commentators criticized Salem Moon for sitting with her legs open. O鈥橦are鈥檚 letter to the Texas Comptroller鈥檚 Office says one of the performers 鈥渕ay have exposed himself to the audience, which contained children.鈥�
That's completely untrue, Salem Moon told 四虎影院 in an Instagram message.
鈥淚 just find it so funny that they鈥檙e trying to say I 鈥榚xposed myself鈥� at the show, when in every picture and video of the show, I have literally fifteen layers of clothing on,鈥� Moon wrote.
People don鈥檛 understand how drag queens dress for shows, she added.
鈥淵ou can look at every picture, on stage and off, and when I鈥檓 sitting down, I have six pairs of tights on, opaque not sheer, two pairs of fishnets, a body shaper that also acts as an undergarment obscuring the crotch area, and a dress along with a bevy of other undergarments and padding underneath that,鈥� Moon wrote.
In an Instagram Live before the event, Salem Moon said Tulips would donate all bar proceeds from the March 27 performance to LGBTQ Saves, a local nonprofit that supports LGBTQ youth. Salem Moon added in the video caption that performers with acts appropriate for all ages were welcome to join the show.
The Texas Legislature is considering bills particularly ones that welcome children.
In his letter to Hegar, O鈥橦are wrote, 鈥淲hile our legislature presently debates whether to ban minors from attending such performances, I believe in the meantime, we must continue to protect our children in every capacity we legally can.鈥�
Got a tip? Email Miranda Suarez at msuarez@kera.org. You can follow Miranda on Twitter @MirandaRSuarez.
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