Meet the first drag queen to ever hold public office in the United States
Behind the Drag aims to showcase the off-stage lives of some of America's most talented drag queens. The intimate series gives us the opportunity to meet the people behind our favorite over-the-top drag queens.
Maebe. A Girl isn't your typical drag queen. She is the first drag queen elected to public office in the U.S. and currently serves as on the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council, which is one of the more than 90 neighborhood council districts in Los Angeles, California.
"I could have had my boy name on the ballot, but I decided to run as Maebe A. Girl because I know have a more powerful voice when I'm in drag," she said.
"Drag is inherently political, and that's sort of interesting [because] even though I'm a political queen, every queen is technically a political queen. Because just the act of going out dressed in a way that is gender non-conforming is making a political and social statement," Maebe added.
Two of her big priorities on the council are LGBTQIA issues as well as homelessness, as she sees that the two often go hand-in-hand. In LA, she explained that 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBTQIA people.
Maebe A. Girl is looking to move up in the political space, however, and is running for Congress in March 2020.
"My platform has three parts to it: to protect, to advocate and to legislate. To protect minorities, to protect women, immigrants, to protect immigrants, to protect the environment, to advocate for diversity, inclusion and representation and to legislate for progressive action."
If you enjoyed reading this article, you might also like reading about fellow drag queen Baby Love.
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