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Drag performers help Hay River celebrate Pride Week

Three drag queens and a drag king were the centre of attention on June 2 for a Hay River celebration during Pride Week.

"We have our lovely drag queens hanging out with us," said Storm Larocque, the Hay River representative of NWT Pride.

Larocque said the drag queens come from an Edmonton troupe called Dragging Our Heels.

Paul Bickford/NNSL photo
Pride Week was celebrated with a June 2 event on the lawn of NWT Centennial Library. Among those at the celebration were, front, left to right, Storm Larocque, the Hay River representative of NWT Pride, and Leslie Champ, an NWT Pride member from Yellowknife; and back, left to right, Lilith Fair, a drag queen from Edmonton; Duke Carson, a drag king from Calgary; and Edmonton drag queens Bambi Dextrous and Sister Mary Clarence.

It was their first time in Hay River, she said. "Everybody has been really excited about them. It's been fantastic to see them interacting with the locals and everything, and how people from Hay River are excited to see them."

The drag king – whom Larocque described as a feminine person dressing up as a masculine person – came up from Calgary.

One of the drag queens – who performs under the stage name Bambi Dextrous – said, when Larocque invited members of Dragging Our Heels to Hay River for a Pride event, they were totally on board.

"It was a totally new experience for us," said Bambi Dextrous.

The drag queen admitted to a bit of apprehension about visiting a small Northern community, but those concerns were unfounded.

"We love it so far," said the performer. "It's been very welcoming so far."

Larocque was also pleased with the positive reception for the drag queens and drag king, and this year's Pride event as a whole

She sensed there was not just acceptance and a tolerant attitude to the LGBT community, but excitement in the town.

"It's been people coming out and celebrating us, which has been really nice," she said.

Larocque said she received no backlash this year to the Pride event, which occasionally happened in the past.

"Once or twice I have had a few negative comments," she said. "I've had a few snide remarks in passing from people I don't really pay attention to, anyways."

Larocque was also pleased with the turnout.

"This is the biggest turnout we've had in the four years that I've been in Pride," she said.

Along with the visitors from the south, 10 people from Yellowknife came to Hay River to help celebrate with a barbecue at the library.

The drag queens and drag king read gender-inclusive stories on the afternoon of June 2, and that evening performed at the Doghouse Pub.

On June 3, there was also a free showing of the movie called Pride, which tells the story of a group of miners in Wales who joined forces with the LGBT community to lobby and protest for union rights.

Pride Week used to be celebrated in Hay River in August, but has been switched to June.