Arizona Senate passes anti-drag bills
Two anti-drag bills passed the state Senate with GOP support Thursday despite promises from Gov. Katie Hobbs of a future veto and ongoing threats of violence toward the drag community in Arizona.
The two bills, sponsored by Sen. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale, would target drag shows, despite Kern saying the bills didn’t expressly target drag shows, only “explicit” drag shows.
“My intent is to regulate sexually explicit drag shows,” Kern said Wednesday during a debate about Senate Bill 1030, adding that he loves the movies “Tootsie” and “Mrs. Doubtfire” which both feature men dressed as women.
Kern amended the bill to remove the words “drag performer” but Democratic members and critics of the bill said that the overall vague language of the bill would continue to cause issues for drag shows. Additionally, state statute already exists for protecting children from sexually explicit performances.
The bill received unanimous support from Republican senators, however, Gov. Katie Hobbs has warned that her veto pen will be at the ready to reject any bills that fail to earn bipartisan support, and her chief of staff has dismissed other anti-LGBTQ measures as dead on arrival.
https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/arizona-senate-passes-anti-drag-bills
