In a video posted to Facebook, RuPaul’s Drag Race performer and current All Stars 3 contender BenDeLaCreme revealed that a fellow competitor recently received a death threat, from someone who would seem to be a viewer of the show.
Without revealing which of her fellow queens was the subject of the threat, a visibly emotional DeLa said that there has been a lot of “hate speech” thrown at the queens who participate in the competition, but that this particular incidence was “explicit and deeply upsetting.”
DeLa went on to say that hate speech and threats are a common experience for her sisters, in the context of the series and their day-to-day lives, adding:
“Every single girl who has been part of RuPaul’s Drag Race has received a threat of violence because of who she is, and we have all had different experiences around that, we have all come through it in different ways, we all have different current responses to that, but … This TV series is built on the backs of gay men whose gender does not conform to the average gender presentation, and trans women. These are people who endure threats of violence constantly, and finally we have this platform where they are being celebrated for who we are, and now it’s come round full circle where that platform is being used [for] people who feel entitled to reach out for hate speech.”
She went on to say that she and her fellow queens are at a loss as to how to tackle this problem, but implored people to speak out, and thanked those who are currently enjoying All Stars in a “fun and respectful way”, saying:
“I don’t think the people who did this are listening to me or any of the girls who speak out and say ‘you have to rein it in’, but I think we all have to be talking about it … please speak up if you hear someone talking like this. It’s just a TV show, it’s just drag, but this shit’s really serious, and we need you guys to stop, and to all the rest of you who are not participating in this and are spreading the message of love, thank you for doing that, that’s what we set out to do.”
BenDeLaCreme is one of the top six competitors on the current season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. You can see the full video below:
