Religious orgs file suit to stop Drag Queen Story Time at library, claim it’s unconstitutional

Two religious organizations in Louisiana have filed a lawsuit to prevent Drag Queen Story Time from being held at a local library.

What's Drag Queen Story Time, anyway?

Drag Queen Story Time is an event that sounds pretty much just like what it is. A group of drag queens gather and tell stories to young children, usually at public venues such as libraries.

One aim of Drag Queen Story Time is to foster a more in-depth understanding and acceptance of the LGBTQ community.

What's the background?

Drag Queen Story Time wants to come to Lafayette, Louisiana, which has long been hailed as one of the most conservative cities in Louisiana.

In August, KATC-TV reported that the Lafayette Public Library would host Drag Queen Story Time on Oct. 6 along with members of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Delta Lambda Phi fraternity. This particular fraternity caters to gay, bisexual, and progressive men.

Many local citizens complained about the library's upcoming showing of Drag Queen Story Time, with some people calling it "sick," "poisonous," and "disgusting."

The Lafayette City-Parish Council sponsored a resolution last week in order to oppose and condemn the Drag Queen Story Time library event.

Most members abstained when the council voted on the resolution.



So what's happening with this lawsuit?

The two religious Louisiana organizations — Special Forces of Liberty and Warrior for Christ — filed the lawsuit Tuesday in federal court to stop the library from hosting the Drag Queen Story Time segment in October, claiming it was unconstitutional.

According to KADN-TV, the organizations said that the presence of such an event at the local library violates the First Amendment because it advances the narrative of secular humanism.

Christopher Sevier, an attorney representing the two organizations, told the station, "By bringing this lawsuit, we are unapologetically and firmly defending the civil rights movement led by pastor Martin Luther King."

Sevier added that he believes Drag Queen Story Time infringes on the beliefs of those who do not subscribe to the notion of transgenderism or cross-dressing.

"The evidence would suggest that the self-identified transgendered. [sic] They are using a government facility to show that the government backs their worldview to then target children, to indoctrinate them under a faith-based ideology," Sevier added, noting that the organizations would have no problem if Drag Queen Story Time were held at a private facility, like a fraternity house.

"We have no problem with a drag queen story hour being held in a private facility. It can be held at the fraternity house. It can be held at the coffee shop. We draw the line by the fact we have government actors endorsing it," he added.

Sevier noted that if the court does not stop Drag Queen Story Time from happening at the local library, the organizations will request that a minister be present at the event in order to offer a rebuttal to the drag queens' teachings.