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Behind the Aegis

(53,833 posts)
Thu Aug 29, 2019, 05:12 AM Aug 2019

A drag show was canceled because the performers have Down syndrome

A venue is facing backlash after it canceled a drag show because some of the performers have Down syndrome.

The British drag group Drag Syndrome was going to perform at the Tanglefoot Building in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in September. But on August 19, Peter Meijer, the owner of the venue, sent a letter to the group to cancel their performance.

His reasoning? He wanted to protect people with Down syndrome from being “exploited” on stage.

“The differently abled are among the most special souls in our community, and I believe they, like children and other vulnerable populations, should be protected,” Meijer wrote in the letter.

He wrote in the letter that he talked with “the differently abled, people who had family members with Down’s syndrome, and members of the LGBTQ and artist community,” and everyone brought up the possibility of Drag Syndrome artists being exploited.

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