Neo-Nazis Storm an Ohio Drag Queen Story Hour

Neo-Nazis were among the hundreds of protesters at an Ohio drag queen story hour this past weekend, further underscoring the connection between white supremacy and anti-LGBTQ bigotry.

The Rock-n-Roll Humanist Drag Queen Story Hour was organized by Aaron and Krista Jo Reed, who were promoting a children’s book that introduces young ones to humanist philosophy, a belief system not rooted in religion that teaches the importance of good ethics. The event was accompanied by “a short Rock-n-Roll drag celebration performance,” per the event description.

Proceeds from the event were donated to Club Q survivors and the Cleveland-based LGBTQ treatment center B. Riley House.

However, and unfortunately, the event was stormed by groups of ne0-Nazis and White Lives Matter protestors, as well as members of the white supremacist groups Proud Boys and Patriot Front, according to a video posted to Twitter by documentarian Ford Fischer.

CW for thread: Language and violence

Several anti-drag groups including avowed Neo-Nazis, "White Lives Matter," Proud Boys, Patriot Front, and non-affiliated conservative activists protested outside a drag show today at a public park in Wadsworth, Ohio.

"Pedophiles get the… https://t.co/k4C2iNapvk pic.twitter.com/AUw0RtApfF

— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) March 11, 2023

The neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe were wearing red sweaters and waving black flags emblazoned with white swastikas, chanting “Pedophiles get the rope,” “F*gs go home,” and “Sieg Heil.” One used the n-word to refer to a passerby.

Additional videos posted show brief moments of violence between pro-drag protesters and anti-drag protesters, and one man allegedly pulled a gun on the crowd and tried to fire the weapon twice. He was later arrested, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. Two others were arrested and charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct after “a series of melees involving pepper spray” and “the violent use of a flag pole as a weapon.”

Some online are pointing out this moment from the fight earlier.

I cannot confirm definitively what this object pointed at the crowd was, but feel free to see for yourself (cropped, slow motion).

As you'll see in next tweet, he was later arrested.https://t.co/NHYlY6Ne5Z pic.twitter.com/4r1L0GoJgv

— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) March 11, 2023

The publication noted that protesters vastly outnumbered supporters, although the Colorado-based group Parasol Patrol was there with rainbow umbrellas to shield children from protesters. The event proceeded, and Reed later posted on Facebook to thank those who had reached out while he and his partner were recovering.

“Wadsworth revealed their true colors yesterday,” Reed wrote. “They weren’t at all ashamed to stand shoulder to shoulder with that kind of hate, but not a single person has been able to attack anything that went on inside the fences and gazebo of my children’s charity memorial book reading and Rock-n-Roll dance party.”

Drag queen story hours and Pride events have been targeted several times in the past year by white supremacists and right-wing protestors, especially Proud Boys. The group shut down a church’s “Holi-Drag Storytime” in Columbus, Ohio in December and have similarly protested drag queen story hours everywhere from Nevada to California. Last June, a white supremacist militia attempted to riot at a Pride event in northern Idaho.

Photos courtesy Facebook/Jon Farina