Billy Porter Calls Out Republicans For Laws Banning Drag Shows: ‘Leave Us Alone’
The singer and actor also called out a lack of gun safety laws, accusing elected officials of being ‘hypocritical’ during a new interview on ‘The View.’
Billy Porter slammed laws banning drag shows during a new interview on The View on Tuesday, March 21. The Pose star, 53, clapped back at lawmakers, pointing out that despite claims that laws banning drag shows are intended to protect children, the leading cause of death isn’t drag queens: it’s guns.
Joy Behar mentioned that when Billy visited the show in July, they spoke about Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis filing a complaint against a bar for hosting drag shows, and mentioned that the bans have only gotten more intense with states like Tennessee passing laws that ban drag shows and gender-affirming care, per NPR. “Everything is about power, and you can always trace it back to the money,” Billy responded. “It’s follow the money, follow the power, power at any cost. It’s very hypocritical.”
Billy continued and said that if lawmakers were looking to protect kids, their focus would be on more gun safety legislation. “The leading cause of death in children are guns,” the actor said. “I know it’s the morning, and I’m not supposed to be screaming, but it’s guns. Not drag queens. Leave us alone!”
The actor and singer continued and said that many laws are invented to be purposefully misleading and to avoid other issues. “It’s a distraction on purpose. We don’t know what to pay attention to. Our justice system is convoluted. It’s hard to understand on purpose. Let’s be clear about that,” he remarked. “When we were talking about Roe V. Wade, the word ‘codified’ came up, I was like, ‘What is that?’ And y’all didn’t do it for 50 years? What’s happening?”
Billy also said that division has already run deep, and it’s currently affecting so many Americans on a personal level. “Everybody’s so scared, because ‘If we do that, then we might have a civil war.’ We’re already in a civil war, doll. It’s a civil war of the mind,” he said.
Billy hasn’t shied away from calling out Republicans or showing his support for young people in the LGBTQ+ community. He has often shared photos and videos expressing his support on his Instagram, like when he shared a video pledging his advocacy on Monday, calling for others to do the same.