Hey howdy y’all. Biiiitch! What thafuck is going on in this country right now?! I knew when he took office again it was gonna be a rough ride, but godammit! I didn’t think it would be like this!
Freedom of speech — unless they disagree with you! Jimmy Kimmel being pulled off the air for saying what everyone was thinking — fucking crazy!
How did we get here?
I feel like even writing this right now could be the catalyst for my demise. It is scary as hell that just speaking out against him in any way could get you in trouble or cancelled all together.
I am honestly gob-smacked that we are watching, in real time, as our rights are being taken away. I am not even saying everything I really wanna say right now, because I have no idea what could happen tomorrow.
You think to yourself, “It can’t get any worse.” Bull-fucking-shit! It keeps getting worse!
Remember how hopeful the world seemed in the late 1990s and early 2000s? Gays were seemingly being more accepted, and we were getting equal rights — slowly. But at least things were moving in a positive direction. Now it feels like our rights are circling the drain.
God, I miss hope.
This time in history — right now — feels like a prequel to The Handmaid’s Tale. All of those flashbacks they had showing big and small events leading to their scary totalitarian religion-fueled regime — that’s today.
It is happening right fucking now!
If you think I am just being dramatic, pull your head out of your ass and pay attention. If they start censoring and cancelling the comedians, then what’s next? The news? Oh wait, that has already started, too. He’s trying to get any reporter fired that asks any question he doesn’t want to answer.
I am not on TV or even very famous, but being a drag queen who sometimes thinks they’re funny is scary right now. On the surface, it looks like fun: big wigs, hooker dresses and dick jokes. But underneath? Every joke feels like I’m standing on a trapdoor, waiting to see if the world decides I went too far.
The morning after a show, good or bad, I lay there thinking about every stupid, hopefully funny thing I said, worrying that a shit-storm is gonna hit as soon as I look at my phone.
I used to think freedom of speech meant I could get on stage and say what was on my mind, even if it stung a little. That’s the job of a drag queen — to poke, to tease, to turn the hard stuff into laughter. But lately, it feels like that freedom is disappearing.
That’s terrifying, because comedy is supposed to be where we tell the truth out loud. Where we laugh at the absurdity of the world, not hide from it. If I can’t make fun of politicians, stereotypes or even myself, then what am I doing up there? Just lip-syncing for a check with no joy for the job I love? That’s not the world I wanna live in.
I am not saying that anyone should be able go out and say anything with no repercussions. We should be held accountable for what we do and say. But when it comes to comedy, I need y’all to take a joke as well as you take a dick or 10.
But as scary as all that is, I still go out there. I still paint my face. I still grab the mic. I still risk it. Because drag queens have always been on the edge of danger. We were never meant to be safe.
It’s just that now it feels like the world is trying to take away the very thing that keeps us powerful: our voice. And biiiitch! If they take away our voice, they take away the laughter. And if they take away the laughter, they win.
So yeah, I’m scared, but I’ll keep talking shit. I’ll keep on joking, because if drag queens and comedians lose the right to speak freely, then we are all fucked. No lube or foreplay at all.
So, let’s all promise to speak up while we can. Let’s promise not to give up and throw in the crunchy towel. We gotta do something now to keep us from feeling so helpless. Any suggestions?
Remember to always love more, bitch less and be fabulous! XOXO, Cassie Nova