Arts & Entertainment
Trixie Mattel criticized for racist joke about picking cotton
The ‘Drag Race’ winner stands by the performance
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![Trixie Mattel, gay news, Washington Blade](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2018/04/Trixie_Mattel_insert_by_Jagc_Photography.jpg)
Trixie Mattel (Photo by Jagc Photography)
“RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 3” winner Trixie Mattel is under fire after a racist joke from a roast in Denver, Colorado resurfaced online.
During the show, Mattel is roasting fellow “Drag Race” star Latrice Royale.
“I couldn’t decide what to wear so I wore this. It’s just like a cotton. Latrice picked it,” Mattel says.
When some of the audience members started to boo and groan Mattel replied, “Oh, is that too far, Denver? What did you forget to invite your black friends tonight?”
Some people on social media also didn’t find the joke funny including transgender model Munroe Bergdorf.
“Dear @trixiemattel … You do not get to ‘make racism funny’. This may have been a joke but calling any black person a slave for laughs is really fucking stupid, insensitive and plain old racist…,” Bergdorf tweeted. “It also shows the extent to which you lack understanding of how pop culture can set a bar for what people think is publicly acceptable behaviour. Drag Race fandom is already hella racist and problematic when if comes to treatment of the shows black queens…
“So instead of trying to turn black history and trauma into a joke for your own gain… How about you use your platform to resist that mentality, rather than perpetuate it? Be the solution, not the problem. This is racism thinly disguised as comedy,” she added.
Dear @trixiemattel … You do not get to ‘make racism funny’. This may have been a joke but calling any black person a slave for laughs is really fucking stupid, insensitive and plain old racist… pic.twitter.com/N15UGyaHbz
— Munroe Bergdorf ?? (@MunroeBergdorf) July 5, 2018
It also shows the extent to which you lack understanding of how pop culture can set a bar for what people think is publicly acceptable behaviour.
Drag Race fandom is already hella racist and problematic when if comes to treatment of the shows black queens…
— Munroe Bergdorf ?? (@MunroeBergdorf) July 5, 2018
So instead of trying to turn black history and trauma into a joke for your own gain… How about you use your platform to resist that mentality, rather than perpetuate it? Be the solution, not the problem. This is racism thinly disguised as comedy.
— Munroe Bergdorf ?? (@MunroeBergdorf) July 5, 2018
Despite the backlash, Mattel stood by her joke tweeting, “If you think drag queens apologize for jokes at a roast, you watch too much TV.”
If you think drag queens apologize for jokes at a roast, you watch too much TV.
— Trixie Mattel (@trixiemattel) July 5, 2018
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The 2024 New York City Pride Parade wound through the streets of Manhattan and past the historic Stonewall Inn on Sunday, June 30.
(Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt)
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The fourth annual Fredericksburg Pride march and festival was held at Riverfront Park in Fredericksburg, Va. on Saturday, June 29. The event began with a march around downtown Fredericksburg beginning and ending in the park.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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Covering Fredericksburg Pride for @WashBlade . City Council member @WillMackintosh speaking: pic.twitter.com/tDdVD2IVsM
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) June 29, 2024
Photos
PHOTOS: Goodwin Living Pride
Senior living and healthcare organization holds fourth annual march at Falls Church campus
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The senior living and healthcare organization Goodwin Living held its fourth annual community Pride march around its Bailey’s Crossroads campus in Falls Church, Va. with residents, friends and supporters on Tuesday, June 25. Following the march, a drag brunch was held with performances by drag artists of SADBrunch: Crimsyn, Sapphire Dupree and Evon Dior Michelle.
(Photos courtesy of Goodwin Living)
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