"Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who was appointed by the president during his first term, emphatically agreed with West Texas A&M University President Walter Wendler's ban of the art form, endorsing Wendler's characterization of drag as something that "denigrates women in the same way that blackface denigrates African Americans." In his ruling, Kacsmaryk agreed that blackface and drag equivalently "mock vulnerable groups by caricaturing aspects of their identity." "The only difference is that one performance is 'abhorred by cultural elites' while the other is in vogue-at least for now," Kacsmaryk wrote."
"In March 2023, Wendler sent a letter to students, faculty, and staff announcing that the student LGBTQ+ group Spectrum WT's upcoming drag event benefitting the Trevor Project, scheduled for March 31 of that year, had been canceled. Though the organizers had promised to avoid any profanity or lewdness and to bar attendance from anyone younger than 18, Wendler's letter still characterized drag as a form of "derisive, divisive and demoralizing misogyny" and also compared it to blackface."
A federal judge compared drag to blackface and allowed West Texas A&M University to ban on-campus drag shows, finding drag not protected under the First Amendment. The judge concluded that blackface and drag equally mock vulnerable groups by caricaturing aspects of identity and contrasted cultural approval between them. In March 2023, the university president canceled a student LGBTQ+ drag benefit for the Trevor Project despite promises to avoid profanity and bar minors, calling drag "derisive, divisive and demoralizing misogyny." Students filed a lawsuit alleging violations of First Amendment rights and a state law barring facility bans based on ideological views.
Read at LGBTQ Nation
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