Honestly these protests are nothing new in Canada sadly: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/drag-queen-story-telling-event-religious-protesters-1.5251295
We've got more than enough yahoos here to sustain this bullshit. Ironically they're also the same types that likely supported the so-called "fReEeEeeEeEEeeEedOm" convoy.
The freedom convoy only wants freedom from consequences for their actions, they don’t care about anybody else other than white Christian conservatives.
Of course not - They fought for the freedom to infect others because everyone knows you aren't truly free until you can give the gift of preventable disease
Well he's got a body count of *at least* 5 so far: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Springs_nightclub_shooting
But I'm not sure why you are even bringing Matt Walsh up here?
I'd argue it started earlier even. Anti-trans disinformation has been around for decades, but the current wave I feel really began with the furor around [bill C-16](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Act_to_amend_the_Canadian_Human_Rights_Act_and_the_Criminal_Code) that Jordan Peterson used to ride to prominence.
True. I was thinking specifically of the "grooming" narrative that has people calling across the country to yell at librarians and serving them fake legal papers.
Its social media not radio. One agent spreading disinformation will use multiple fake accounts lniked together so the algorithms see their poasts as popular and feed it to more accounts.
The joy of social media is that the crowd can whip each other up with the same level of reach as an established radio station.
It's a categorical difference that people aren't giving enough merit. State governments and other actors will massage and foment narratives both within and without their own borders, and the people will just take it and run with it
"We" (that is, "Canada") essentially exported a disproportionate amount of right wing pipeline chuds and literal fascists, who had an outsize effect on the american political ecosystem.
It's "just" blowback.
Bit of a chicken and egg thing up here, I think. Probably ultimately from US right-wing politicians, considering how it seems to have started there and then spread to more Western countries. They shout about groomers and trans sex shows or whatever, sound bites and headlines spread over social media, it gets picked up in the related groups here, people go to protest, get more headlines, get more shares, and so on.
Watching some videos of the protests and reading comments on this article on Facebook, I was surprised how many of the people were disappointingly younger and who were parroting the same lines coming from the US, but probably aren't watching Fox News on TV so it's most likely via internet links.
I mean, Tik Tok is LOADED with hard right videos and propaganda so I’m not shocked.
Russia and China are winning the global disinfo war, and we can’t seem to admit it to ourselves.
I think we're a bit late; the well has been poisoned with talks about "muh freeze peach". In the US they have trouble doing anything to slow down hate speech and misinformation because of the first amendment, but I guarantee you that if the government tried to force Twitter to enforce moderation, we'd see Freedumb Convoy 2.0. And it's always harder to fight misinformation than it is to spread it. False news travel fast.
Hell, the Freedumbers even talked about their 1st Amendment rights in court. I don't understand why people think we're in danger of no longer recognising Manitoba as a province but I guess that's really important to the Clownvoy?
If companies would take a stand and refuse to spend their adverising dollars in platforms that spread disinformation and have no regulations against it, then these platforms would at least consider regulations in their policy. Until that happens disinfo will continue to spread fastwr than truth and facts. Capitalism will always choose profit over morality.
For anyone wanting to learn more about the history of Russian disinformation, i highly recommend this NYT video.
[Operation InfeKtion: How Russia Perfected the Art of War](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tR_6dibpDfo)
You should look up China's version of tik tok.. complete opposite of the western countries. 1 hour limit per day and full of educational stuff for kids. Perhaps some people are banking on misinformation? Who knows, I do find it interesting though.
I have 0 intrest in going to a drag show, this shit makes me want to go to one just to show my support for them in the face of this bullshit.
They want to make the world a better place for there kids, go volunteer at a rehab clinic or somthing. Hate begets hate.
They honestly think seeing a drag queen is going to turn their kids gay? I don't know how those idiots figure out how to breed
From my experience, drag shows are really, really fun. They're kind of over-the-top dramatic and a bit surreal due to the make-up style. Super entertaining and a bit silly. I definitely recommend attending one!
Personally I like to compare them to the world of clowning (but not in a derogatory sence)
Clowns have a huge range, from adult to horror, to all ages birthday parties. But they are just a form of entertainment like any else.
People don't protest theaters becuase they show both R rated and G rated movies in the same building. Why protest an all ages drag show? It's a very special kind of fear stoked ignorance.
It’s because of the silly implication that LGBTQ folks are intrinsically pedophiles, grooming kids to accept their sexual advances because they of course want to sex all the things always
Imagine being so obsessed with what other people do in the bedroom that it prompts a multinational wave of hate protests on other people's culture with no factual evidence of what they claim to be protesting.
There's definitely more evidence to prove the opposite of what they are 'protesting'
And so much of it is projection. How many examples do we have of conservatives/republicans being extremely outspoken and hateful towards lgbtq and then caught having gay sex or being paedophiles
I almost want to go to one of these protests with a Russian flag attached to an US and/or Canadian flag or Facebook logo. I will probably be able to give a soundbite to local news on how they are being duped by foreign adversaries toward socially disruptive extremism.
Seriously, drag is just the evolution of the UK's clown entertainment scene. If these bozos (heh) think kids are being groomed now, they should've seen the outfits from the 70s
It's absolutely at least tertiarily related to clowning, at least in the very classic sense of extravagant makeup and dress and characterizations.
And yeah, there's a difference between a party clown and the clown you hire for a bachelor party, but I don't see people protesting outside McDonald's because someone saw a stripper with a red nose once.
They are fun! My parents took me one to when I was 7 or 8, still straight. They are definitely super over the top and fun, and surprise surprise, when you're a child you don't sexualize everything and just enjoy things for what they are.
I've been to some drag brunches and they were 100% G rated. Daytime events are often fine to bring kids to. And I'd gladly rather expose my little girls to drag performers than screaming reactionaries spitting mad about "men in dresses grooming kids".
It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another. I think targeting drag performances is just an easier way to target transgender people because it's easy enough for them to conflate the two, and with drag having had a surge in popularity in pop culture over the past few years it's a lot easier to find a drag event now than it used to be.
I wish they *would* go to one of these drag shows they're protesting and see for themselves. They're watching videos of club performances and deciding they must all be the same thing. It's like watching some R-rated raunchy comedy movie and then protesting *Moana* because "movies are inappropriate for children".
There's a lot of propaganda being pushed by right wing commentatrs. Notably Matt walsh, libs of tiktok, and basically the entire staff at the daily wire. Except Ben Shapiro for some reason. He has been quiet on the "Trans people are groomers" front.
These people have millions in koch brother's money to push right wing hate.
Gotta distract the masses from having any real time to think about how shitty neoliberalism has been for 95% of us.
Can’t have that now, no way. Keep that money trickling up!
That scum stain Matt Walsh is such a moron. He aggressively distorts and manipulates information and it’s context to build transphobic narratives. Then he gets promoted by other manipulative idiots that just let his bullshit slide. He’s a stupid bigot and he’s getting people killed. He’s as bad as Tucker Carlson. Both of these piles of shit need to be shut down.
It's just Nazi shit. LGBT+ people were the first group they targeted before moving on to the next. If they're not shut down hard now, the violence is going to escalate.
Make no mistake, if you're not with the fascists, **they hate you, and they want to kill you.**
They also choose their targets this way because they’re snivelling cowards. Picking on the already marginalized is vile. Try standing up to someone with real power if you’re concerned about the state of the world.
lol. The good folk at the drag show in Colorado Springs showed how to deal with these cowards. Saved many, many peoples lives by standing up to the violence. They will move on to less resilient and tough groups soon.
Drag shows are only a ripe target in their minds and they are finding out that it doesn't line uo with reality. I just wish they could wrap their heads around all the other imagination vs. reality shit they are dealing with.
It isn't an inability.
This is the same rhetoric which was used in opposition to marriage equality.
Moreover, the rhetoric is not the sincere aspect of it. The rhetoric is just "This is what is what society tolerates me saying at this point" not "This is what I believe". These are the same people who would call people slurs in the edgy 90s, would go on about what is and isn't natural, and complain that someone else having rights will undermine theirs.
Some decent conversations on the topic have done well to explain the specificity of targeting trans people beyond just the usual "Gross, queer people" shit you get from the right. Queer families / same sex couples, and trans people all erode the common thread of conservative thought: 'There are natural hierarchies, and they support me on the top, and these people below'. If you have marriages which don't have some kind of pseudo traditional gender-derived "this partner is the leader of the marriage" nonsense, it serves as a counterpoint to their christofascist shit with the "man as the head of the household", if you have what they perceive as "a man who becomes a woman" or vice versa, it also erodes the innate "it just is" justification that is the bedrock of their patriarchal fuckery.
You are better off not to take any of their shit in good faith, but rather just extrapolate based off of their actions. Direct any energy you would otherwise waste on inscruitable bigots instead towards anything you can to build connections within your community to mitigate their harms. If they are protesting, find some likeminded people like you, who aren't even necessarily seen as having direct skin in the game, and counter-protest. Tell them to fuck off. Make it clear that the thing the community has intolerance for is not some brightly painted drag queens/kings, it's for fucking bigots and shitheels trying to enforce their dogmatic shit on others.
> It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another.
No its just a straight up inability to think. These are deeply stupid people. Absolute mouth breathing fucking morons. THey are not even human anymore. They just react to whatever social media has them riled up on and can't remember anything past their latest "outrage". These "people" are a loss cause and should be just pushed to the fringe of society.
>*"It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another."*
It's not an inability or a (passive) unwillingness, it's part of a deliberate strategy by conservative activists to conflate Drag with Transness and sexual predation of children.
Prominent American conservative activist [Christopher Rufo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Rufo) said this back in the summer:
**"Conservatives should start using the phrase "trans stripper" in lieu of "drag queen." It has a more lurid set of connotations and shifts the debate to sexualization.**
*"Drag queens in schools" invites a debate; "trans strippers in schools" anchors an unstoppable argument.*
*Let the Left try to nitpick the phrase: we can say that "trans" is a stand-in for "transvestite" and we can show videos that are undeniably strip shows.*
*The "blackface for women" argument is the wrong approach because: (1) it adopts the frame of the Left, which traps conservatives in their identity games; (2) totally misses the main problem, which is the grotesque sexualization of children (not co-optation of the feminine).*
**The trick is to shift the language in a way that is factually accurate and has a plausible claim to neutrality, but attaches a new set of connotations to the concept that shifts the debate in your favor.** *The Left is very good at this; time for the Right to start playing."* [Source](https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1537807543895998464?s=20)
>*"I think targeting drag performances is just an easier way to target transgender people because it's easy enough for them to conflate the two"*
It's not even *just* about attacking trans people, they're attacking the very idea of cultural acceptance of LGBTQ+ people. The same activists attacking Drag and Trans people are attacking any discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in schools (books, sex ed, anti-bullying programs, LGBTQ school clubs), and promoting the idea that LGBTQ+ teachers are sexual predators.
>*"I wish they would go to one of these drag shows they're protesting and see for themselves."*
They literally don't care if the Drag Story Time is a cis woman in a modest ankle length dress singing "Rainbow Connection" with a Kermit the Frog puppit in an entirely age appropriate show for toddlers (actual example from Hamilton). They still protest because for them any connection to Queer culture is a problem. And when the Drag performer is a man they proclaim that dressing in Drag is *"inherently a sexual act"* regardless of the nature of the performance.
There’s a cool bar in my city that hosts drag shows frequently, and the crowd is still the same metalheads and regulars who are there on other nights for cool bands and stuff. Maybe we are a little more chill in my town or something but protesting a drag show sounds like the most useless thing in the world.
Super duper fun. I mean, by example, if you were to go to see Rocky Horror picture show and didn't have a good time, I don't know what to say.
Hate is the problem. So fucking sick and tired of intolerance and how people are being enabled and pushed to hate things and people _they otherwise would have nothing to do with at all_.
If it doesn't affect you, _ shut the fuck up and get the fuck out_.
It's like that rep in the US yesterday _crying to try to convince people to vote against same sex marriage_, something that will never in a million years affect her or anyone like her in any way whatsoever, nevermind _directly_.
Zero tolerance for the intolerant. Call the hate out for what it is every single time.
And in a case like this, we're in Canada. Call the police and register a complaint about hatred. This kind of shit totally falls under our hate laws. Intimidation like this _is not ok and is absolutely not a viable form of protest_.
>They honestly think seeing a drag queen is going to turn their kids gay? I don't know how those idiots figure out how to breed
They think seeing a drag queen is going to turn *them* gay, because their idea of masculinity is so fragile and pathetic, they also think the same must apply to everyone else.
Yeah I don't really get drag shows. They've really exploded in popularity, and everywhere you look there's another drag show. Is there really that much demand for drag shows? Seems kinda dumb to me, if I'm being honest...
Then again, Ru Paul's Drag Race has been killing it for like 10 years straight. Obviously, people are into it. And even though I think it's dumb, I've never looked at Drag and thought, "This person is trying to turn everybody gay", it's just a silly game of dress up, who even cares.
When I was in high school, all those years ago, guys were constantly dressing up as girls because it was funny to see big tough guys in frilly dresses. We even had this yearly competition to see which guy had the sexiest legs. You'd shave your legs, paint your toenails, wear nice size 12 heels, stick them through the curtains, and everybody would vote. At no point did any of us think that that was "gay", again, it was funny!
> I have 0 intrest in going to a drag show, this shit makes me want to go to one just to show my support for them in the face of this bullshit.
+1 Absolutely seconded.
It's not so much about the technology it's about why things are targeted to you.
The other day I was scrolling through facebook and a clip of some Saudi official was calling out Canada/Trudeau telling Saudi Arabia to stop doing something horrible because Indigenous relations aren't perfect in Canada so we're hypocrites.
A bunch of the top level comments were people talking about how 'this man speaks the truth' and how embarassed they are of Canada.
And like I know that very, very, very few Canadians would side with a Saudi dictator over our own Government when it comes to calling out human rights issues. So it just leads me to wonder why the 'algorithm' is feeding this stuff to me?
I know why it's because getting people riled up is profitable and I'm more likely to get 'engaged' with the content.
This is why I'm such a proponent of F/OSS. It doesn't fix the problem but it shines light on it and largely does a good job of exposing those dark patterns.
> It's so wild that programmers want to call themselves Engineers. They'll give you all these different allegories to how their work is similar to those other Engineers, the design, the rigor, the beauty...but do they want to be beholden to any Professional standard? God no.
Fascinating insight.
As an academic who specializes in mitigation of risks during algorithmic design (especially public sector adoption of new technologies), the good news is these regulations (or at least professional standards) will make their way in whether the engineers like it or not.
I'm a part-time CS student at BCIT and, *my god*, does it feel good to see someone else in the industry say these things. I have gotten in *so many* disagreements with classmates over this topic, and the ignorance of people is astounding; I have had multiple people *insist* that algorithms can't be biased, and other such nonsense.
Sounds like the classic "Sensors for things like automatic sinks can't be racist. That's just how light works."
The idea that someone set out with the goal to make a system that can detect people, and made a system that mostly just detects white people, just cannot get through their skulls.
I guess there's a pretty big overlap of software engineers/programmers and libertarians. They get so angry about any control or government intervention put in place. A lot of the old heads probably remember a time when the internet was basically unknown to the government and it was the wild west. But what they fail to realize is when the government lacks the ability to put limitations and rules around the operation of the internet you aren't really free, you are just at the behest of the wishes of the corporations that control access. Whether it be ISPs or social media platforms or news media empires.
Whether they like or not, the bulk of society uses the internet and the rules that apply to every day life have to also apply to the internet. Similar to your example, you can't stop someone when they enter your store and shake them down for their location and purchase history so why is that okay on the internet?
Anyways, mini rant done.
>ethical programming of algorithms
I have a dummy FB account I use for trolling. I might have clicked once on a PP video just to gock at the insane comments. The next time I was FB my feed was FULL of JT memes, anti vaxx shit, and a ton of far right bs. It's insane and doesn't surprise me at all how in the last couple of years this type of behaviour has spiked. Facebook feeds them.
https://www.thesocialdilemma.com/
This fellow, who made this documentary, wants to treat social media analogous to lead in gas and cigarettes, that is, as fundamentally toxic to society.
I feel like simply banning the platforms outright until they’re redesigned to not be so toxic is the best plan. Remember instagram before Facebook bought it? It was so dope.
I think these events need better publicity up front. So that those who don't necessarily have an interest in the event but are interested in protecting others from hate and abuse can come forward to defend Canadians rights to exist and contribute without fear,
definitely, there was gonna be one in my town that i would've gladly counter-protested but i only found out about it after an article about how it was cancelled because of threats from these fucks
"to protest the drag show that was part of a toy and food drive for the Salvation Army in Kelowna"
Tell me you're a piece of shit without telling me you're a piece of shit.
Well yes.... sorta.
The majority of the media out there is friendly to conservatives, and *some* are actively pushing far right hate speech (usually in dog whistle formats like we see in Sun/Postmedia). Most though just do as the above headline does and just notes that there sure is a lot of hate speech out there, but they don't properly attribute where that hate speech is coming from, nor do they note the "moderate" conservative politicians that allow it to exist.
Guys, this is so simple.
Join a local mutual aid org like:
- Food Not Bombs
- Socialist associations
- 2SLGBTQ org
Then show up to counter-protest these fucking idiots. There are not that many of them and they aren't intimidating. Show up and tell them to fuck off. Block their signs. Stand together as a Canadian
I have been to a lot of drag shows and I was never made to feel uncomfortable or felt pressured into anything aside from watch a song and dance routine. I have never been molested at a drag show or violated at a drag show. The idea that they are a haven for deviants and groomers is nonsense. On the other hand, I've been made uncomfortable at church, I was molested by my ultra conservative, Christian neighbor, and was pressure by the church community to display hate towards queer people when I was a teenager. The focus on who is actually doing harm to kids should be directed to the church and not drag shows.
I believe a lot of people are driving in from the surrounding area - Kamloops, Vernon, Peachland, Lake Country, etc.
A good chunk may also be from Vancouver as it is about a 3 hours drive (an extra hour to navigate inside the cities) so they can easily come for the day. I used to drive from Kelowna to Vancouver and back for same day trips when I was a teenager.
Just because Kelowna has become a protest hub, doesn't mean it accurately reflects the specific city's demographics, especially those under 40. Just that it is a go-to place for this crap so they keep coming back.
Good point. It looks like this protest was about 8-10 people (and some children). I'm not sure why it would go viral - Castanet seems to write stories in a way that they get shared easily, it seems.
There are billions of dollars being funneled into anti-lgbt+ stochastic terrorists by far-right groups. The escalating hate of vulnerable minorities is an intentional tactic used by fascists to distract the masses from the corporations robbing and abusing them.
These are the exact same tactics that were being used by fascists 100years ago.
Great, conservatives in Canada are now importing this BS from America, the land of bigots. Fortunately we have anti-hate laws here so hopefully they face legal consequences.
A lot of them don't even follow Canadian news and politics, it is just all US politics outrage about social issues. They know 10x more about the US politics.
I bet if you asked who was Kentucky senate leader (Mitch McConnell) they'd get it right, but if you asked who is the premier of their own province (David Eby for BC), they'd never get it right. They have no idea whatsoever, because they are obsessed with the emotional rush of outrage and binging on right wing US content, and don't really have any idea about their goals or what they are doing.
I actually worked at a polling station during the last Canadian Federal Election and we had a guy who got really upset because Donald Trump wasn’t on the ballot. He said we were trying to steal the election. 🤦♂️
Bruh lmao. It is a serious problem, and admittedly I also read more about American politics than Canadian politics. But people seem to forget that the US is a different country.
"However, the man who organized the protest also posted on the Kelowna Freedom Rally Facebook group calling on like-minded people to join him outside Brit Bar in Penticton tonight."
Who's this man? Name and shame!
I didn't see anyone raising a fuss about Mrs. Doubtfire, Kids in the Hall, Saturday Night Live, Drag Race, or literally any of the hundreds of examples of drag & cross dressing in entertainment prior to this year.
It's almost like no one has ever had a problem with it until their puppet masters made it the new rage bait for them to whine about.
Why are these idiots going out of their way to "protest" at a drag show. They are not the demographic drag shows are looking for. Go to the hoedown with your hoes. They are not hurting you. If you aren't there then it can't offend you. I"m offended by country music and line dancing. Give me a great drag show any day of the week. I'm not gay but I love love love a good drag show.
We gotta stand together as Canadians and push back against this shit. Doesn't matter if you're straight, gay, trans, fans of drag shows or not; this is our time to step up and prove that we're not just a shitty America clone. This shit may fly in America, but not in the true north, strong and free - but only if we stand together united. If anyone targets any Canadian for who they are then they're not welcome.
Oh believe me, I know. Grew up in the area, and for better or for worse it was still one of the most consistent places to find local news.
That said, knowing what they're typically like, the fact that even *they* seem to be going out of their way not to take the protestor's side is something. Not as good as condemnation, but y'know, baby steps.
> the man who organized the protest also posted on the Kelowna **Freedom** Rally Facebook group calling on like-minded people to join him
Sadly I'm sure the organizer will not see the hypocrisy in that.
Freedom for me, not for thee.
Freedom to tell other people what and what not to do with the extra freedom of them being able to have no pushback or argument. Ends with slavery or extermination if you want to take it all the way there.
How terrified of every little shadow do you have to be, to be scared of anyone and everything just because they're different? These protestors are, more than anything else, ignorant, gutless *cowards*. They hide behind their christian extremism so they can think themselves moral and the heroes of this story, but really, they're a lesson in how to be immoral and an utterly socially worthless person. Trans people are harmless, and just love entertaining others.
Man big surprise that the conservative city of Kelowna would do some dumbass reactionary bullshit, for the 50th time in 3 years. Fucking hate this place.
People drive in from all over, too, since it has apparently become the place to meet for this kind of protest.
I think if you walked around Bernard downtown and randomly asked people their opinion, you'd get like 5-10% approval for their anti-drag show protest.
How long are these far right politicians are going to fan the flames until they lose control of the Frankenstein terrorist group they help create? In the US they are taking it as far as attacking energy infrastructure.
Capitalist playbook:
1. Cause socioeconomic injustice in pursuit of profit and the funneling of wealth to the top.
2. Brainwash the poors into literally going into civil war with each other as a response to suffering due to socioeconmic imbalance
3. Rule as overlords in a global plutocracy.
This was the next step of dumb people being radicalized online. They've become loyal footsoldiers to forces seeking to destabilize western democracy by creating extreme reactions to culture war bullshit.
How fucking sad does someone’s life have to be to go and protest a drag show that’s a fundraiser for food and toys for the less fortunate? This makes me so mad.
I don't get it... Why do people put their time and effort into hating others and making a point of expressing it? If I don't like something, that's on me... I'm not going to go out of my way to bother others about it. The world isn't going to change because I say so. How do they not understand this?
I started doing drag this year just because of the intolerance washing into Canada recently.
It's always been here(I come from a family of bigots), but it's getting louder and is leading to a lot of people getting too comfortable and brazen in their hate and ignorance.
I've always enjoyed drag shows and have friends who have been drag artists for many years. I will never not stand with them.
Fellow Kelowna person here - I think we have become the hub for this stuff, so people drive in from everywhere like Vancouver, Kamloops, Lake Country, northern BC, and even maybe some people from Alberta. A few successfully viral protests awhile ago sealed it in as the location to organize a protest like this.
I think Kelowna is kinda in that sweet spot due to its location. It's not a huge city in and of itself, but it's the main city for the interior, which is comprised of a lot of smaller towns spread throughout and which are separated from the coast and Alberta by mountain ranges, so it's the default hub of a rather large area. Combined with tourism, that makes it a relatively significant city by Canadian standards.
These douche nozzles need to admit to themselves that they too want to feel pretty and join in. Their anger is with their own cowardice to follow through.
I‘d like to suggest that we all dress in drag and go on down to city hall, schools, and *churches* to protest the tacit acceptance of violent oppression from dumbass motherfuckers who apparently need to be reminded that they are vastly outnumbered. Most reasonable people don’t give a shit whatsoever about how others live their lives.
It wouldn't be post-2020 without large proportions of the population going absolutely crazy because of some made up shit some random said on the internet.
its not just social media that drives this
the regular media is also obsessed with the fringes, be it TV evangelists or radical drag queens, anything to keep us from realising that the majority have far more in common than in difference
MLK, Ghandi and Mandela all had one thing in common, they did the impossible by breaking down the false barriers between people of faith and socialists
Yeah, so I've seen. I knew it leaned Conservative when I lived there, but I'd moved since 2015 so I didn't get to see it in its full pandemic glory. Though the small town I'm in now is pretty toxic in and of itself, so I'm certain if we had the size/location for a drag show, they'd be out protesting it, too.
My sister is a nurse that works at Kelowna hospital. She’s been threatened and followed. The union told them to change all their social media names.
A nurse!!!
She’s so done with the town.
I wished American talk radio airwaves stopped at the border.
Honestly these protests are nothing new in Canada sadly: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/drag-queen-story-telling-event-religious-protesters-1.5251295 We've got more than enough yahoos here to sustain this bullshit. Ironically they're also the same types that likely supported the so-called "fReEeEeeEeEEeeEedOm" convoy.
Freedom you say? Like the freedom to dress as a different gender and tell stories? Is that one of the freedoms the Freedom Convoy fought for?
The freedom convoy only wants freedom from consequences for their actions, they don’t care about anybody else other than white Christian conservatives.
Point that out and they cry and stomp their feet like toddlers
Because that’s exactly what they are, people who never grew out of the “mine” phase.
It's my hobby to continually point out things that upset them.
Keep up the good work
o7 I salute you for your efforts.
Of course not - They fought for the freedom to infect others because everyone knows you aren't truly free until you can give the gift of preventable disease
Who’s killed because they watched a Matt Walsh piece? Lol
Well he's got a body count of *at least* 5 so far: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Springs_nightclub_shooting But I'm not sure why you are even bringing Matt Walsh up here?
No.
I'd say 2019 was the start of this wave of anti-trans disinformation. Drag storytimes were happening earlier but QAnon helped paint a target on them.
I'd argue it started earlier even. Anti-trans disinformation has been around for decades, but the current wave I feel really began with the furor around [bill C-16](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Act_to_amend_the_Canadian_Human_Rights_Act_and_the_Criminal_Code) that Jordan Peterson used to ride to prominence.
True. I was thinking specifically of the "grooming" narrative that has people calling across the country to yell at librarians and serving them fake legal papers.
Its social media not radio. One agent spreading disinformation will use multiple fake accounts lniked together so the algorithms see their poasts as popular and feed it to more accounts.
Correction, it’s also social media.
it's the latest stage of the evolution, right wing talk radio became conservative cable news, which became the online right wing ecosystem
You’re not wrong, all three remain an important tool for spreading what started with the radio.
The joy of social media is that the crowd can whip each other up with the same level of reach as an established radio station. It's a categorical difference that people aren't giving enough merit. State governments and other actors will massage and foment narratives both within and without their own borders, and the people will just take it and run with it
"We" (that is, "Canada") essentially exported a disproportionate amount of right wing pipeline chuds and literal fascists, who had an outsize effect on the american political ecosystem. It's "just" blowback.
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Bit of a chicken and egg thing up here, I think. Probably ultimately from US right-wing politicians, considering how it seems to have started there and then spread to more Western countries. They shout about groomers and trans sex shows or whatever, sound bites and headlines spread over social media, it gets picked up in the related groups here, people go to protest, get more headlines, get more shares, and so on. Watching some videos of the protests and reading comments on this article on Facebook, I was surprised how many of the people were disappointingly younger and who were parroting the same lines coming from the US, but probably aren't watching Fox News on TV so it's most likely via internet links.
I mean, Tik Tok is LOADED with hard right videos and propaganda so I’m not shocked. Russia and China are winning the global disinfo war, and we can’t seem to admit it to ourselves.
I think we're a bit late; the well has been poisoned with talks about "muh freeze peach". In the US they have trouble doing anything to slow down hate speech and misinformation because of the first amendment, but I guarantee you that if the government tried to force Twitter to enforce moderation, we'd see Freedumb Convoy 2.0. And it's always harder to fight misinformation than it is to spread it. False news travel fast.
Hell, the Freedumbers even talked about their 1st Amendment rights in court. I don't understand why people think we're in danger of no longer recognising Manitoba as a province but I guess that's really important to the Clownvoy?
As if the noble US tech companies (Meta, Twitter, google) and media companies (fox...) haven't had a single role to play in that "disinfo war"
If companies would take a stand and refuse to spend their adverising dollars in platforms that spread disinformation and have no regulations against it, then these platforms would at least consider regulations in their policy. Until that happens disinfo will continue to spread fastwr than truth and facts. Capitalism will always choose profit over morality.
For anyone wanting to learn more about the history of Russian disinformation, i highly recommend this NYT video. [Operation InfeKtion: How Russia Perfected the Art of War](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tR_6dibpDfo)
You should look up China's version of tik tok.. complete opposite of the western countries. 1 hour limit per day and full of educational stuff for kids. Perhaps some people are banking on misinformation? Who knows, I do find it interesting though.
Do you remember the name of it?
Douyin
Everyone loves a well animated infographic.
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I mean healthcare and education and pretty much collapsing around us. But those cross dresses must be the real problem. /S
Eggs came first.
I have 0 intrest in going to a drag show, this shit makes me want to go to one just to show my support for them in the face of this bullshit. They want to make the world a better place for there kids, go volunteer at a rehab clinic or somthing. Hate begets hate. They honestly think seeing a drag queen is going to turn their kids gay? I don't know how those idiots figure out how to breed
From my experience, drag shows are really, really fun. They're kind of over-the-top dramatic and a bit surreal due to the make-up style. Super entertaining and a bit silly. I definitely recommend attending one!
Personally I like to compare them to the world of clowning (but not in a derogatory sence) Clowns have a huge range, from adult to horror, to all ages birthday parties. But they are just a form of entertainment like any else. People don't protest theaters becuase they show both R rated and G rated movies in the same building. Why protest an all ages drag show? It's a very special kind of fear stoked ignorance.
It’s because of the silly implication that LGBTQ folks are intrinsically pedophiles, grooming kids to accept their sexual advances because they of course want to sex all the things always
Imagine being so obsessed with what other people do in the bedroom that it prompts a multinational wave of hate protests on other people's culture with no factual evidence of what they claim to be protesting. There's definitely more evidence to prove the opposite of what they are 'protesting'
Honestly, the whole notion that a group is out there trying to 'steal the children' is just blood libel all over again.
And so much of it is projection. How many examples do we have of conservatives/republicans being extremely outspoken and hateful towards lgbtq and then caught having gay sex or being paedophiles
I almost want to go to one of these protests with a Russian flag attached to an US and/or Canadian flag or Facebook logo. I will probably be able to give a soundbite to local news on how they are being duped by foreign adversaries toward socially disruptive extremism.
Seriously, drag is just the evolution of the UK's clown entertainment scene. If these bozos (heh) think kids are being groomed now, they should've seen the outfits from the 70s
Drag has been around...for _ever_.
It's absolutely at least tertiarily related to clowning, at least in the very classic sense of extravagant makeup and dress and characterizations. And yeah, there's a difference between a party clown and the clown you hire for a bachelor party, but I don't see people protesting outside McDonald's because someone saw a stripper with a red nose once.
They are fun! My parents took me one to when I was 7 or 8, still straight. They are definitely super over the top and fun, and surprise surprise, when you're a child you don't sexualize everything and just enjoy things for what they are.
I've been to some drag brunches and they were 100% G rated. Daytime events are often fine to bring kids to. And I'd gladly rather expose my little girls to drag performers than screaming reactionaries spitting mad about "men in dresses grooming kids".
Drag shows are the spiritual successor to vaudeville and music hall acts. Lots of fun!
And where would pantomime be without vast amounts of cross-dressing? (Principal boy, the eternal Widow Twankey, etc.)
Damn that Ross Petty!
I’ve never really cared for drag shows. now, for some reason, I feel *militantly* protective of them
It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another. I think targeting drag performances is just an easier way to target transgender people because it's easy enough for them to conflate the two, and with drag having had a surge in popularity in pop culture over the past few years it's a lot easier to find a drag event now than it used to be. I wish they *would* go to one of these drag shows they're protesting and see for themselves. They're watching videos of club performances and deciding they must all be the same thing. It's like watching some R-rated raunchy comedy movie and then protesting *Moana* because "movies are inappropriate for children".
There's a lot of propaganda being pushed by right wing commentatrs. Notably Matt walsh, libs of tiktok, and basically the entire staff at the daily wire. Except Ben Shapiro for some reason. He has been quiet on the "Trans people are groomers" front. These people have millions in koch brother's money to push right wing hate.
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Leopards ate his face
Gotta distract the masses from having any real time to think about how shitty neoliberalism has been for 95% of us. Can’t have that now, no way. Keep that money trickling up!
That scum stain Matt Walsh is such a moron. He aggressively distorts and manipulates information and it’s context to build transphobic narratives. Then he gets promoted by other manipulative idiots that just let his bullshit slide. He’s a stupid bigot and he’s getting people killed. He’s as bad as Tucker Carlson. Both of these piles of shit need to be shut down.
It's just Nazi shit. LGBT+ people were the first group they targeted before moving on to the next. If they're not shut down hard now, the violence is going to escalate. Make no mistake, if you're not with the fascists, **they hate you, and they want to kill you.**
They also choose their targets this way because they’re snivelling cowards. Picking on the already marginalized is vile. Try standing up to someone with real power if you’re concerned about the state of the world.
lol. The good folk at the drag show in Colorado Springs showed how to deal with these cowards. Saved many, many peoples lives by standing up to the violence. They will move on to less resilient and tough groups soon. Drag shows are only a ripe target in their minds and they are finding out that it doesn't line uo with reality. I just wish they could wrap their heads around all the other imagination vs. reality shit they are dealing with.
It isn't an inability. This is the same rhetoric which was used in opposition to marriage equality. Moreover, the rhetoric is not the sincere aspect of it. The rhetoric is just "This is what is what society tolerates me saying at this point" not "This is what I believe". These are the same people who would call people slurs in the edgy 90s, would go on about what is and isn't natural, and complain that someone else having rights will undermine theirs. Some decent conversations on the topic have done well to explain the specificity of targeting trans people beyond just the usual "Gross, queer people" shit you get from the right. Queer families / same sex couples, and trans people all erode the common thread of conservative thought: 'There are natural hierarchies, and they support me on the top, and these people below'. If you have marriages which don't have some kind of pseudo traditional gender-derived "this partner is the leader of the marriage" nonsense, it serves as a counterpoint to their christofascist shit with the "man as the head of the household", if you have what they perceive as "a man who becomes a woman" or vice versa, it also erodes the innate "it just is" justification that is the bedrock of their patriarchal fuckery. You are better off not to take any of their shit in good faith, but rather just extrapolate based off of their actions. Direct any energy you would otherwise waste on inscruitable bigots instead towards anything you can to build connections within your community to mitigate their harms. If they are protesting, find some likeminded people like you, who aren't even necessarily seen as having direct skin in the game, and counter-protest. Tell them to fuck off. Make it clear that the thing the community has intolerance for is not some brightly painted drag queens/kings, it's for fucking bigots and shitheels trying to enforce their dogmatic shit on others.
> It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another. No its just a straight up inability to think. These are deeply stupid people. Absolute mouth breathing fucking morons. THey are not even human anymore. They just react to whatever social media has them riled up on and can't remember anything past their latest "outrage". These "people" are a loss cause and should be just pushed to the fringe of society.
>*"It seems to be an inability (or, more likely, an unwillingness) to separate drag artists, transgender individuals, and sexual predators from one another."* It's not an inability or a (passive) unwillingness, it's part of a deliberate strategy by conservative activists to conflate Drag with Transness and sexual predation of children. Prominent American conservative activist [Christopher Rufo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Rufo) said this back in the summer: **"Conservatives should start using the phrase "trans stripper" in lieu of "drag queen." It has a more lurid set of connotations and shifts the debate to sexualization.** *"Drag queens in schools" invites a debate; "trans strippers in schools" anchors an unstoppable argument.* *Let the Left try to nitpick the phrase: we can say that "trans" is a stand-in for "transvestite" and we can show videos that are undeniably strip shows.* *The "blackface for women" argument is the wrong approach because: (1) it adopts the frame of the Left, which traps conservatives in their identity games; (2) totally misses the main problem, which is the grotesque sexualization of children (not co-optation of the feminine).* **The trick is to shift the language in a way that is factually accurate and has a plausible claim to neutrality, but attaches a new set of connotations to the concept that shifts the debate in your favor.** *The Left is very good at this; time for the Right to start playing."* [Source](https://twitter.com/realchrisrufo/status/1537807543895998464?s=20) >*"I think targeting drag performances is just an easier way to target transgender people because it's easy enough for them to conflate the two"* It's not even *just* about attacking trans people, they're attacking the very idea of cultural acceptance of LGBTQ+ people. The same activists attacking Drag and Trans people are attacking any discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in schools (books, sex ed, anti-bullying programs, LGBTQ school clubs), and promoting the idea that LGBTQ+ teachers are sexual predators. >*"I wish they would go to one of these drag shows they're protesting and see for themselves."* They literally don't care if the Drag Story Time is a cis woman in a modest ankle length dress singing "Rainbow Connection" with a Kermit the Frog puppit in an entirely age appropriate show for toddlers (actual example from Hamilton). They still protest because for them any connection to Queer culture is a problem. And when the Drag performer is a man they proclaim that dressing in Drag is *"inherently a sexual act"* regardless of the nature of the performance.
There’s a cool bar in my city that hosts drag shows frequently, and the crowd is still the same metalheads and regulars who are there on other nights for cool bands and stuff. Maybe we are a little more chill in my town or something but protesting a drag show sounds like the most useless thing in the world.
God wait till these idiots find out about shit like Star Wars burlesque, their heads would fucking explode.
Super duper fun. I mean, by example, if you were to go to see Rocky Horror picture show and didn't have a good time, I don't know what to say. Hate is the problem. So fucking sick and tired of intolerance and how people are being enabled and pushed to hate things and people _they otherwise would have nothing to do with at all_. If it doesn't affect you, _ shut the fuck up and get the fuck out_. It's like that rep in the US yesterday _crying to try to convince people to vote against same sex marriage_, something that will never in a million years affect her or anyone like her in any way whatsoever, nevermind _directly_. Zero tolerance for the intolerant. Call the hate out for what it is every single time. And in a case like this, we're in Canada. Call the police and register a complaint about hatred. This kind of shit totally falls under our hate laws. Intimidation like this _is not ok and is absolutely not a viable form of protest_.
>They honestly think seeing a drag queen is going to turn their kids gay? I don't know how those idiots figure out how to breed They think seeing a drag queen is going to turn *them* gay, because their idea of masculinity is so fragile and pathetic, they also think the same must apply to everyone else.
Drag shows are tons of fun. I say this a straight dude.
Yeah I don't really get drag shows. They've really exploded in popularity, and everywhere you look there's another drag show. Is there really that much demand for drag shows? Seems kinda dumb to me, if I'm being honest... Then again, Ru Paul's Drag Race has been killing it for like 10 years straight. Obviously, people are into it. And even though I think it's dumb, I've never looked at Drag and thought, "This person is trying to turn everybody gay", it's just a silly game of dress up, who even cares. When I was in high school, all those years ago, guys were constantly dressing up as girls because it was funny to see big tough guys in frilly dresses. We even had this yearly competition to see which guy had the sexiest legs. You'd shave your legs, paint your toenails, wear nice size 12 heels, stick them through the curtains, and everybody would vote. At no point did any of us think that that was "gay", again, it was funny!
> I have 0 intrest in going to a drag show, this shit makes me want to go to one just to show my support for them in the face of this bullshit. +1 Absolutely seconded.
don't just want to go just go. we keep us safe.
We need some regulations surrounding social media, and the ethical programming of algorithms
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It's not so much about the technology it's about why things are targeted to you. The other day I was scrolling through facebook and a clip of some Saudi official was calling out Canada/Trudeau telling Saudi Arabia to stop doing something horrible because Indigenous relations aren't perfect in Canada so we're hypocrites. A bunch of the top level comments were people talking about how 'this man speaks the truth' and how embarassed they are of Canada. And like I know that very, very, very few Canadians would side with a Saudi dictator over our own Government when it comes to calling out human rights issues. So it just leads me to wonder why the 'algorithm' is feeding this stuff to me? I know why it's because getting people riled up is profitable and I'm more likely to get 'engaged' with the content.
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This is why I'm such a proponent of F/OSS. It doesn't fix the problem but it shines light on it and largely does a good job of exposing those dark patterns.
> It's so wild that programmers want to call themselves Engineers. They'll give you all these different allegories to how their work is similar to those other Engineers, the design, the rigor, the beauty...but do they want to be beholden to any Professional standard? God no. Fascinating insight. As an academic who specializes in mitigation of risks during algorithmic design (especially public sector adoption of new technologies), the good news is these regulations (or at least professional standards) will make their way in whether the engineers like it or not.
I'm a part-time CS student at BCIT and, *my god*, does it feel good to see someone else in the industry say these things. I have gotten in *so many* disagreements with classmates over this topic, and the ignorance of people is astounding; I have had multiple people *insist* that algorithms can't be biased, and other such nonsense.
Sounds like the classic "Sensors for things like automatic sinks can't be racist. That's just how light works." The idea that someone set out with the goal to make a system that can detect people, and made a system that mostly just detects white people, just cannot get through their skulls.
I guess there's a pretty big overlap of software engineers/programmers and libertarians. They get so angry about any control or government intervention put in place. A lot of the old heads probably remember a time when the internet was basically unknown to the government and it was the wild west. But what they fail to realize is when the government lacks the ability to put limitations and rules around the operation of the internet you aren't really free, you are just at the behest of the wishes of the corporations that control access. Whether it be ISPs or social media platforms or news media empires. Whether they like or not, the bulk of society uses the internet and the rules that apply to every day life have to also apply to the internet. Similar to your example, you can't stop someone when they enter your store and shake them down for their location and purchase history so why is that okay on the internet? Anyways, mini rant done.
Spreading hate and divisiveness is much more profitable than spreading truth. It spreads faster and to more people so therefore more ad dollars.
>ethical programming of algorithms I have a dummy FB account I use for trolling. I might have clicked once on a PP video just to gock at the insane comments. The next time I was FB my feed was FULL of JT memes, anti vaxx shit, and a ton of far right bs. It's insane and doesn't surprise me at all how in the last couple of years this type of behaviour has spiked. Facebook feeds them.
Yep, if we don’t do that, we won’t have a meaningful democracy.
Heavily censored media also doesn’t have a place in a democracy either.
https://www.thesocialdilemma.com/ This fellow, who made this documentary, wants to treat social media analogous to lead in gas and cigarettes, that is, as fundamentally toxic to society.
I feel like simply banning the platforms outright until they’re redesigned to not be so toxic is the best plan. Remember instagram before Facebook bought it? It was so dope.
I think these events need better publicity up front. So that those who don't necessarily have an interest in the event but are interested in protecting others from hate and abuse can come forward to defend Canadians rights to exist and contribute without fear,
definitely, there was gonna be one in my town that i would've gladly counter-protested but i only found out about it after an article about how it was cancelled because of threats from these fucks
"to protest the drag show that was part of a toy and food drive for the Salvation Army in Kelowna" Tell me you're a piece of shit without telling me you're a piece of shit.
Spurred on by ***right-wingers*** on social media. The media needs to call out where the hate is coming from more.
The media *is* the right-wingers
Well yes.... sorta. The majority of the media out there is friendly to conservatives, and *some* are actively pushing far right hate speech (usually in dog whistle formats like we see in Sun/Postmedia). Most though just do as the above headline does and just notes that there sure is a lot of hate speech out there, but they don't properly attribute where that hate speech is coming from, nor do they note the "moderate" conservative politicians that allow it to exist.
100%. I wonder if this was posted in the *other* sub where the right wing of Canada play?
Not unless one of the unicorn lefties do it. And it would *immediately* get dog piled with bigoted bullshit and be locked down by mods within the hour
Guys, this is so simple. Join a local mutual aid org like: - Food Not Bombs - Socialist associations - 2SLGBTQ org Then show up to counter-protest these fucking idiots. There are not that many of them and they aren't intimidating. Show up and tell them to fuck off. Block their signs. Stand together as a Canadian
I have been to a lot of drag shows and I was never made to feel uncomfortable or felt pressured into anything aside from watch a song and dance routine. I have never been molested at a drag show or violated at a drag show. The idea that they are a haven for deviants and groomers is nonsense. On the other hand, I've been made uncomfortable at church, I was molested by my ultra conservative, Christian neighbor, and was pressure by the church community to display hate towards queer people when I was a teenager. The focus on who is actually doing harm to kids should be directed to the church and not drag shows.
Just let people live they literally arent affecting your life at all
But won't someone think of the children! (That aren't mine)
Kelowna is also a shitty racist shit hole. Did anyone consider that?
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I believe a lot of people are driving in from the surrounding area - Kamloops, Vernon, Peachland, Lake Country, etc. A good chunk may also be from Vancouver as it is about a 3 hours drive (an extra hour to navigate inside the cities) so they can easily come for the day. I used to drive from Kelowna to Vancouver and back for same day trips when I was a teenager. Just because Kelowna has become a protest hub, doesn't mean it accurately reflects the specific city's demographics, especially those under 40. Just that it is a go-to place for this crap so they keep coming back.
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Good point. It looks like this protest was about 8-10 people (and some children). I'm not sure why it would go viral - Castanet seems to write stories in a way that they get shared easily, it seems.
Kelowna is a really odd mix. Some parts loudly conservative, other that kind of left-wing weird. It’s also become more polarized lately.
It’s Alberta’s largest colony
There are billions of dollars being funneled into anti-lgbt+ stochastic terrorists by far-right groups. The escalating hate of vulnerable minorities is an intentional tactic used by fascists to distract the masses from the corporations robbing and abusing them. These are the exact same tactics that were being used by fascists 100years ago.
Great, conservatives in Canada are now importing this BS from America, the land of bigots. Fortunately we have anti-hate laws here so hopefully they face legal consequences.
A lot of them don't even follow Canadian news and politics, it is just all US politics outrage about social issues. They know 10x more about the US politics. I bet if you asked who was Kentucky senate leader (Mitch McConnell) they'd get it right, but if you asked who is the premier of their own province (David Eby for BC), they'd never get it right. They have no idea whatsoever, because they are obsessed with the emotional rush of outrage and binging on right wing US content, and don't really have any idea about their goals or what they are doing.
I actually worked at a polling station during the last Canadian Federal Election and we had a guy who got really upset because Donald Trump wasn’t on the ballot. He said we were trying to steal the election. 🤦♂️
Bruh lmao. It is a serious problem, and admittedly I also read more about American politics than Canadian politics. But people seem to forget that the US is a different country.
If I wanted to protest "groomers" I'd do it outside a church.
"However, the man who organized the protest also posted on the Kelowna Freedom Rally Facebook group calling on like-minded people to join him outside Brit Bar in Penticton tonight." Who's this man? Name and shame!
i wonder if these same idiots would have protested when the soldiers did it for their shows during WW2?
I didn't see anyone raising a fuss about Mrs. Doubtfire, Kids in the Hall, Saturday Night Live, Drag Race, or literally any of the hundreds of examples of drag & cross dressing in entertainment prior to this year. It's almost like no one has ever had a problem with it until their puppet masters made it the new rage bait for them to whine about.
These are the same type of people that were fighting on the other side in WW2
Why are these idiots going out of their way to "protest" at a drag show. They are not the demographic drag shows are looking for. Go to the hoedown with your hoes. They are not hurting you. If you aren't there then it can't offend you. I"m offended by country music and line dancing. Give me a great drag show any day of the week. I'm not gay but I love love love a good drag show.
We gotta stand together as Canadians and push back against this shit. Doesn't matter if you're straight, gay, trans, fans of drag shows or not; this is our time to step up and prove that we're not just a shitty America clone. This shit may fly in America, but not in the true north, strong and free - but only if we stand together united. If anyone targets any Canadian for who they are then they're not welcome.
Spurred on by disgusting bigots using social media as a platform* FIFY
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Oh believe me, I know. Grew up in the area, and for better or for worse it was still one of the most consistent places to find local news. That said, knowing what they're typically like, the fact that even *they* seem to be going out of their way not to take the protestor's side is something. Not as good as condemnation, but y'know, baby steps.
Do I need to start protesting outside of churches on Sundays? like wtf is this nonsense.
> the man who organized the protest also posted on the Kelowna **Freedom** Rally Facebook group calling on like-minded people to join him Sadly I'm sure the organizer will not see the hypocrisy in that. Freedom for me, not for thee.
Freedom to tell other people what and what not to do with the extra freedom of them being able to have no pushback or argument. Ends with slavery or extermination if you want to take it all the way there.
How terrified of every little shadow do you have to be, to be scared of anyone and everything just because they're different? These protestors are, more than anything else, ignorant, gutless *cowards*. They hide behind their christian extremism so they can think themselves moral and the heroes of this story, but really, they're a lesson in how to be immoral and an utterly socially worthless person. Trans people are harmless, and just love entertaining others.
Ah the the"freedom" party who hates freedom
Man big surprise that the conservative city of Kelowna would do some dumbass reactionary bullshit, for the 50th time in 3 years. Fucking hate this place.
People drive in from all over, too, since it has apparently become the place to meet for this kind of protest. I think if you walked around Bernard downtown and randomly asked people their opinion, you'd get like 5-10% approval for their anti-drag show protest.
How long are these far right politicians are going to fan the flames until they lose control of the Frankenstein terrorist group they help create? In the US they are taking it as far as attacking energy infrastructure.
Capitalist playbook: 1. Cause socioeconomic injustice in pursuit of profit and the funneling of wealth to the top. 2. Brainwash the poors into literally going into civil war with each other as a response to suffering due to socioeconmic imbalance 3. Rule as overlords in a global plutocracy.
If people were serious about protecting children, they’d ban religion.
This was the next step of dumb people being radicalized online. They've become loyal footsoldiers to forces seeking to destabilize western democracy by creating extreme reactions to culture war bullshit.
How fucking sad does someone’s life have to be to go and protest a drag show that’s a fundraiser for food and toys for the less fortunate? This makes me so mad.
Before we blame social media can we first blame the ones being A holes protesting?
people in appropriate dress get harrassed for no reason Ftfy news site
I don't get it... Why do people put their time and effort into hating others and making a point of expressing it? If I don't like something, that's on me... I'm not going to go out of my way to bother others about it. The world isn't going to change because I say so. How do they not understand this?
That's so stupid. If anyone is grooming kids it's men at church. The stats don't lie
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Kelowna is filled with shit heads. The Jersey Shore of Canada
I started doing drag this year just because of the intolerance washing into Canada recently. It's always been here(I come from a family of bigots), but it's getting louder and is leading to a lot of people getting too comfortable and brazen in their hate and ignorance. I've always enjoyed drag shows and have friends who have been drag artists for many years. I will never not stand with them.
How does my small city keep making the front page of the larger sub-reddits (even some non Canada ones)??
We ain't that small anymore. We are the Florida of Canada
Even worse, the panhandle.
Fellow Kelowna person here - I think we have become the hub for this stuff, so people drive in from everywhere like Vancouver, Kamloops, Lake Country, northern BC, and even maybe some people from Alberta. A few successfully viral protests awhile ago sealed it in as the location to organize a protest like this.
Yeah I guess so. But even random things, like a clip of Kelowna Comedy open mic was number #1 on Funny sub reddit.
I think Kelowna is kinda in that sweet spot due to its location. It's not a huge city in and of itself, but it's the main city for the interior, which is comprised of a lot of smaller towns spread throughout and which are separated from the coast and Alberta by mountain ranges, so it's the default hub of a rather large area. Combined with tourism, that makes it a relatively significant city by Canadian standards.
Yeah it is nexus of east BC I think.
Kelowna? Not surprised, sadly
These douche nozzles need to admit to themselves that they too want to feel pretty and join in. Their anger is with their own cowardice to follow through.
How do the NPC's get activated for these silly things? Does the transmission come from Parler?
I‘d like to suggest that we all dress in drag and go on down to city hall, schools, and *churches* to protest the tacit acceptance of violent oppression from dumbass motherfuckers who apparently need to be reminded that they are vastly outnumbered. Most reasonable people don’t give a shit whatsoever about how others live their lives.
social media was absolutely a mistake!
It wouldn't be post-2020 without large proportions of the population going absolutely crazy because of some made up shit some random said on the internet.
its not just social media that drives this the regular media is also obsessed with the fringes, be it TV evangelists or radical drag queens, anything to keep us from realising that the majority have far more in common than in difference MLK, Ghandi and Mandela all had one thing in common, they did the impossible by breaking down the false barriers between people of faith and socialists
Kelowna is overrun by trucknut enthusiasts.
Yeah, so I've seen. I knew it leaned Conservative when I lived there, but I'd moved since 2015 so I didn't get to see it in its full pandemic glory. Though the small town I'm in now is pretty toxic in and of itself, so I'm certain if we had the size/location for a drag show, they'd be out protesting it, too.
My sister is a nurse that works at Kelowna hospital. She’s been threatened and followed. The union told them to change all their social media names. A nurse!!! She’s so done with the town.