Republican lawmakers are accusing Democrats of teaming up with Planned Parenthood and “deliberately” misleading House Representatives by hosting an LGBTQ event in the Arizona State Capitol.
Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma (R-AZ) claimed he was misled by Democrat Rep. Lorena Austin (D-AZ) who reserved a conference room to host a drag story hour with Planned Parenthood for their “dangerously perverse ideology.”
“As a result, I’ve ordered that Democrats have lost the privilege of accessing house meeting rooms until trust can be restored,” Toma wrote on X.
A Drag Story Hour was hosted by Austin in the Copper Basin Room of the House basement earlier this week— a day before an LGBTQ+ Youth Day at the Capitol.
The Democrat hit back at Toma, claiming that the state building belonged to the people— including members of the LGBTQ community.
“It is nothing short of ridiculous that I have been described as dishonest, deceitful, and perverse and have been subjected to calls for punishment and expulsion,” she said. “What is true is that I hosted a drag performer who read stories about LGBTQ+ history and inclusion.”
A video, taken by a spokesperson from the state Senate, shows a man dressed in drag wearing a sequined suit jacket and donning pink and white makeup reading from the book "Queer and Fearless: Poems Celebrating the Lives of LGBTQ+ Heroes.”
“When is it time to choose a new name? Why does someone become an activist? How does one begin?" the man is heard saying in the video.
Austin claimed that the event was entirely educational and fell within the mission of the LGBTQ agenda. She also accused Toma of “hate and bigotry,” saying that she “will never apologize for teaching people to be inclusive.”
Planned Parenthood Arizona hit back at Toma, saying that his criticism is another example "of Speaker Toma showing how out of touch he is with the values of Arizonans & their support for the LGTBQ community.”
However, Sen. John Kavanaugh (R-AZ) defended Toma’s criticism of the event, also accusing the group of secretly planning a Drag Story Hour on Capitol grounds.
“And it wouldn't have happened had they been truthful and said they wanted to have a drag queen story hour," Kavanaugh said. "I mean, that in and of itself, is so inflammatory and controversial, which is probably why they didn't mention that. So, it was the fact that they were deceptive in the explanation."
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