A planned Drag Queen story hour at a Pennsylvania library was canceled after several bomb threats and the discovery of a suspicious package in the building.
The Lancaster Public Library and two blocks in the city center were evacuated Saturday following reported threats against a nearby Starbucks and the library’s executive director, Lissa Holland.
The event, which featured drag queen Amie Vanité, had sparked passionate opposition from some residents during a marathon meeting of county commissioners on Wednesday, the second straight meeting marked by protests from residents after Republican commissioners denounced the event as inappropriate, LancasterOnline reported.
“I’m shocked,” the drag performer, whose real name is Christopher Paolini, told WGAL after the event was cancelled.
“It’s very disappointing, disheartening, and surprisingly unfazed because I’ve been dealing with hate like this on these shows for years, but it’s never been like this before.”
The event in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, featuring drag queen Amie Vanité, sparked passionate opposition from some residents and lawmakers.
A city spokesperson later told LancasterOnline that a dog had been alerted to the package found in the library and the contents were later found to be “benign.”
“I’m shocked,” the drag performer, whose real name is Christopher Paolini, said after the event was cancelled.
A city spokesperson later told LancasterOnline that a dog had alerted about the package found in the library and the contents were later found to be “benign,” but “we subsequently received additional written threats via email.”
Lancaster Pride, a nonprofit that celebrates the city’s LGBTQ+ community, posted a notice on social media that ‘Drag Story Hour with Miss Amie’ had been cancelled, saying that ‘the safety and well-being of our community are of utmost importance to us.’ ‘
About 500 families had registered for the event.
Commissioner Josh Parsons had previously said that libraries “should be places for children to read and learn safely, not politicized social laboratories for woke ideology.” Commissioner Ray D’Agostino said he thought there was a link between children being more “confused, anxious and stressed” than ever and people “trying to push adult-related issues at such a young age.”
Dozens of people attended a prayer vigil in the plaza adjacent to the library Friday night in opposition to the event.
Both Parsons and D’Agostino issued statements Saturday afternoon condemning the reported threats and calling for the prosecution of those responsible regardless of their motives, LancasterOnline reported.
“Threats of violence have no place in our debates,” Parsons said.
Holland, the library’s executive director, told LancasterOnline she was “really sad, very disappointed and angry” about the cancellation.
‘The library should be a safe place. …And as I’ve told people numerous times this week, every book in the library is not for every person, every program may not be for every person. But we do not censor,” he stated.
The ‘Drag Queen Story Hour’ listing on the library’s events page asked attendees to “Join Miss Amie Vanité as she spreads awareness and acceptance by celebrating diversity, inclusion, kindness and love through LGBTQ+ literature for young readers.
Police said: “We subsequently received additional written threats via email.”
“It’s very disappointing, heartbreaking, and I’m surprisingly unfazed because I’ve been dealing with hate like this for years with these shows, but it’s never been like this before,” added the artist, whose real name is Christopher Paolini.
The ‘Drag Queen Story Hour’ listing on the library’s events page asked attendees to “Join Miss Amie Vanité as she spreads awareness and acceptance.”
The Lancaster LGBTQ+ Coalition noted a “backlash” to a Facebook post earlier this month and condemned what it called “hateful comments about the LGBTQ+ community” by public officials.
“We want to be clear that drag storytimes for children are NOT the same as drag performances for adults,” the group said. The interpreter, the group stated, ‘is a professional who has done other story hours for children.
“She dresses in fun, quirky costumes, sings age-appropriate songs, and reads age-appropriate books.”
Lancaster Mayor Danene Sorace said: ‘While we respect differences of opinion and freedom of expression, the use of fear to manipulate and control our community will not be tolerated in the city of Lancaster. We will not be deterred from loving our neighbors, all of them.”