In the face of growing hostility towards drag performances in cities and towns across the country, Montclair stands out as a beacon of acceptance. While lawmakers in at least 16 states have sought to restrict drag shows, claiming they are inappropriate and harmful to children, Montclair has shown it celebrates and supports drag, with many in the community embracing the art form as a powerful tool for cultural acceptance and freedom of expression.
Drag performance, a legacy art form dating back to the 1800s within the LGBTQ+ community, involves performers dressing in elaborate costumes and makeup known as “drag.” Since its inception, this performance style has faced scrutiny and criticism for its radical gender presentation. Despite enduring years of criticism, drag is considered a pillar of the queer liberation movement.
Over time, drag has evolved into a popular form of entertainment in various venues, including restaurants, clubs, and performing arts centers. However, in 2023, conservative lawmakers took legal measures to restrict drag shows.
Performers and LGBTQ+ advocates have argued that these bills are aimed at causing division and harm not only to drag queens and kings but also to transgender and gender non-conforming people, as the legal language in many bills included words and phrases like female/male impersonators and saying performers are exhibiting gender identity different from their biological sex.
In Montclair, the local community actively celebrates and supports drag. Many businesses in the area not only support the drag community but also regularly host drag performances, fostering an environment of inclusivity and acceptance.
Miss Indie Mann works at Porta Montclair as the “door goddess,” helping welcome guests into the restaurant and preparing them for an exciting show. Mann started performing in 2021 and found a welcoming environment in Montclair.
“Drag, for me, is a way to put myself out there in a way that I want to be seen and showcase parts of my personality that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to showcase,” Mann said.
Philip Rocha, a hospitality lead and manager at Porta Montclair, says he has cultivated an accepting community that has grown “wildly successful.” Of the three branches, with two other locations in Asbury Park and Jersey City, Montclair has the most drag events.
“Love is the message, and welcoming people with open arms, community, good food, and creating a queer space is what we need in our progressive community,” Rocha said.
Mann recognizes Montclair—and, more broadly, New Jersey—as a safe community for drag culture but knows this may not be the norm in many states throughout the U.S.
“A lot of places don’t have this community. They’re not going to have a safe space for drag queens, which I think we kind of take for granted living somewhere like New Jersey,” Mann said. “I would love to see drag showcased around and in smaller communities.”
Out Montclair, an LGBTQ+ nonprofit organization in the township, organizes events with local businesses like Pineapple Express Barbecue, Montclair Public Library and the Vanguard Theater Company, creating opportunities for drag queens and kings to perform and showcase their talents. Marie Cottrell, managing director at Out Montclair, says she wants to facilitate a community that values and appreciates drag culture and the LGBTQ+ community as a whole.
“It’s important for them [drag performers] to sustain them in their chosen field. And it’s important for us to be able to express the range and diversity within our own community,” Cottrell said.
Prima Love, a Montclair State University graduate and drag queen, has been performing since 2021 and is the host of Out Montclair’s “Gaydar” events held at Pineapple Express Barbecue. Queer expression has been an integral part of their life since childhood.
“Drag is creative expression. It’s freedom. It pays a pretty substantial part of my bills. It’s cool that I get to say I play dress up for a living,” Love said.
Cottrell acknowledged the efforts of many state lawmakers throughout the country to limit what drag artists can do, which makes it more important to create safe spaces for them to feel heard and respected. Though many states have proposed legislation, the bills have either been challenged in court or have lost steam since their initial introduction. Like many LGBTQ+ advocates and human rights organizations like the ACLU, Cottrell regarded the impact of these bills to have similar effects to anti-transgender ones that have been introduced in recent years.
“It keeps individuals closeted. It keeps individuals hidden, and therefore not allowed to be their authentic selves and could enter into a spiraling of bad mental health and potentially worse,” Cottrell explains.
In New Jersey, although lawmakers haven’t passed bills to restrict drag performers, instances of homophobia persist in the form of street harassment and protests. Out Montclair events, for example, have faced opposition from residents and groups like Moms for Liberty, a conservative parents’ rights organization. During the organization’s “Teen Drag Bingo” in October 2023, protesters combined anti-trans, pro-book bans, and anti-drag sentiments.
“We live in a very liberal town here in Montclair, but we shouldn’t become complacent because even within New Jersey, there are hate groups,” Cottrell said. “We just have to keep doing the work to educate people and provide visibility of our community to these people.”
Mann shared a personal experience of verbal harassment. While in drag, a woman told them they would never be a real woman, to which Mann responded, “I’m a man in a dress. That’s my whole shtick, honey! I am not trying to be a woman at all. I’m very comfortable with how I am.”
Mann emphasizes the need for a thick skin in the drag industry, which demands a strong and secure self-image.
Prima Love, the child of a pastor, has encountered homophobia and believes that hate stems from learned behavior. However, Love emphasizes that there’s always room for love in one’s heart.
“I know about hating gay people, and it has been bred and tried and tested. But I think if you have space in your heart for hate, there’s not enough space for love.”
Mann, Love and Cottrell believe that the best way to counteract the anti-drag and homophobic rhetoric being spread is to learn more about the community.
“Go to a drag show and have no expectations about what you’re going to see. You’ll see a lot of gorgeous, beautiful people dancing around,” Mann said. “You will see the love and the light and the entertainment value that this art form brings.”
Love added, “Push yourself outside your comfort zone to grow and learn.”
Claudia Martillo is a recent graduate of Montclair State University. This article and the accompanying photography were part of a project for Martillo’s multimedia storytelling class.
In defense of journalism and civic activism, I applaud Montclair Local for covering this story.
In defense of a robust and fair-minded journalism, it would have been more appropriate if the following statement, “(C)onservative lawmakers took legal measures to restrict drag shows…” had been amended by the editors and included, “…in the presence of children, in taxpayer-funded venues where children are present, such as schools, children’s sections of libraries, etc., and in places where local residents might wish to be warned in advance.”
That is what would make your first statement accurate. It does a disservice to everyone in Montclair to frame this in such a one-sided way. Conservatives of all stripes have wildly different views on this subject, as do many liberals. But making an editorial assertion without context merely inflames passions on an already heated topic. I don’t think that should be the aim of local journalism.
Great article about how hyper inclusive Montclair is on the progressive communities scale. Thank you for this kind of advocacy journalism that speaks to the local demographic.