Willis ISD Dragging Its Feet Responding to Drag Queen Controversy!

Willis, Texas – November 11, 2019 – A school board meeting was packed with residents this evening, most of them opposed to involving adult entertainers in the education of children. MadMommaBear was in attendance to take the temperature of the community and that temperature came back as “hotly divided”. The usual hyperbole and hysteria ensued. MadMommaBear has seen it in her battle against the drag queen story hour programs. Allegations flew that the Christians were intolerant of LGBTQ and cause the bullying and suicide rates of LGBTQ youth. No evidence was put forward that a drag queen being in the midst of students was going to magically cure anxiety, depression, self-loathing or help ease school bullying. Instead, the narrative that we must allow what would once seem unimaginable (an adult entertainer being promoted to youth) to take place because vulnerable children might kill themselves if they detect your disapproval.

This is absurd for many reasons, the first of which is of the handful of children in the district that are LGBTQ, none of them are drag queens. Drag Queen is not a sexual or gender identity. So, spare all of us Christians the lecture on vulnerable children because we are concerned about vulnerable children getting the idea that an adult entertainer has the full endorsement of the school district and the teacher the kids look up to. We are concerned about vulnerable children who may or may not be confused about their gender or sexual identity getting the idea that a drag queen is a proper role model for them. We are concerned about LGBTQ behavior/ideology being promoted to youth as if there are no consequences or risks associated with these lifestyles.

For the record, nobody was being excluded before a drag queen came to the school for a cosmetology class lesson on makeup. One has to wonder why the teachers of that course are not qualified to show the children how to do makeup. Still, not one LGBTQ identifying student has been denied access or inclusion in getting an education or participating in activities at the school. Inclusion does not mean having adult entertainers trotted out as role models for youth. This particular drag queen was wearing his own merch sweatshirt featuring his drag queen likeness and name. It was reported that he shared his social media with the high school students so they could stay in touch. If this is what the LGBTQ activists and allies are talking about when they say we need to embrace “diversity and inclusion” then count MadMommaBear out! I don’t parents want adult entertainers teaching their children. If they did they would be taking them to titty bars and drag shows, not to the nearest public school.

The principal of Willis High School, Stephanie Hodgins, addressed the crowd, stating that all decisions are vetted to be sure it is what is best for students. If that is the case then we need to know how they define “best for students” and “vetted”. She said “great things are happening and will continue to happen at Willis ISD”. I’m just a MadMommaBear, but I am of the opinion that some not too great things are happening, the vetting process needs reviewed and what is best for children revisited right before the district fires this principal and the teachers and anyone else involved in this wrong-headed move.

One parent who attended in support of having a drag queen come to school to teach kids said, “kids don’t have to share your beliefs. The internet opens their eyes. Diversity and inclusion is everywhere and has to be everywhere otherwise suicide rates and other issues will impact your children”. Well, let’s just shred this argument which was made by at least one other speaker. Nobody is going to kill themselves because they didn’t get to meet a drag queen. There is not clinical evidence to support having a drag queen engage youth is going to alleviate any of the issues children confused about their sex or sexuality face. In fact, the reality is that the suicides cannot logically be attributed to minority stress or the viewpoints of other people since we don’t see any other minority population throughout history have such an alarming rate of suicide, even Jews during the holocaust did not have such a high rate of suicide. The rates of alcohol and drug abuse and partner violence and death by domestic partner are also very high among the LGBTQ (especially the B and T) community. So, we are supposed to believe that a community is the victim of the thoughts of others as their statistics stay the same in a more accepting culture? We simply cannot logically do so. We should show love and respect to our neighbors but that does not mean we have to agree with them or celebrate their choices with them. Tolerance cannot even exist without disagreement. The definition of tolerance is to tolerate the opinions you disagree with, it doesn’t mean agreeing or celebrating. Has the goal post moved from tolerance to wholesale acceptance and celebration?

The highlight of the school board meeting comments was a U.S Air Force Veteran and father speaking against having adult entertainers in the school as part of lessons. He questioned if the school was making the best decisions for role models for students, adding an “adult entertainer” was not the role model he wanted for his children.

“If you were to invite a female adult entertainer into the classroom in any capacity to any of these schools anybody in this room would not think that was appropriate,” he said. “How is that any different than inviting a male entertainer into our schools? This is not a positive role model.” It was Veteran’s Day and it seems appropriate a veteran brought some common sense to the discussion and defended the children who need positive role models. This father of three and veteran couldn’t be more correct. Drag queens are immersed in erotica, fetishism and kink which is displayed in their social media.

Dale Inman, who brought the matter to the attention of the public weeks ago, also spoke. He noted that district officials have put the issue “on its ear” attacking him as a “whistleblower.” He said the issue is the drag queen and who was responsible for allowing a “male entertainer” into the classroom.

“To this day we still have not had any explanation on what this person’s expertise was other than they were a drag queen,” he said. “This is not about a makeup tutorial, this is about a couple folks imposing their own agenda seeking to normalize the drag queen lifestyle”, said Inman.

The bigotry of the people who believe that LGBTQ identifying youth should look to drag queens as role models is insulting to the children they say they are the allies for. If they are allies for these children then I would hate to see what they propose for the children they think are enemies. I mean doesn’t the term “ally” imply there are adversaries somewhere? Who are the adversaries then? The mean Christians who refuse to turn from Biblical teaching regarding marriage and the goodness of God’s handiwork? It is completely bigoted to think that a LGBTQ should have for a role model an adult entertainer. We don’t accept such a low bar for any other children, why are the “allies” pushing that for LGBTQ youth?

LGBTQ youth have been meeting drag queens at other venues to be sure. Several cities have LGBTQ youth organizations which “mentor” to youth. These organizations get a good sum of taxpayer money and they host events for LGBTQ youth, including Drag Shows for LGBTQ youth. MadMommaBear found a sex offender or two was part of those drag shows with youth…but that’s none of my business.

Drag queens are not role models for children, not any children. It is absurd that a teacher, principal or school board would be okay with having an adult entertainer to the school to teach children. The teacher, principal and anyone else involved in approving or defending this should be fired or recalled as applicable. The public deserves answers as to how this came to take place. The parents of Willis ISD should not stand for this.

Parents place a sacred trust in their local schools. Schools should be careful not to separate children from the values of their parents and they should be protective of children’s innocence and modesty at any age. Deciding that it is ever somehow appropriate to bring in an adult entertainer for a class is trotting all over the domain of parents.

MadMommaBear is in touch with residents in the Willis Independent School District and is preparing to help them organize against having adult entertainers involved in the education of children in the district. It is important that parents in the district file complaints against the district with the Texas Education Agency for having an adult entertainer as part of programming for students. This will help lobbying efforts in the next legislative session to prevent this from being a battle we must repeat district by district and year after year. MadMommaBear will be working with a new organization in the next session to get a bill passed prohibiting adult entertainers from being part of the educational programming in Texas schools.