International Drag Day

International Drag Day is an annual event held on July 16. It was created to celebrate the drag culture around the world and to give it more exposure, highlighting its transition from marginalized to mainstream.

The term “drag” refers to the performance of femininity, masculinity, or other forms of gender expression. It is commonly associated with drag queens, people (usually male) who perform femininity. Historically, the practice of men playing female roles is probably as old as theatre itself. Until the late 17th century in England and the early 19th century in the Papal States, acting on stage was considered an immoral occupation for women, so female roles were conventionally portrayed by boys or young men.

And wasn’t only Europe where men played female roles on stage. The classical Japanese theatre of kabuki started as an all-female troupe founded by Izumo no Okuni. However, in 1629, women were banned from performing to prevent indecency, and crossed-dressed male actors took over female roles.

Although drag culture is commonly associated with the LGBT community, specifically gay men and gay culture, not all drag queens are gay. People who do drag can be of any gender and sexual identity; they partake in this activity for a number of reasons. The term “drag queen” usually refers to men portraying women, “drag king” to women portraying men, and “faux queen” to women portraying an exaggerated presentation of femininity. The term “drag artist” is becoming increasingly popular, since it is more inclusive.

Adam Steward founded International Drag Day in 2009, aiming to give drag artists an opportunity to celebrate and promote their culture in a proper and safe way. It is marked with drag shows and performances, as well as discussions and debates on the role of the drag community in the LGBT movement and feminism, the challenges that drag artists have to face on a daily basis, the drag culture in different countries, and other relevant issues.