CV NEWS FEED // Documents newly obtained by CatholicVote and Judicial Watch reveal that U.S. Air Force bases hosted many pro-LGBTQ “Pride” events in the past few years – including some geared toward children.
A press release from Judicial Watch revealed that the groups obtained “25 pages of records regarding drag shows, drag story hours and other pride events for military personnel and their dependent minors organized and paid for by the U.S. Air Force.”
The evidence came following a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by CatholicVote and Judicial Watch last year.
Dr. Tim Huelskamp, senior advisor to CatholicVote and former congressman, said that the FOIA request shows the Biden administration “has once again proven that their radical leftist ideology trumps military preparedness and protecting Americans from threats at home and abroad.”
“After more than a year of stonewalling our Freedom of Information request,” Huelskamp added, “the DoD finally released materials proving they were abusing taxpayer funds to promote drag shows and radical gender ideology on military bases – including the targeting of young girls and boys.”
The Judicial Watch press release gave examples of the events revealed in the unearthed documents:
[A] graphic for a June 2 “Drag Queen Story Time” event at the Ramstein Library.
An advertisement for an 18 and older event on June 4 called “Drag Karaoke” at “Club E” with “special guest from Monarchy of RoyalTEA” announces prizes for “best dressed” and drink specials.
An advertisement for a seven-week summer reading program re-promotes “Drag Queen Storytime” on June 10 and shows each week given a different color identification for events that include virtual story times, teen socials and scavenger hunts.
“The newly obtained records include several additional advertisements for adult events (e.g. Bingo Night, Karaoke Night and D&I Pride Night) at “Club E” and the ‘Galaxy Club,’” the release added:
A June 2022 invoice for $400 covers booking Ms. Lexi Andrews, Drag Queen, for an appearance at “Drag Queen Bingo” on June 23 and a performance at a “Glow Party” the following day.
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Huelskamp noted that the document release was limited to one single command in one branch of America’s entire armed services (U.S. Air Forces in Europe & Air Forces Africa).
“Assuming that Biden’s DoD follows the transparency required by law, Americans can expect more damaging evidence to be made public in the coming weeks and months,” he emphasized.
CatholicVote and JudicialWatch had requested all DoD documentation, “including but not limited to PowerPoints, flyers, handouts, that were or are being used to promote any drag shows and drag story hours on U.S. military installations, from January 1, 2021, to the present,” and all DoD documentation “regarding the funding of drag shows and drag story hours on U.S. military installations, from January 1, 2021, to the present.”
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton asked: “How on Earth is it appropriate to spend our limited defense dollars on promoting these sexually themed events for children and adults rather than on advancing the military’s mission?”
“As we see in these troubling Air Force records, our nation’s military is being ruined by woke ideology,” he added.
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In addition, according to newly surfaced social media posts, a library on a U.S. military base in Germany hosted several “Pride” events targeted toward children in the past few years.
Facebook posts by the account for Ramstein & Vogelweh Air Force Libraries from June of last year advertise multiple pro-LGBTQ events that month. The events were seemingly marketed with a minor audience in mind.
According to a flyer posted to Facebook, the Ramstein Library hosted “Pride Storytime” on Thursday, June 15, 2023. The event was advertised alongside Tuesday’s “Infant/Toddler Storytimes” and Friday’s “Lego Club.”
The library’s Facebook post from the day before stated: “Happy Pride Month! Ramstein Library will be celebrating Pride tomorrow during storytime at 10:30 with stories, music, dancing and crafts.”
“You can also checkout our awesome displays, including a periodic table of Military LGBTQIA+ History,” the post continued.
In addition to the “periodic table of Military LGBTQIA+ History,” pictures of several pieces of pro-LGBTQ artwork dotting the library can be seen in photographs posted to Facebook.
A Facebook user commented asking if there would be a Father’s Day storytime the same month. The library replied that there would not be one due to the director mistakenly believing that Father’s Day was one week later.
It was unclear from the Facebook posts if any of these events involved “drag” performers. Just weeks before they took place, the Department of Defense (DoD) stated that it would from that point on no longer allow “drag” shows on military bases.
The library is located on the Ramstein Air Base in southwestern Germany, near the French border.
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The library’s social media history indicates that it has hosted June Pride events largely targeting minors for at least the past few years.
A June 2021 Facebook post from the library’s account stated: “We’re celebrating PRIDE month with our very first DRAG story time!”
“Our local Drag King, Sauvage, will be reading some of our favorite stories about what makes each of us special,” the post read.
The account posted several promotional materials for the event. One flyer features an image of the far-left “Progress Pride flag.”
All of the flyers are branded with both the library’s logo and the logo for the Force Support Squadron (FSS).
According to the MyAirForceLife website, the FSS “enhance[s] the quality of life for service members, DoD civilians, retirees, and families through golf, bowling, arts and crafts, outdoor recreation, and special events.”
“FSS personnel also provide childcare and youth programs for military families worldwide,” the website adds.
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As mentioned above, in June 2023 the DoD announced that “drag” shows would no longer take place on American military bases.
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh then stated: “Per DoD Joint Ethics Regulation (JER), certain criteria must be met for persons or organizations acting in non-federal capacity to use DoD facilities and equipment.”
“As [Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin] has said, the DoD will not host drag events at U.S. military installations or facilities. Hosting these types of events in federally funded facilities is not a suitable use of DOD resources,” Singh added.
POLITICO reported at the time:
This has been DoD’s longstanding policy, but it has not always been enforced at lower levels, Singh said. Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley recently told lawmakers he was not aware of the events occurring.
Service members “are diverse and are allowed to have personal outlets,” Singh added.
Readers can find the DoD’s May 13 interim response to the Judicial Watch / CatholicVote FOIA request here.
Readers can access the 25 pages of records regarding “pride” events on military bases here.
