School Assemblies Were Never Like This
When I was growing up in Iowa in the 1970s, we’d look forward to the yearly all-school assemblies when the legendary Al Bell would come and tell stories of his most recent world trip. He and his wife would take a trip in the summer, then spend the next school year going to 400-500 different schools and show films they shot and display their souvenirs.
His daughter is carrying on the tradition, presenting stories and showing films of her parents’ journeys again tomorrow at the State Historical Museum in Des Moines…something she’s done for some time.
I was reminded of Al Bell when I heard about what sort of assemblies public tax dollars were being spent on in New York. Records show that some $200,000 has been spent on drag shows at New York City schools just since the year 2018.
The New York Post reports that last month alone, a group now known as Drag Story Hour NYC received $46,000 from city contracts for appearances at public schools, street festivals and libraries…the group is a non-profit whose cross-dressed performers interact with kids as young as age 3.
Cross-dressed performers typically read aloud from books, some of which celebrate gender fluidity, including something called “The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish.” Oh, the things I never thought I’d say on the radio.
Al Bell used to dress up in clothing tied to the culture he was telling us about. I suppose you could say the cross-dressers are doing the same thing. Except it’s not at all the same thing.
