Core Response #3: Julia

I really loved this week's reading of "She Is Not Acting, She Is" by Strings and Bui, especially because it helped me formulate some ideas I have had after watching everything from the RuPaul cinematic universe during this past year in quarantine. The argument in this text is clear, while Drag Race is known for encouraging gender play and parody, race takes on a contentious role that differs according to contestants. While white and light-skinned queens are frequently able to transcend one specific racial identity, black and brown queens struggle with constantly being encouraged to play-up racial stereotypes in order to find success on the show. However, 10 more seasons and many spin-offs of Drag Race have aired since this 2013 discussion of Season 3. While their argument about racial authenticity and the boundaries of racial play are still very much relevant, the show has since further problematised its depictions of gender and class. 

Firstly, I'd like to talk a bit about the show's treatment of its trans women cast members. RuPaul came under fire for making statements in the press saying that trans women likely did not have a place on a show like Drag Race, despite the fact that drag balls historically welcomed varying gender identities. While playing the gendered role of a woman is allowed on Drag Race, seeking the full "realness" of womanhood is off-limits. Therefore much like the discussion of race in the Strings and Bui piece, the question of gender and authenticity becomes just as contentious. Despite these statements, popular queens such as Gia Gunn and Peppermint joined the show and revealed their identities as trans-women in later episodes of their seasons. Their trans identities became their pivotal narrative arcs, which the show somewhat-exploitatively promoted to gloss-over RuPaul's controversial interview statements. Since so much of Drag Race promotes the idea of "serving realness," it is odd that the gendered and racial expectations of that reality are so often manipulated to portray contestants in ways that may feel inauthentic to them. 

Additionally, the role of class on the show has also evolved with Drag Race's newfound elevated production value. The idea of play and authenticity within class is a bit harder to map out. The origins of drag balls and pageants are very much rooted in the idea of portraying personas from different class backgrounds, and often giving the illusion of wealthy women dripping in opulence. This illusion of opulence should be created through one's creativity and design skills, essentially opening up drag as an accessible art form to anyone. However, this idea of class becomes problematised when queens of considerable means take part in contests like Drag Race. Many recent queens, such as Jan Sport and Gigi Good, have boasted their ability to afford designer clothing or to commission their looks from actual design teams. While the privilege of this kind of financial support is never broached on-air, RuPaul systematically shuts down any queen who might try to use their lack of financial means as a justification for the simplicity of their look. In this case, queens who are able to afford authentic wealth are no longer playing a part, while queens who cannot afford these same looks struggle to keep up. With regards to class, the question of authenticity is never truly addressed, but is in fact a constant hinderance to queens who cannot afford the "realness." 

Ultimately, I found the Strings and Bui piece extremely enlightening, and I would love to see some of their more recent thoughts on the show's evolution. The idea of authenticity and who is allowed to seek it is an important one to consider in the context of reality TV, but also in our understanding of intersectional queer theory. 

RuPaul's interview on the inclusion of trans contestants: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/mar/03/rupaul-drag-race-big-f-you-to-male-dominated-culture