Bracebridge OPP arrested protester Chrystal Peters Saturday afternoon for causing a disturbance outside Trinity United Church in downtown Gravenhurst.
The arrest came after approximately six protesters gathered outside the church before the Muskoka Drag Royalty Hallow-Queen & Pump-King Spooktacular supporting Gravenhurst Against Poverty (GAP). The police received information Saturday morning that there was a planned protest of the drag show scheduled for 1 p.m., according to an OPP statement to Muskoka411.
“I’m protesting grown adults who want to dress in lingerie and dance around children,” said Peters in a video she filmed that was reposted on Twitter. “There is nothing okay about this, and you’re doing it in a church. You think god condemns this type of behaviour?”
Muskoka411 contacted event organizers to get a response.
“It was hurtful and upsetting to have words of raw hate yelled loudly and incessantly at anyone who came near the church prior to the show,” said Bonnie Dart, chair of GAP, in an email to Muskoka411.
“The show was family-appropriate, with young children and some parents dressed in their Halloween costumes, decorating pumpkins, dancing to kid-pop songs and receiving Halloween treats,” said Dart. “There were five drag queens dressed in Halloween-themed costumes dancing to songs like ‘The Monster Mash,’ ‘Purple People Eater,’ ‘The Candy Man,’ etc.”
According to the GAP Facebook page, the event was hosted by Muskoka Pride and featured drag performances, drag story time, a pumpkin decorating contest and a costume contest. Two boxes of food and $70 were donated to GAP.
Chrystal Peters will appear before a Bracebridge court at a future date.
Watch: A Canadian woman protesting an all-ages drag show dubbed Hallow-Queen & Pump-King Spooktacular outside the Trinity United Church in Gravenhurst, Ontario was arrested today by Ontario Provincial Police. pic.twitter.com/IGyL4t3RMD
— The Canadian Independent (@canindependent) October 29, 2022