By Donald Gilpin

A bomb threat this morning, Saturday, August 26, at the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice (BRCSJ) on Stockton Street forced about 50 participants in the Drag Queen Story Hour community gathering to evacuate the building.

Police searched the building as event headliner Carrie Dragshaw (Dan Clay) moved down the street to a nearby stoop, and the presentation and dialogue took place in somewhat curtailed form as children and adults sat and stood on the sidewalk and grass alongside Mercer Street.

Police protocols in the building continued, and police were unable to provide any further information as of early Saturday afternoon.

BRCSJ Chief Activist Robt Seda-Schreiber expressed gratitude to the Princeton Police Department for their support. He described the scene shortly before the 11 a.m. scheduled start of the event.

“There were a bunch of families on the back porch and there were folks in the parking lot,” he said.  “That’s when the police officer showed up. Dan [Carrie Dragshaw] was putting his wig on, and I was making sure that everything was ready for this wonderful Drag Queen Story Hour. That’s when they said we had to leave. So, we took a stroll down the street to a neighboring stoop — a fabulous field trip with kids, adults, and families that were with us.”

He added, “We will never give in to any sort of threat from folks who want to try to not allow us to gather in our beloved community as we deserve, as we need to, as we always will. And whatever we need to do we will.”

Dragshaw presented his reading and talk without his wig, which was replaced by a baseball cap, but he did wear his tutu and was also sporting colorful orange Crocs.

 “I think the voices of negativity can be loud, but I believe the voices of positivity are greater,” Dragshaw said. “A kid today was wearing a shirt that said ‘We’re stronger together,’ and I really believe that. I’m a firm believer in not letting the negativity take over the narrative. There’s so much love and joy in the community.”

BRCSJ Community Organizer Sara Wasserman emphasized that this incident is dramatic proof of the need for organizations like the BRCSJ and events like the Drag Queen Story Hour.

“Drag Queen Story Hours across the country are being attacked and banned and harassed, and unfortunately this has made its way here to us, which is exactly why we have the center, exactly why we need community support,” she said. “But I hope the message isn’t about hate and fear, because that’s not the story that matters.”

She continued, “The story that matters is that we have a community here of people who banded together to show solidarity and are supported by the rest of Princeton and who came out to celebrate community and to support LGBTQIA operations regardless of what the hate-mongers want. It’s so important that we celebrate the people and their uplifting instead of trying to diminish.”