Lunch & Learn: The Art and History of Drag

From William Dorsey Swann, the first self-described “Queen of Drag,” to the legacy of John Waters and Divine, Maryland has been home to numerous figures and places significant to the history of drag. Join librarian Ash Baker to travel through time to learn how this gender-bending form of entertainment developed over the past 100+ years, from the 1920s Pansy Craze to the rise of RuPaul's Drag Race.

Ash Baker (they/them) is an Instructor & Research Specialist at Howard County Library System, where they enjoy connecting emerging adults and the LGBTQ+ community with public library services and materials. Outside their library work, they are a genderfluid drag performer, emcee, and event producer, organizing drag shows, makeup workshops, educational presentations, and more across the DMV. No matter in which capacity they work, they’re proud to lead with trans joy and a message that the queer lives of the present are the queer history of the future.

To join virtually visit the Enoch Pratt Free Library's Facebook or Youtube page.

ASL interpretation will be available for attendees.

Presented in partnership with The Maryland State Archives and The Maryland Four Centuries Project.