A video posted by drag queen Juicy Garland shows a neo-Nazi group interrupting a drag queen story hour in Concord, New Hampshire on Sunday morning.
Garland posted the video to her Twitter, showing members of the group sieg heiling three times, before pounding on the window of the Teatotaller café. The video was captioned “We’ve got some verified Nazis today! Golly, I didn’t order those”.
“Once we established we could keep them safe and comfortable, we modified the event so it could continue without disturbing the attendees. The police arrived to move the neonazis away from the windows and I moved to keep everyone entertained and comfortable. We had, and finished the event successfully without any of the kids knowing anything was seriously wrong, thankfully,” Garland told The New Civil Rights Movement.
“Immediately after the event, I got out of drag and we set up the next date for the event. There was no question of stopping. The only question was ‘when’,” they continued.
The New Hampshire Attorney General’s office identified the men as members of NSC-131, also known as the National Socialist Club, a New England-based neo-Nazi group, according to WMUR-TV. Though it cannot be seen in the video, the station said they also had a sign reading “Defend white communities.” The Attorney General’s office is investigating, according to WMUR, but no arrests were made Sunday.
The NSC-131 members also chanted “Off our streets!” and yelled slurs at cafégoers, and said the drag queen story hour was an attempt to “groom” children, according to the Concord Monitor. This is not the first time the monthly event has had protests; in November, another reading by Garland was protested by Proud Boys.
Emmett Soldati, the owner of the Teatotaller, said on Twitter that the venue had hosted drag queen story hours for the past decade, and that the interruption did not deter him. Garland agreed, telling WMUR they’re planning to keep on doing events.
“If anything, I’m only more encouraged by these people to continue doing what we do,” they told the station.
Garland told The New Civil Rights Movement that they’ve been buoyed by the reaction to the video.
“I’m so thankful for the overwhelming support and kindness I’ve seen since the Story Hour. Nothing can be more encouraging than the massive wave of positivity in response to the little men with their little minds centered on little acts of violence.
“And still, the kindness and support and likes on my tweet are just the start. There is rising confidence among fascists on the right. We can’t let them feel comfortable and tolerated. We’re all worried and at least a little afraid of the future. What happened at Teatotaller is a microcosm of that.
“The way we stop that fear and stop these fascists is by taking action. Passive activism online is not enough. Speak up and act out! Don’t let them make you feel afraid, that’s their core tactic. That’s how they work. That’s the ONLY way they work. Don’t let them. Fight their fear tactics by taking control of the situation and keeping people safe despite them. That’s how we win.”
Garland read the book Florence and Her Fantastic Family Tree by Judy Gilliam and Laura Addari, according to the Monitor. The book is about a little girl with a large blended family who is anxious about a school assignment to create a family tree.
UPDATE (6/21/2023, 3 p.m.): This story has been updated to include comments from Juicy Garland.