Drag Queen Story Time Postponed Till Venue Can Be Found (UPDATED)
UPDATE: Officials with the Lafayette Public Library say they are postponing the event until a host site can be determined.
According to a news release from the Lafayette Public Library:
While this is a temporary setback, the Lafayette Public Library confirms that it is not permanently cancelling the program. The library administration and its Board of Control firmly believe in carrying out its mission to serve a diverse community. In addition, many families have stood in support of this program which promotes respect and inclusiveness.
Drag Queen Story Time was conceived as a children's program to share stories about tolerance and individuality. The program was also planned to serve as a community service project of local fraternity Delta Lambda Phi. With time and recent events, it became clear that the event would need more space than originally anticipated. Due to community involvement in support of and in opposition to the program, the library could not provide for adequate security for the intended audience - children, their parents, and a number of other individuals planning to attend the event. It has been estimated that crowd size for the event could exceed numbers which could be accommodated at the library.
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UPDATE: Citing security concerns, SLCC says "Drag Queen Story Time" cannot be held on its campus. No word yet on whether a different venue will host the event, scheduled for Saturday, October 6th from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
SLCC has released the following statement:
South Louisiana Community College (SLCC) commends the Lafayette Parish Library for shining a light on diversity and inclusion within our community, particularly over the last few weeks. The College, like the Library, is committed to civil discourse and conversation on all issues.In addition, the College’s top priority is the safety of its students, faculty, staff, and visitors to its campuses.In the days leading up to the Drag Queen Storytime event, law enforcement has made the College aware of individual and organizational plans to protest at a scale that is beyond the College’s capacity to manage. The College also has fielded calls in this regard. Law enforcement indicated that at least one national organization intends to have a presence at the event.SLCC’s maximum capacity for this event is 300 people. However, the College is aware that over 1600 individuals have signed petitions about the event, and hundreds attended last month’s discussions at the Lafayette City-Parish Council. Similar to the Library’s original interest in moving the event, the College finds itself with significant anticipated overflow and has growing concerns for heightened safety implications.With SLCC’s limited security force and pursuant to Louisiana Community and Technical College System Policy #4.005, the College is unable to expand that presence as there can be “…no direct cost to the System.” In addition, the College has a responsibility to students taking classes Saturday to provide a setting conducive to learning, which could be severely disrupted by such a large crowd.Based upon the information provided by law enforcement, the ongoing and increasing concerns regarding safety and security, and the limited capacity of the College to manage a potential event of this magnitude, the Drag Queen Storytime event cannot move forward at SLCC.
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Because of an anticipated-overflow crowd, the Lafayette Public Library's program called "Drag Queen Story Time" has been moved from the Main Library on Congress Street to the South Louisiana Community College. The event, which is being hosted by SLCC's Umbrella Club and the Lafayette Public Library, will be held from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 6th at the Health and Sciences Auditorium on the SLCC campus at 1101 Bertrand Drive.