There’s a lot happening in the world right now.

It’s feeling like one of those dark weeks where it’s very easy to become overwhelmed by all the hatred and lack of tolerance that humans are showing each other.

The tedious and tired battle is still being waged in this country for gay couples to have basic. Human. Fucking. Rights. The comments sections in this matter alone are enough to make me want to crawl into bed and hate this loud minority of people – people who are adamant that Christianity should be able to pervert the law. People who attack Penny Wong’s appearance. People that call the queer community “sick” and “unnatural.” These people and their hateful comments leave me tired and scared, and feeling incredibly disconnected from society.

Then you have the current Charlottesville rioting in the United States. Hordes of white supremacists marching with lit torches, as if they just woke up and decided it was 1921 again, whilst their horrendous President remains alarmingly quiet on the subject. But then again, why would he condemn them? It was, after all, him that lit the match, in accepting David Duke’s endorsement in his 2016 campaign. The thing I find most chilling about these riots is that while the KKK took to covering themselves in sheets, today’s white supremacists and Neo Nazis were completely unfazed to commit these atrocious hate crimes with their faces in full view of everyone. In this age of near-impossible anonymity and widespread media sharing, these people are so convicted – nay, PROUD – of what they are doing that they don’t even see the need to hide their faces. It’s an incredibly chilling move.

So, in these times of adversity and hatred, it’s always worthwhile looking for the spots of brightness in the world – and that’s what I’m doing today.

Did you know that the Brooklyn Public Library in New York holds a Drag Queen Story Hour every month? Parents can take their children down and the children delight in drag queens reading fairy tales to them. Can you imagine anything more magical for a child than having a glittery, colourful, flamboyantly enthusiastic beautiful specimen of human entertaining you with stories? I can’t!!

So when you go to sleep tonight, and you’re feeling wretched from all the homophobia, racism and general hatred floating around, just remember that there are fabulous queens out there reading to children. And sleep tight knowing the world may well be not truly fucked just yet.

Love (SO MUCH LOVE LOVE LOVE), Akika xoxoxooxoxoxox