CLAIM: A drag performer flashed their genitals to children while reading aloud in a Minnesota library.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. The performer in this 2019 photograph was wearing several layers of nude tights, said Hennepin County Library Communications Manager Joshua Yetman. “There wasn’t any exposure to children,” Yetman said.
THE FACTS: As hateful and misleading rhetoric aimed at the LGBTQ community has escalated in recent months on social media, Drag Queen Story Hour events hosted by libraries or bookstores have become a frequent target.
This week, some social media users are resurrecting a 2019 photo of such an event in a Minneapolis suburb and reposting it with false claims it shows the performer exposing their genitals to children.
The image captures the performer, who is wearing a short dress while seated in front of students, reaching to the side for a book. In some versions of the post, a black box labeled “CENSORED” has been added to the space between the performer’s legs.
“This is literally a sex crime,” reads a June 10 tweet that was shared some 10,000 times.
“Adult flashes his penis to young children at library’s drag queen story hour,” another tweet read.
However, unedited versions of the image show that the performer was wearing opaque nude tights that covered their genitals, a fact that Yetman confirmed to the AP in a phone interview Monday.
“The performer was wearing tan or nude-colored tights, several layers of tights,” Yetman said. “They did not expose...
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