ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Entertainment

    • Montana first to ban people dressed in drag from reading to children in schools, libraries

    Scenes from a drag show at the state capitol held in protest to a slate of bills aimed at how trans Montanans live on Thursday, April 13, 2023, in Helena, Mont. Montana has become the first state to specifically ban people dressed in drag from reading books to children at public schools and libraries. The law took effect immediately after Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the bill on Monday, May 22, 2023. (Thom Bridge/Independent Record via AP) Scenes from a drag show at the state capitol held in protest to a slate of bills aimed at how trans Montanans live on Thursday, April 13, 2023, in Helena, Mont. Montana has become the first state to specifically ban people dressed in drag from reading books to children at public schools and libraries. The law took effect immediately after Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the bill on Monday, May 22, 2023. (Thom Bridge/Independent Record via AP)
    Share
    HELENA, Mont. -

    Montana has become the first state to specifically ban people dressed in drag from reading books to children at public schools and libraries, part of a host of legislation aimed at the rights the LGBTQ+ community in Montana and other states.

    Bills in Florida and Tennessee also appear to try to ban drag reading events, but both require the performances to be sexual in nature, which could be up for interpretation. Both bills also face legal challenges.

    Montana's law is unique because -- while it defines such an event as one hosted by a drag king or drag queen who reads children's books to minor children -- it does not require a sexual element to be banned.

    That makes Montana's law the first to specifically ban drag reading events, said Sasha Buchert, an attorney with Lambda Legal, a national organization that seeks to protect the civil rights of the LGBTQ+ community and those diagnosed with HIV and AIDS.

    "It's just constitutionally suspect on all levels," Buchert said Tuesday, arguing the bill limits free speech and seeks to chill an effort that helps transgender youth know they are not alone.

    The bill, which was co-sponsored by more than half of the Republican-controlled legislature, took immediate effect after Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed it on Monday.

    Gianforte signed the bill because he "believes it's wildly inappropriate for little kids, especially preschoolers and kids in elementary school, to be exposed to sexualized content," spokesperson Kaitlin Price said in a statement.

    The bill initially sought to ban minors from attending drag performances, which were defined as shows that tended to "excite lustful thoughts." The legislation was later amended to ban minors from attending sexually oriented or obscene performances on public property.

    The bill's sponsor, Republican Rep. Braxton Mitchell, said he sponsored the bill "because drag shows in recent years have been specifically aimed at children," and spoke of online videos that show children at drag shows.

    "In my humble opinion, there's no such thing as a family-friendly drag show," Mitchell said in April.

    Drag performers who opposed the legislation said they have separate drag performances for children compared to those intended for adults.

    It's not clear how often such drag reading events have been held at public schools or libraries in Montana. Drag reading events were held in 2022 at ZooMontana in Billings and at a bookstore in downtown Helena. Both events drew protests, but neither would be banned under the new law. Another event held at a Bozeman bookstore last weekend also drew protesters.

    A Montana drag performer with The Mister Sisters in Great Falls, whose stage name is Julie Yard, helps organize drag reading events and says she has never been asked to coordinate one in any school -- public or otherwise. Between 6 to 10 events are scheduled throughout the state in the coming months.

    "Usually the requests for drag story hours happen a lot through the summer," Yard said. "They typically tend to coincide with Pride celebrations."

    Planning such events in the current political climate also involves developing a safety plan and working with local law enforcement in case protesters show up.

    The drag reading events will continue despite the protests, which Yard says helps prove that they are needed.

    "For us, it's again just doubling down and making sure that we are sending a message out there to anyone, but especially kids who are vulnerable, that there is a place for them, there is a community for them, and that there are folks out there who are interested in making sure that they are accepted and feel safe."

    Tennessee's bill to restrict drag performances in public spaces or in the presence of children was temporarily blocked in March by a federal judge who sided with a group that filed a lawsuit claiming the statute violates their First Amendment rights. U.S. District Judge Thomas Parker said the state failed to make a compelling argument as to why Tennessee needed the law, and agreed that it was likely vague and overly broad.

    A drag show restaurant has filed a challenge against Florida's ban, saying the law deprives the restaurant of its First Amendment rights to free expression. The restaurant had held "family friendly" drag shows on Sundays, but the law required them to ban children from the shows. Gov. Ron DeSantis also signed bills this week to ban gender-affirming medical care for minors and restrict the discussion of personal pronouns in school.

    Gianforte signed a bill this year to ban gender-affirming care for transgender minors in Montana during a legislative session in which transgender lawmaker Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr was expelled from the House floor following a protest against Republican lawmakers who had silenced her over her opposition to the care bill.

    Last week, he signed a bill to define the word "sex" in state law to mean only male or female. Kansas and Tennessee have similar laws set to take effect on July 1 that LGBTQ+ allies argue will deny legal recognition to nonbinary and transgender people and prevent them from changing the sex on their birth certificates and driver's licenses. Montana's law would take effect on Oct. 1.

    CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

    Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

    Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

    Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

    A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

    The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

    Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.

    Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.

    Canada

    • Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.

    • Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

    • Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

    • Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.

    • The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

    • The Métis Nation of Saskatchewan has pulled out of a national body representing Métis, citing problems with an Ontario group and throwing the future of the Métis National Council into question.

    World

    Politics

    Health

    • A Nova Scotia woman has applied for a medically assisted death, saying after years of battling to receive out-of-country surgery for an illness that causes 'indescribable' pain, she struggles to maintain the will to live.

    Sci-Tech

    Entertainment

    • Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

    • It was the last show for longtime children's TV star Ron (Buck Shot) Barge Friday as hundreds of family, friends and fans attended a public memorial in Calgary.

    Business

    Lifestyle

    • When Bernard Morissette got a call from Loto-Quebec on Sept. 18 and was asked if he was sitting down, he had no idea what was coming his way.

    • An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

    Sports

    • The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have won five in a row. The Edmonton Elks have won five of their last six games. They are the two hottest teams in the West. When they meet Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium, something has to give.

    • Agreement in principle has been reached to build a new NHL arena at LeBreton Flats has been reached between the Ottawa Senators and the National Capital Commission (NCC), the two sides announced Friday.

    • F1 star Max Verstappen punished over bad word

      Formula One points leader Max Verstappen was ordered to 'accomplish some work of public interest' after uttering an inappropriate word Thursday at the news conference ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix.

    Autos

    Local Spotlight

    Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

    An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

    They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

    A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

    Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

    The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

    The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

    It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

    A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

    • Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.

    • The debate over sexual orientation and gender identity education in schools is heating up. Protests both for and against SOGI in the curriculum took place across the country Friday.

    • A fire that destroyed a historic bridge in Kamloops, B.C., is now being investigated as arson, local Mounties say.

    • Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

    • The parents of a teenager who died after allegedly consuming the poisonous products of a Mississauga man are now suing him, as well as several doctors involved in her care.

    • One person was rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after a multi-vehicle collision in Milton, Ont. on Friday night.

    • The man charged with fatally stabbing lifelong Banff resident Ethan Enns-Goneau in 2022 has been convicted of second-degree murder.

    • Environment Canada issued a frost advisory for Calgary late Friday afternoon.

    • Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek is urging the Alberta government to preserve pieces of the massive Green Line transit project now being dissolved.

    • Agreement in principle has been reached to build a new NHL arena at LeBreton Flats has been reached between the Ottawa Senators and the National Capital Commission (NCC), the two sides announced Friday.

    • For years, the commute to Ottawa's west end was one of the biggest complaints for attending fans. But those who live in Kanata and in the immediate LeBreton area say the move would be a big change their respective neighbourhoods.

    • Ottawa police are investigating a shooting downtown Friday afternoon.

    • Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

    • When Bernard Morissette got a call from Loto-Quebec on Sept. 18 and was asked if he was sitting down, he had no idea what was coming his way.

    • A man who asserted his right to work in French has won his case before the Tribunal, invoking the new provisions of the province's French-language law (Bill 96) to that effect.

    • Two Edmonton Police Service officers have been criminally charged in connection with an assault.

    • There's a friendship in the Edmonton Oilers crease between Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard.

    • A woman is dead after a highway collision on Saddle Lake Cree Nation.

    • A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

    • Mattea Roach among the Maritimers honoured with the King Charles III Coronation Medal Friday.

    • The Halifax Regional Detachment of the RCMP is asking the public for assistance locating a man wanted on a provincewide arrest warrant in relation to an assault in Lower Sackville.

    • The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

    • A plane approaches the grass runway at Harv’s Air School south of Steinbach. Nothing is getting in the way of a clear, smooth landing, but owner Harv Penner worries, that could soon change.

    • The University of Manitoba's College of Dentistry is dealing with some unexpected consequences from the federal government's new Canadian Dental Care Plan

    • Five Regina schools were placed into lockdown or secure the building mode following a report of a weapons investigation at Miller High School on Friday.

    • A 21-year-old man from Codette, Sask. is facing numerous charges in connection to a fatal crash near Wapella, Sask. Wednesday night that claimed the life of a 22-year-old Alberta woman.

    • The City of Regina and provincial government have committed a combined $400,000 to Carmichael Outreach for an 80-person warming space set to open no later than Nov. 1.

    • Protests were held in front of Kitchener City Hall on Friday, both for and against LGBTQ2S+ inclusive education and queer rights in schools.

    • Levels of hydrogen sulfide gas are being monitored at Brantford Collegiate Institute after a leak in their geothermal system.

    • A new scam is being reported in communities across the country.

    • Hospital beds in hallways, supply shortages in the neonatal intensive care unit, and operating rooms being put on hold are some of the concerns nurses are voicing, according to the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses (SUN).

    • A garage fire in Saskatoon’s Willows neighbourhood on Friday narrowly missed igniting an attached home, according to the fire department.

    • The Métis Nation of Saskatchewan has pulled out of a national body representing Métis, citing problems with an Ontario group and throwing the future of the Métis National Council into question.

    • Emergency crews in northern Ontario found the bodies of four people inside a home where a fire broke out Thursday night.

    • Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

    • A Brampton driver, 27, was charged this week when northern Ontario police stopped the SUV he was driving on Highway 17 after a reported shooting and found more than $100,000 in cash.

    • A man is in hospital with life threatening injuries following a collision between a motorcycle and a vehicle on Friday afternoon.

    • NEW

      NEW

      Under intense cross-examination from Crown Attorney Jennifer Moser, the embattled former Mayor of Woodstock stuck to his story denying that he ever did anything inappropriate to his female accuser.

    • Two men from Barrie have been charged after a deadly shooting at a park in Keswick on Wednesday.

    • Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.

    • A jury has found a Barrie man guilty of second-degree murder for the stabbing death of a man at a Banff bar two years ago.

    • The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) is searching for the occupants of a vehicle caught on security cameras during a fatal police-involved shooting on Goyeau Street.

    • Windsor police say a 25-year-old mother has been charged with the drowning death of her 5-year-old child in the family’s backyard pool.

    • The federal government is investing $18.4 million dollars into the region.

    • New Democrat Leader David Eby has launched his British Columbia election campaign a day early, making the key battle ground of Surrey his first stop.

    • The Old Man Lake wildfire near Sooke is the only one currently burning on Vancouver Island. It’s a region of the province that this year saw a drastic drop in blazes in the backcountry.

    • Police in Victoria, B.C. issued a warning this week about lighters that look like pistols, saying they have received 20 reports of firearms in public spaces since July 1 that turned out to be gun-shaped torches.

    • A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.

    • The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.

    • Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.

    • After a summer of preparation, the Lethbridge Hurricanes are ready to open the 2024-25 season.

    • As a new semester is underway, Lethbridge Polytechnic and the University of Lethbridge say the number of students on campus is on the rise.

    • A Lethbridge resident is facing charges after police seized drugs and weapons at a traffic stop for bicycle equipment violations.

    • A 26-year-old driver from Surrey, B.C., has been charged with three counts of criminal negligence causing death and bodily harm in a crash that killed two youths in northern Ontario last year.

    • Ontario Provincial Police say three suspects from southern Ontario have been charged and drugs worth $300,000 have been seized following a traffic stop Sept. 16.

    • A Brampton driver, 27, was charged this week when northern Ontario police stopped the SUV he was driving on Highway 17 after a reported shooting and found more than $100,000 in cash.

    N.L.

    Shopping Trends

    The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.

    Stay Connected
    Follow CTV News