The Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany announced a “Drag Queen Story Time” event
Families of US troops stationed at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany will be able to take their children to Drag Queen Story Time next week. The base library posted the event on its Facebook page, saying it was part of Pride Month celebrations.
“We’re celebrating Pride Month at the Ramstein Library with Drag Queen Storytime!” the announcement on the page of Ramstein & Vogelweh Air Force Libraries said on Tuesday. “Join us with special guest reader Stacey Teed! Be sure to wear your brightest and most colorful outfits!”
The event is scheduled for June 2, and is distinct from the regular story time for military children, hosted by the Vogelweh library in the nearby Kaiserslautern.
“I find it wholly inappropriate that the military of all places will be using public funds to sexualize children,” one woman, whose husband is reportedly stationed at Ramstein, told the Post Millennial on Tuesday. She said she was “shocked to see the Ramstein Air Force Base Library plans to hold an official drag queen story hour for children.”
Ramstein is a massive US military base in southern Germany, serving as the headquarters of the US Air Force in Europe, Africa and the NATO Allied Air Command (AIRCOM). The Post Millennial said it reached out to the base for comment, but has yet to hear back.
Last year, the Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada held a drag performance – which the base defended as “an opportunity for attendees to learn more about the history and significance of drag performance art within the LGBT+ community” when called out by the conservative-leaning Breitbart News.
“Ensuring our ranks reflect and are inclusive of the American people is essential to the morale, cohesion, and readiness of the military,” a Nellis spokesperson told Breitbart. However, that show was aimed at adults, not children.
According to the Post Millennial, the Ramstein library held a similar event in 2021, featuring a woman dressed as a man. The current US government has encouraged Pride celebrations by diplomats and the military, starting last year.
Drag Queen Story Hour was started in 2015 by LGBT activists in San Francisco and Canada, seeking to make the library readings “more inclusive and affirming.” The practice has been criticized by social conservatives as inappropriate sexual grooming of children.
ABUJA, May 24 (IPS) – Nigeria’s accountant-general, the administrative head of the country’s treasury, has been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for allegedly stealing 80 billion naira ($134 million). This is a staggering theft in a country that has an estimated poverty rate of 95 million (48% of the population) and some of the worst health indices in the world.
Scientists analyzed the correlation between sleep activity and hot nighttime temperatures. A lack of sleep is a risk factor for physical and mental health problems.
Riyadh is not going to pick sides between Moscow and Kiev, the Saudi economy minister says
Saudi Arabia will maintain its extensive trade relations with both Ukraine and Russia, Economy and Planning Minister Faisal Al-Ibrahim said on Tuesday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Speaking to Japan’s Nikkei newspaper, the minister said Western sanctions against Russia are “unilateral” and will remain as such.
Al-Ibrahim also praised Moscow’s role in the OPEC+ format, which unites major oil exporters.
The minister explained that Riyadh does not plan to increase oil output in order to lower prices, explaining that his country is currently focused on supply stability rather than more volume. He argued that the situation on international energy markets would be “much worse” if not for OPEC’s efforts.
The US, the EU and their allies have slapped Moscow with unprecedented sanctions following Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine. The restrictions have targeted Russia’s financial and banking sectors as well as aviation and the space industry. Numerous government officials, public figures and businessmen have been slapped with personal sanctions.
The US and Canada have banned Russian oil imports, while the EU is still debating the issue. The measure, which was expected to be included in Brussels’ sixth round of sanctions since the start of the conflict, has faced resistance from Hungary.
On Tuesday, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen argued that the bloc continues to buy Russian oil supposedly to prevent Moscow from taking it to the world market and profiting from soaring prices.
Other nations have been reluctant to join the Western sanctions push. China increased its energy imports from Russia in April. Purchases of oil, gas and coal soared by 75% last month, according to Bloomberg.
India has said it could invest in energy projects in Russia abandoned by Western companies such as Exxon and Shell. In Europe, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has compared the sanctions with a nuclear bomb, arguing they could backfire and lead to food shortages and mass migration.
Russia launched its offensive against Ukraine in late February, following Kiev’s failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow’s eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German- and French-brokered protocols were designed to give the breakaway regions special status within the Ukrainian state.
The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.
