‘Drag Kings Don’t Get Enough Love’: Sarasota Market To Host Storytime

SARASOTA, FL — In celebration of LGBTQ+ pride month, The Bazaar on Apricot & Lime in Sarasota is hosting a free Drag King Storytime event Friday at 10:30 a.m.

“Drag kings don’t get enough love,” Kim Livengood, the market’s owner, told Patch.

She and her family are staunch allies of the LGBTQ+ community and Friday’s event was inspired by her mother.

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“My mother has always felt very passionate about us always having free books for kids when they come to the bazaar,” Livengood said. “And this is just something fun to do during pride.”

Friday’s storytime features performer Amanda Heisey reading to children to children in

The book’s title hasn’t been announced.

She’s organizing the event despite a new Florida law known as the “Protecting Children’s Innocence” law targeting drag performances for children. The bill bans minors from attending "sexually explicit adult performances in all venues — including drag shows and strip clubs," according to the news release. Hotels and restaurants that allow children to attend adult performances risk being fined or having their license suspended.

The Bazaar’s storytime won’t feature any explicit material or performances, Livengood said.

“We’re not political. We’re just doing the right thing, and we’re very all-inclusive,” she said. “We feel very strongly that everybody can come to our bazaar.”

Though if any protesters show up, they won’t be welcome.

“We can’t worry about what we can’t control,” Livengood said. “But it is a privately owned business where we have the right to ask people to leave if they are not appropriate.”

The storytime is her way of letting the LGBTQ+ community know that they’re welcome at the bazaar.

“We are allies and this is just our way to show our support,” she said. “Love is love."