US President Joe Biden recently welcomed drag queen Marti Cummings to the White House for the signing of the Respect for Marriage Act. Cummings moved to Twitter to post a photograph of the digital invitation, thanking President Barack Obama and First Lady Jill Biden for the chance. They stated:
“To be a non-binary drag artist invited to the White House is something I never dreamt would happen. Thank you for inviting me to this historic legislative signing, President Obama and Dr. Biden. “Grateful does not begin to explain how I feel.”
The invitation comes after the House approved legislation requiring the federal government to recognize same-gender marriages in states where they are legal. However, immediately after Cummings published the invitation, some of their previous comments regarding defunding the police were revived on the internet. According to Fox News, the drag artist mounted an unsuccessful campaign for New York City Council in 2020, which included a call to defund the police.
President and Dr. Biden have invited renowned NYC drag artist Marti Gould Cummings to the White House for the signing of the Respect for Marriage Act. pic.twitter.com/qepHF8T9FV
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) December 12, 2022
A look at Marti Cummings’s previous contentious tweets
Marti Cummings is a well-known drag artist who is well-known for her activism and notable efforts to assist the LGBTQ+ community. The performer, on the other hand, has already generated controversy with some of their tweets.
Marti Cummings apparently commented on their now-private Twitter account in June 2020:
“I’m a proud fem queer nonbinary drag artist who wants to defund police and finance education, affordable housing, and social work. I’m running for city council with a bunch of other queer candidates, and we’re going to fight for you, the people, not police unions or real estate.”
They added in another tweet:
“We do want to defund the cops. Yes, we want to get rid of ICE. No, we will not accept anything less and will continue to fight for this.” Earlier this year, the singer allegedly tweeted about “ACAB Coffee” and expressed support for the phrase, which stands for “All Cops are B******s.”
Cummings continues to tweet support for defunding the police in order to invest in the community, saying:
“For me, it’s still defunding the cops and investing in the community!” It’s mind-boggling to fund militaristic police above education, housing, mental health treatment, parks, and free transit.”
Cummings also posted a video of herself singing Baby Shark and doing drag in front of a youngster at a 2019 event on Twitter. They also backed the concept of teaching drag to youngsters, writing:
“Anyone who believes drag isn’t for youngsters is mistaken. Drag is an expression, and children are such judgment-free individuals; they don’t care what you’re wearing as much as they do what you’re doing.”
While Marti Cummings has voiced strong support for “defunding the cops,” the White House has been silent on the issue. Fox News stated that President Biden said “the solution is not to starve the cops” during a New York Police Department event in February. As Cummings’ remarks spread on social media, they decided to make their Twitter account private.
Drag queen Marti Cummings who will be at the White House today: “I want to live in a time when our kids can go to a library and see drag artists reading stories to them without the Proud boys showing up to protest” pic.twitter.com/g4db7HqHGj
— 3sidedstory 🇺🇲 (@3sidedstory) December 13, 2022
Marti Cummings: all you need to know
Marti Cummings is a New York City-based drag artist, TV personality, and political activist. Cummings has been a “frequent presence in the nightlife” and has had a decade-long career in drag, according to their official website. They have sold out performances at 54 Below, Lincoln Center’s Big Apple Circus, Dixon Place, and frequently travels the globe with Atlantis Cruises, doing up to six regular shows each week. They also served on the boards of the Ali Forney Center for Homeless LGBTQ Youth and the Equality NY Advisory Board.
Cummings has also served on the NYC Nightlife Advisory Council and Community Board 9 as co-chair of Drag Out the Vote. The musician also ran for city council in New York City’s 7th ward. They also published A Very Mary Holiday, a Christmas CD starring Broadway artists such as Tony Award winner Cady Huffman and Tony Award nominee Daphne Rubin-Vega. Marti Cummings has appeared on a variety of programs, including The X Change Rate, Shade Queens of NYC, Dragged on Yahoo!, and The Marti Report on LOGO.
