Nazis, Patriot Front Converge at a Drag Bingo at Texas Church
A convergence of right-wing hate mongers menaced a Saturday's drag queen bingo event at a Texas church.Protesters and counter-protesters lined opposing sides of a divided highway in the Texas town of Katy, west of Houston.
The location is home to the LGBTQ-affirming congregation of the First Christian Church, which hosted two drag queen bingo events.The daytime event was open to all ages, followed by an adults-only event Saturday evening.
Several hundred right-wing radicals to include members of the Proud Boys, Patriot Front, and Nazis, showed up in opposition to the religious institution's activities, Houston's Fox affiliate KRIV reports.Chief among the participants on Saturday was Kelly Neidert, the University of North Texas student that has spent much of her post-education period directing hatred at LGBTQ+ communities through her organization Protect Texas Kids.
Neidert is a self-described "Christian fascist."Videos and photos from the location show a disturbing scene of armed hate groups flying bigoted signs and flags, including one with a swastika, yelling at and confronting supporters of the LGBTQ+ community that had assembled as a barrier to the hate.Police in riot gear separated the crowds, which engaged in several minor skirmishes but otherwise without arrests or incidents, according to KRIV.Right-wing media figures and influencers had stirred up anger and whipped up their followers to target the event, including Steve Bannon, who amplified anti-LGBTQ+ activist Sherronna Bishop on his program calling for the disruption of the Katy affair.
