Montgomery County police say they dispersed members of the far-right group Proud Boys and others confronting them on Saturday outside the Loyalty Bookstore in Silver Spring after members of the group staged a protest against a drag queen story hour held at the bookstore.
D.C. drag performer Charlemagne Chateau was hosting the drag queen story hour, an event held in recent years in libraries and bookstores across the country in which a drag queen reads from children’s books to groups of children accompanied by their parents.
Photos and videos posted on social media show Proud Boys members wearing masks and holding signs outside the bookstore. NBC Washington reported that one of the signs said, “Proud Boys love children.
Proud Boys hate pedophiles. Leave kids alone.” According to an NBC Washington, a separate group that provides support for drag queen story hour events called the Parasol Patrol was present during the protest and some of its members were kicked and had their feet stomped by the Proud Boys members.