‘Bullied, beaten up, killed’: Armenia's drag queens risk it all for the stage

This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center. Hundreds of people gathered at a club in the heart of the Armenian capital Yerevan for an underground drag show in mid-June. Due to security concerns, details about the Pride Month event spread through word of mouth or private Instagram stories. Previous bars have closed their doors because of repeated police raids, and a queer club was firebombed in 2012. “Drag is more political in Armenia because, honestly, we have to be,” said Leo, one of the main organisers of the event. “It's all about survival, and it's all just about living – surviving, but also thriving.” Despite fears of violence, this underground scene has been growing in recent years – fuelled, in part, by Moscow’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Armenian drag queen Lava Dicks at a performance in Yerevan. © ENTR ‘It scared me back into the closet’ Armenia often ranks poorly when it comes to its treatment of the LGBTQ community, and targeted acts of violence have been common. The former Soviet country is listed near the bottom of ILGA-Europe’s rainbow map, which ranks European countries annually based on their legal protections for queer communities. ILGA-Europe ranked...