Drag Race’s Elektra Fence explains why LGBTQ+ folk need Pride more than ever
Drag Race UK’s Elektra Fence says Pride is a time for queer people to be “proud of who we are” and to raise awareness of attacks against the LGBTQ+ community. (Davey Ty)
Drag Race UK star Elektra Fence discusses why the LGBTQ+ community needs Pride and to “look after each other” after experiencing an horrific “homophobic” assault.
The “pocket rocket of UK drag” sashayed away from the Drag Race UK season three after two electrifying lip syncs, being beaten in a fierce battle against Vanity Milan. While she didn’t win the crown, Elektra captured the hearts of fans for her genuine heart, absurd humour and daring dance moves – including a flying leap from the Drag Race UK stage.
The gorgeous queen has stayed busy since the last time she saw Mama Ru. Elektra made her West End debut in December’s drag panto sensation Dick Whittington, and she even celebrated a personal milestone after “Mr Fence” popped the question with a beautiful ring.
Now, Elektra is once again storming the stage as part of the fantastic lineup for the Great Estate Festival over jubilee weekend (2-5 June), celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne.
Elektra tells PinkNews that she loves to “work my butt off no matter what” so her appearance on season three of Drag Race UK has “given me that extra boost” to keep going. She shares that she loves the queen but quips that it’s difficult to “imagine working somewhere for 70 years”.
“I’ve been doing drag for six years so in 64 years it’ll be my 70th anniversary, and I’ll be 94,” Elektra figures. “When it comes to my 70-year jubilee, I don’t think I’ll be doing the things I do now.”
@elektrafence Flying without wings! #fyp #follow #foryoupage #dragrace #dragqueen @LittleMix
The jubilee also comes as the world will be celebrating LGBTQ+ communities during Pride Month. Elektra tells PinkNews that it’s important for members of the community to be “proud of who we are” and for others to be “good allies” as we all “look after each other”, especially if a crisis arises.
In April, Elektra Fence shared with fans that she was physically and verbally assaulted by a group of thugs while travelling on a train from London Euston to Manchester.
Elektra wrote on Twitter that she “felt totally helpless” during the “incredibly aggressive” “homophobic” attack, and she described how such anti-LGBTQ+ violence is always “at the back of many queer people’s minds every day, including mine”.
The Drag Race UK star says that Pride is still vital to the LGBTQ+ community as she’s seeing “so many homophobic attacks on my Instagram feed, on my Twitter feed, on other accounts”.
“It’s crazy,” Elektra says. “It’s like how the hell is this still happening? Like come on, you just need to grow up with the times and don’t be a d**k.”
She says she doesn’t want there to be a “witch hunt” for the people who attacked her as she wanted to share her experience to warn others to be careful and look after themselves.
Drag Race UK star Elektra Fence opens up about experiencing an “homophobic” attack and why the LGBTQ+ community needs Pride. (Owen James Vincent)
But Elektra says the part of the horrific experience that “upset me the most” was seeing a group of “girls who laughed” while witnessing the assault.
“Most of my friends are female or female-identifying, and these girls were just laughing at these men saying this homophobic stuff and grabbing me and pulling me on top of them,” Elektra recalls.
She continues: “I looked at them and that’s what upset me the most because I thought, ‘You find that man who is being homophobic or abusive towards someone – how can you find that attractive?’
“It’s so sad, and it just blows my mind. It’s crazy.”
Elektra was able to utilise a self-defence move to get the men away from her, but she says anti-LGBTQ+ attacks are still happening all the time. She describes how a guy threatened to kill some of her friends and lobbed homophobic slurs at them while they were holding hands and walking their dog in London.
She tells PinkNews that she often wants to be like the crying girl from Mean Girls, who just wanted to bake a cake filled with rainbows so that everyone could eat and be happy.
But Elektra Fence believes that change will come when LGBTQ+ people have “more representation” in politics and media.
“I want to see more queer people in Parliament representing us, representing more trans people because it matters,” she adds. “We need those people to back us up, to talk from their experience – not some little white, blonde man known as Boris Johnson.”
Drag Race UK star Elektra Fence wants to see more LGBTQ+ people in Parliament “representing us” and fighting for the community. (Owen James Vincent)
She tells PinkNews that she does see things moving forward, especially after Blackpool footballer Jake Daniels came out as gay. Daniels is the first active professional player in British men’s football to come out publicly since Justin Fashanu in 1990.
Elektra explains that Daniel’s social media followers had skyrocketed since he came out, meaning he now has a “bigger platform” and is seen as a “figure”. She thinks Daniels could inspire others to feel comfortable sharing their truths with the world.
“Let’s get more people to come out,” she adds. “But if someone wants to stay in the closet – let them stay in the closet.”
She continues: “They don’t have to come out if they don’t feel comfortable. The time’s right when the time’s right.”
Elektra Fence says that she’s always found it “strange” that “gay people have to come out” saying: “Why can’t straight people like you know, ‘Hi everybody, I’m coming out as straight’? You know what I mean?”
“Why is it like you come out as gay or come out as not straight?” she asks. “I just thought about that.”
Honestly, if there was a definitive answer to that, we’d love to know.
