It’s back.

Less than a week after the news broke that Rogers Free Library was canceling its highly-anticipated Drag Queen Story Hour, the event has been reinstated at its original date and time, Saturday, June 15, at 1 p.m.

Drag Queen Story Hour, in which drag queens read stories to young children, has been appearing in libraries and community centers from coast to coast, since being first developed by Michelle Tea, a San Francisco author. The event which, according to their website (dragqueenstoryhour.org), “… captures the imagination and play of the gender fluidity of childhood and gives kids glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models,” carries the stamp of approval from the American Library Association.

It started off well enough here in Bristol, where it was approved, scheduled, and met with a mostly positive response from the community. That is, until it was abruptly canceled, initially in an email to staff on Thursday, May 23. The cancellation was not made public until Thursday, May 30, in a stark Facebook post, the delay ostensibly due to a leave of absence of the person who handles the library’s social media. The news was, however, available the day prior in the Fall River Herald, which printed a story on Wednesday, May 29, about their own Drag Queen Story Hour controversy, in which staff reporter Deborah Allard wrote, “Rogers Free Library in Bristol, Rhode Island, was scheduled to offer drag storytime June 15, but canceled the event because of strong opposition. Director Joan Prescott said Bristol didn’t seem ‘ready’ for drag storytime at its library, and that it may be ‘something more diverse communities can appreciate.’ ”

The community did not appreciate the cancellation, and made their feelings abundantly clear on Thursday night, when a small but vocal group assembled to protest outside the library.

Protesters included local artist Dawn Oliveira, a mother of two grown sons, who said, “I’ve encouraged my boys to be open, fearless and accepting of diversity in all its creative forms. If young kids who are naturally accepting and inquisitive, have this chance to play, and ask questions, maybe fear and bigotry disappear. Bristol can do this. We can provide space for new ideas. It’s critical.”

“This is intolerance, it’s a civil rights issue,” said Bristol resident Tony Morettini, who also attended the  Thursday night protest. “The statement, ‘not ready for this?’ Our town is imminently ready for this. We have six churches within a few blocks of each other. There is a lot of tolerance in this community, and I think people saw this as a way to show our kids a different way that people live. And it was canceled for seemingly frivolous reasons.”

The Bristol Democratic Town Committee, whose chairman, Erich Haslehurst, attended the protest with his husband, town councilman Tim Sweeney, released a statement on the morning of Friday, June 1, reading, in part, “The Bristol Democratic Town Committee is extremely disheartened to see the exclusion and silencing of our LGBTQ+ neighbors, especially as we enter the month of June, which is Gay Pride Month.”

In an effort to explain the decision to cancel, the library’s Board of Trustees released a statement midmorning Friday, which read, “The decision by the library Director to cancel the event came as a result of initial  threats of protests, and suggestions of possible violence. Since central to the mission of the library is serving a diverse community in a safe environment, the Director deemed that the need for a police presence was not a welcoming or appropriate context for children and their families. The Director’s first and foremost concern was guaranteeing the safety of our patrons, especially small children.”

That response failed to satisfy supporters of the event, particularly after Fall River successfully went through with a similar event on Saturday, June 1, despite the presence of protestors.

On Tuesday, June 4, Rogers Free Library announced that they would be going forward with Drag Queen Story Hour as originally planned.

The library released a statement from Betty Brito, the chairman of the Board of Trustees, which read, “We are confident that we can now ensure a safe environment for children and their families. We have mapped out specific logistics for the event, and plan to post the protocol for that day’s event on the Rogers Free Library website.

 “As our mission so clearly lays out, the library is charged with the great responsibility of promoting the free exchange of diverse ideas and civil dialogue in an environment that is safe and respects the dignity of all people. We strive to uphold these ideals that represent the centerpiece of our democracy. Sometimes it is challenging to get this balance just right, and we appreciate the community’s patience and feedback as we work out the best way to accomplish these goals, particularly where children are involved. In the end, we are proud to host the Drag Queen Story Hour during Pride Month at Rogers Free Library as was our original intention.”