June 2, 2021
'Drag Race' Star Nina West Shrugs off 'Blue's Clues' Pride Song Haters
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
"RuPaul's Drag Race" Season 11 star Nina West addressed conservative attacks against a Pride-themed "Blue's Clues" animated video in which she performs a song celebrating the many configurations of family.
"I will always continue to choose kindness and positivity and lead with love," West told Entertainment Weekly in response to conservative commentators who smeared the singalong video as a "predatory" targeting of children.
West also added "that 'representation' and 'inclusivity' matter most during Pride season, and that "LGBTQIA+ families deserve a safe space to raise their children and celebrate their individuality and grow without fear."
As EW recounted, West appears in animated form in the clip, titled "The Blue's Clues Pride Parade Sing-Along." The video, which Nickelodeon shared on its YouTube channel, depicts "nonbinary animal characters carrying intersectional Pride flags" that stand in for the many representations of family. But, as the outlet noted, "detractors have recently slammed" the video "for 'flagrantly' pushing 'gender confusion and sexualized themes' at children."
West had a different message, telling EW: "What I love about my collaboration with Nickelodeon and 'Blue's Clues and You!' is that we celebrate everyone that makes up our LGBTQIA+ community. It reminds us all that we are integral for the fight for equality."
The "Drag Race" veteran also stars in the "popular 'Story Time With Nina' video series that aired digitally throughout 2020," EW recalled.
"My job is to not only provide a space for celebration and fun but to reiterate, specifically to my community, that LGBTQIA+ are valid, worthy, and perfect the way they are," West stated.
As EDGE previously reported, conservative commentators have seized upon the clip, suggesting the song is intended to encourage children to be members of the LGBTQ community.
Detractors also went so far as to compare the video's message of celebrating family diversity to "communism":
But others celebrated the video as a welcome moment of representation:
Watch "The Blue's Clues Pride Parade Sing-Along" featuring Nina West below:
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
