Former RuPaul's Drag Race judge Santino Rice is receiving hate from fans after posting a since-deleted controversial tweet against the COVID-19 vaccine. Even though Santino fell out of the Drag Race spotlight for some time following his quiet departure prior to season 7, the fashion designer's rampant social media activity is sparking heated conversations within the fandom. As Santino works to promote his belief in natural immunity, many viewers are calling him out for spreading blatant misinformation.
Long-time followers of Drag Race will remember Santino as a staple on the judges' panel for seasons 1 through 6. Santino first became famous by competing on Project Runway season 2, and he was later hired by RuPaul for his fashion knowledge. When Drag Race premiered in 2009, much emphasis was placed on the queens' looks. However, as the search for "America's Next Drag Superstar" evolved, the focus became drag culture and excellence - something Santino was not an expert in. As a result, Ross Mathews and Carson Kressley were brought in to join RuPaul and Michelle Visage. Since his departure from the show, Santino garnered attention for his 111-day juice fast and advocacy for natural living, the latter of which is angering the Drag Race community.
Over the past few months, Santino Rice has been tweeting out his disbelief in the COVID-19 vaccine. In fact, one recent tweet was removed by the platform, but a Reddit thread (seen below) shared a screenshot of that since-deleted tweet. It read in all caps, "Never get the COVID vaccine! Never! You can find a nurse or pharmacist to squirt it on the floor! Generations of humans before you did not need it and you do not need it! Support your immune system naturally!" Despite the removal of his tweet, Santino went on to deter his more than 77,000 followers from getting the shot with more anti-vax posts.
Santino Rice. I’m going to say this very slowly so you can understand. You’re dumb. from rupaulsdragrace
On both Reddit and Twitter, hundreds of RuPaul's Drag Race fans have responded to Santino Rice's claims, and not one seemed to agree with his stance. One Reddit user revealed how her friend's mother in Guatemala died from COVID-19 and would've done anything to have access to the vaccine. Another commenter was furious over Santino's belief that a healthcare professional can be bribed to pretend they administered the shot, allowing the person to obtain a vaccination card and get around restrictions placed on unvaccinated people. On Twitter, Santino was told to "drink your kombucha and be quiet."
In one of Santino's most recent tweets, he called vaccinated individuals "fully-brainwashed." Overall, the consensus among RuPaul's Drag Race fans is that Santino's reasons are illegitimate. A number of former contestants, including Vanessa Vanjie Mateo and Rosé, proudly shared when they got their vaccine. For them, this meant they were one step closer to performing live shows again. It's clear that Santino's views do not reflect the drag community at large.
Source: Santino Rice on Twitter, Reddit