Most fans of the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise are content to follow their favorite queens on social media to praise their looks and personalities. But every fandom has a dark side, and RuPaul’s Drag Race is no exception. Recently, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK queen Sister Sister has been overwhelmed by the hate she’s receiving online. The bullying has taken a toll on the blue-faced queen, but Sister Sister isn’t going to let some online trolls stop her from shining.
So far in season 2, Sister Sister has turned in good looks and performances but has been mostly coasting in the middle of the competition. She’s landed among the tops of the week but hasn’t yet secured a win. Sister Sister found herself in the bottom two in episode 4 and in a true show-must-go-on moment, she slayed her lip sync battle solo after Ginny Lemon walked off the show. Many fans consider her to be an underrated queen on the season, but others have been unnecessarily cruel to Sister Sister.
On Sunday, Sister Sister took to Twitter to share some of what she’s been going through. “I won’t lie, the last few days have been very tough,” she said, “some of the hate I have had to read about myself has been shocking and incredibly painful.” Despite the hate she’s received, Sister Sister seems to be focusing on the positives, thanking her many friends and supporters and dropping a ‘be kind’ hashtag. Sister Sister is determined to ignore the bullies, saying “don’t ever let anybody dampen your flame.”
Online harassment has become a major problem for reality tv stars, especially ones fans consider divisive. The stars of many shows have encountered the same kind of hate, like 90 Day Fiancé’s Larissa Lima who’s been upfront about the bullying she’s received from fans of the show. Overzealous fans have obviously become a problem among RuPaul’s Drag Race contestants as well, as the hate Sister Sister has received is proof that some fans take it way too far.
RuPaul’s Drag Race fans around the world love seeing the show’s queens be vulnerable and step outside their comfort zones, but the bullying problem could put that in jeopardy. More queens are going to reconsider going on the show if they know they have to contend with the kind of online vitriol that Sister Sister and other queens have received. If the bullying gets bad enough, Mama Ru might need to step in to quash the hate.
Source: Sister Sister