PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia Family Pride, a local LGBTQ nonprofit, was set to partner with the Philadelphia Zoo for a Pride-themed, animal-focused story hour on June 3, and had already hired a drag queen to read at the event.

But a little more than a week before it was set to take place, the zoo asked the group to uninvite the drag queen, saying it could not be responsible for the security required if a drag queen participated, according to Michael Galvan, a spokesperson for Philadelphia Family Pride.

In response, Philadelphia Family Pride pulled out of the June event, as well as another planned story hour at the zoo scheduled for July. Philadelphia magazine first reported the rescinded invite.

The zoo, which has celebrated Pride since 2009, said in a statement that “a series of miscommunications during the planning process led to misunderstandings about the scope of the program and our ability to support certain elements.”

The story hour, part of the zoo’s summer “Animal Tales” literacy series, was supposed to involve a drag queen reading a story to kids, followed by a zoo employee introducing an animal related to the story, Galvan said.

Galvan’s understanding was that the whole event would focus on the diversity of families that animals (and people) create. The organization had booked local drag performer Christina Bangz for the event and had already begun advertising to its members.

“I was super excited about it,” said Bangz. She particularly liked that kids would get to meet an animal afterward, a unique element that she hadn’t experienced with other story hours.

But on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, Galvan said they received an apologetic call from Bethany Housman, the director of school and community partnerships at the zoo. According to Galvan, she said the zoo’s senior leadership had determined the zoo did not have “the ability to provide safety and security for the drag artist at the zoo.”

Galvan and Philadelphia Family Pride decided they no longer wanted to cohost the event.

“For us to show up in a space where a drag queen was intentionally uninvited from an event, it’s not a proper way to show solidarity and community,” Galvan said.

Bangz said she was “super bummed” about the cancellation, and grateful that Philadelphia Family Pride decided not to move forward without her.

“Drag queens are extremely important in this community,” she said. “People look at us as leaders and protectors of the queer community.”

She was also skeptical that genuine security concerns were the main issue. Though she is disappointed, she has a number of other upcoming Pride events, including a June 1 drag and burlesque show at MilkBoy Philadelphia.

A spokesperson for the zoo said it has “robust security protocols in place and a long history of safely hosting a wide range of performances, programs, and community partners.” The other “Animal Tales” events will be cohosted by the Please Touch Museum and the Philly Book Bank, among other partners.

The zoo also has a series of other activities planned for Pride month, including “pride-themed animal enrichment” in habitats around the zoo and face painting.

Galvan said they wished the zoo had spoken out publicly instead of privately canceling the drag queen.

“I recognize that providing safety and security for a member of the drag community might be difficult,” Galvan said, “but why not make a comment publicly about why that situation is — why we have to fear for a drag queen’s safety in a public space?"

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