 The 14th annual Unity Drag Show took place this semester on UC Berkeley stage, complete with student performances, an audience fashion show, and harm reduction resources for queer community members and allies alike. CalTV spoke with Alexis Emsh, a Berkeley first year and organizer of the drag show about the premise of the event. So I'm a part of Unity, which is like a theme program for queer students just to have like a community. And one of our like main events this year and like the semester was the drag show. A lot of Unity students were given the opportunity to work on the drag show because it's student run. And so I decided, yeah, I'm gonna do that. And so that's how I'm here at this drag show. And it's a lot of fun. You might be wondering, what is drag and who can do it? Drag performer and Berkeley student Vanity Fair believes that drag has no boundaries. Drag is for everyone. We're all drag queens, you know what I mean? We're all waking up and putting on whatever we feel confident in. That's what drag is. Drag is about expressing your confidence. And the thing about confidence is people don't know what it is, but we've put this tangible thing behind it. People either have it or don't have it, but in reality we all have it. It's just how loud we're gonna express it that way. The only thing holding you back is yourself. You just gotta let go of all those insecurities and all those fears that you feel about yourself. And just remember that you are an amazing person and that's what drag is. Drag is letting go and letting all this stuff that's dragging you down and expressing it in this character you've made. Hawke Anderson, resident director of the Unity Theme program, emphasized the importance of a drag event like this one on UC Berkeley's campus. This is a lot of folks' first time to see what drag was. There's a lot of people's first time being on the stage and even our DJ was their first time DJing an event like this. So the drag show is a first time for me folks to see what it means to be your authentic self and express yourself unapologetically. It's a space for folks to get excited and to support queer voices and queer spaces and performers and often the day it's a space to just be you. Alexis Hawke and Vanity Fair have some advice for allies, first time drag show goers and aspiring drag performers. Being able to experience this and seeing your peers like having the time of their lives is just so important for those who maybe want to start drag and didn't know or maybe just want to have a good time and have a space where they can authentically be themselves. Being in queer spaces can sometimes be intimidating and if you're unsure if you want to come to a drag show then that's probably the reason why you should come. It's a welcoming kind space with a lot of supporting people and you're going to be surrounded by people screaming and loving each other and being there for each other. Y'all need to go like get some coffee with a drag queen or y'all need to go and just get yourself and put yourself out there because you're missing out on a really fun experience and you're missing out on a way for you to be a better ally on a more serious note. You're missing out on a way like this is something my friend who is LGBTQIA plus resonates with I can be an ally in that way even if I'm not queer. Along with that it's just you're missing out on one of the greatest experiences of your life. Stay tuned for next year's show because it truly is a memorable experience. This has been Mariana Garcia for Cal TV News.