Mary Margaret Olohan |Social Issues Reporter
- A London library is apologizing for bringing in a “Rainbow Dildo Butt Monkey” to entertain children.
- Redbridge Libraries hosted Mandiga Arts Group at a Redbridge Libraries Summer Reading Challenge event Saturday in east London where video footage posted on social media shows a number of performers outside the event, according to the Evening Standard.
- One of the performers was dressed in a rainbow monkey costume exposing a fake buttocks and a fake penis.
A London library is apologizing for hosting an event where an actor described as a “Rainbow Dildo Butt Monkey” reportedly entertained children.
Redbridge Libraries hosted the Mandiga Arts Group at a Redbridge Libraries Summer Reading Challenge event Saturday in east London, the Evening Standard reported. Video footage and photographs posted on social media shows a number of performers outside the event, including an individual dressed in a rainbow monkey costume exposing a fake buttocks and a fake penis.
It is not immediately clear who the performer was.
“Can a word capture the spirit of an age? Images certainly can,” tweeted Twitter user Dr. Jane Harris. “In future, when we think back on the zeitgeist of 2021, we may remember Rainbow Dildo Butt Monkey, and wonder how on earth we descended to thinking that this was suitable entertainment for children.”
https://twitter.com/VictoriaPeckham/status/1414187555382300677
1/2 During an event put on at the library today there was a performance by a Carnival Arts Company. Unfortunately one of the animal costumes was inappropriate which we were not aware of at the time of booking. We deeply apologise for the offence caused. This is being looked into
— Redbridge Libraries (@RedbridgeLibs) July 10, 2021
“During an event put on at the library today there was a performance by a Carnival Arts Company,” the library tweeted.
“Unfortunately one of the animal costumes was inappropriate which we were not aware of at the time of booking. We deeply apologise for the offence caused,” the library’s statement continued. “This is being looked into and a further statement will be made. This event was arranged by Vision and not Redbridge Council.
Upon receiving complaints passed on by the Leader and Deputy Leader, we ceased the performance and are truly apologetic for the distress caused to residents,” the library said. “This will never happen again.”
Mandiga Arts apologized for any “offence caused,” saying the group “never intended to offend residents.” The organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation as to who the “Rainbow Dildo Butt Monkey” is.
“We respect everyone’s individual opinion with no offence to any part,” the group tweeted. “Actions are being taken, more information to follow.”
Vision Redbridge Culture and Leisure (RCL) told the Evening Standard that it was “utterly appalled by the unacceptable event at Redbridge Libraries on Saturday” and said that it was organized by their “independent leisure contractor, Vision.”
The council’s leader Jas Athwal also told the Evening Standard that all future performances are cancelled.
https://twitter.com/HasAhmed_/status/1413931013340807172
“The contractor had commissioned characters to support the start of the Summer Reading Challenge, but the costume in question was wholly inappropriate for the intended audience,” RCL told the publication. “A full and thorough investigation into how this incident happened has been launched and stringent action will be taken. We sincerely apologise for the offence and distress this has caused.”
The event bears similarities to Drag Queen Story Hours, which started out as niche events on the West Coast but have spread to libraries and schools across the U.S.
The official Drag Queen Story Hour website boasts over 40 independently operated chapters across the U.S., including in New York City, D.C. and Chicago, as well as international chapters in Tokyo, Australia, Europe and Mexico.
The events are typically designed to be about 45 minutes long for children aged three to eight years old and intend to capture children’s imagination and help explore their gender fluidity through “glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models,” according to the Drag Queen Story Hour’s official website.
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