A Queerty reader sent us this video taken at Hendrix College, a small liberal-arts college in Conway, Arkansas. At the annual Miss Hendrix charity drag pageant, contestant Nail’er Swift ended his fairly amazing routine by launching into the audience and asking his girlfriend to marry him.
We’re not sure what to make of it—other than we’re sure we’d fine the real Taylor Swift infinitely less amusing.
On the one hand, a straight college stud comfortable enough in his sexuality to really commit to a demanding drag routine? That’s awesome.
On the other hand, the jaded queen in us feels like maybe he was trying to establishing his hetero cred with that last-minute “see I’m straight!” proposal.
How about we take this to the next level?
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And, on the third hand—we hate ourselves for asking, but is this really a straight guy?
Anyway, it’s all moot: She said yes, the pageant netted $50,000 for local charities, and we’ve booked ourselves a ticket to Conway for next year’s show!
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Fidelio
That’s a lot of hotness for a small college in a small town.
Mischiefwolf
“On the other hand, the jaded queen in us feels like maybe he was trying to establishing his hetero cred with that last-minute “see I’m straight!” proposal.”
Or, maybe he just thought proposing then would leave them with a great engagement story.
Ridpathos
That would make for an interesting “How your father proposed to me” story for their kids. >_>
miagoodguy
I never cared for the whole public marriage proposal and this is just weird.
Hendrixrocks
I go to Hendrix and just wanted to say that he and his girlfriend have been dating for over 9 years and she wanted a big public proposal. Miss Hendrix is one of the biggest events on campus. This year, Campus Kitty, our charity fundraising organization that puts on Miss Hendrix, raised over 50,000 dollars though out this past year.
grimessz
I’ve heard of this college. It is known for 1. gays and 2. knowing how to party ridiculously hard. What’s hilarious is that it’s in the dead middle of a Southern Baptist town.
Daniel
I’m an openly gay alum of Hendrix College and was a contestant in last year’s pageant. 5 of the guys I competed with last year were straight, the other 3 were gay. I got to know those guys really well and I can honestly say that in three years of being involved with Miss Hendrix, all of the contestants I’ve known were proud to be competing and never had any desire to assert their “straightness.” I agree that it’s pretty incredible that a small religiously affiliated college in the Bible Belt has such an amazing queer spectacle as Miss Hendrix, and have always taken it as evidence of what a special place the school is. Thanks for highlighting one of the best moments in Miss Hendrix history!
Jhineugene
Score another one for bi erasure ::sigh:: How on earth does this journalist know that this man is “straight”? Many bi-guys have girlfriends and wives, and so do more than a few gay men.
Janet Hardy
Married to a former drag queen
(7 years & counting)
Sonlen
Let’s squash a couple of these questions posed by the article. Some commenters, and even the writer of this article seems skeptical that he is really straight. But without any evidence that he is even slightly attracted to men, they smartly titled him in the article as a “straight man”.
That is not bi-erasure, that is intelligent journalism assumptions. They looked at all the evidence and made the most appropriate conclusion they had. He did, after all, propose to a girl. In fact, maybe whoever submitted the story tip told them he was straight. As a fellow contestant (also straight), I will vouch right now and say that he is 100% straight.
And how dare anyone try to take away some of the impressiveness of what he did by trying to hint that he MUST be living some weird secret fantasy related to bisexuality by performing in the drag show. You are trying to minimize the possibility that he really did this performance for charity, and to entertain the crowd, and because it was awesome and cool and the most memorable way to propose.
Perhaps there is a shred of elitism from which these questions about his sexuality are stemming. Some people seem to think that there is no WAY that a fully straight man could do what he did by performing in that show. That drag shows must be exclusively reserved for the queer members of society.
Well I know you are wrong. Him and I (and actually more than half of the contestants) are proof that you are wrong. And perhaps more straight men like us would be willing to perform this sort of thing on stage if less people would immediately tie the performance into assumptions about our sexuality. It was an amazing experience, but it had nothing to do with who I am sexually attracted to. And it certainly taught me not to make assumptions about anyone else.
And as a final thing that makes me mad, this article is dead wrong about the possibility that he created the proposal just to gain back some sort of “hetero street cred”. How dare you think that this guy would use a proposal to his girlfriend of 9 years as just a way to save face??????
Look into his eyes when he proposes to her. Look at them as they embrace. Does that SEEM like a man who cares at all about what the audience was thinking? In fact I remember talking to him right before he went on to perform, and he told me that he literally did not care how the dance went or if he forgot moves. He just needed a three letter word.
So please don’t ever hint at that thought again (heck, I wish you would delete that whole line). It is unspeakably vile that someone would attempt to boil down this proposal, this profession of love after a NINE YEAR relationship, into some sly move to assert his heterosexuality.
I saw that man, and he could have cared less if everyone in the audience was convinced he did gay porn. He got the girl, and that was all that mattered.
Jhineugene
I’m glad to hear that he’s straight – the world needs more straight men with that kind of confidence. However, for the article to call him “straight” without saying why is definitely asking for this kind of commentary. The simple addition of the phrase “self-identified” before the word “straight” would have done it – but otherwise, the only “evidence” of his straightness is the fact that he proposed marriage to a woman, and that’s no evidence at all (as my own marriage of two bisexuals will attest).
Sonlen
Alright, let’s do a thorough analysis of the evidence.
Since he is in college and a senior, we know he is approximately 21 or 22. His relationship with the girl is also known to be about 9 and 1/2 years long. So it started at about the age of 12 or 13. So in order for there to be any concrete evidence of ANY bisexual tendencies, he would either have had to secretly cheat on his girlfriend with a man, or had bisexual encounters before the age of 12.
So this is a guy who has been dating a GIRL for almost HALF HIS LIFE and proposes to this girl, and we are still expected to reasonably doubt that he is straight? What shred of evidence justifies such doubt? Tacking on the term “self-identified” is also just wrong. That implies distrust, like you are saying “well, he SAYS he is straight, but who knows…”
But fine, let’s explore this from another angle. Because you want the article to keep all possibilities open with its title, let us try to keep ALL possibilities open and see where that goes. Here is the new title:
“Supposedly self-identified straight ‘man’ who could also potentially be a woman, or bisexual, or trisexual, or secretly an alien, or just a very impressive CGI image, or a deity disguised as a man, or a group of very coordinated ants shaped and painted to look like a man… proposes to his/her/its/their apparent ‘girlfriend’ (who might just be a paid actress)”
Yup, that about covers it. Hooray for improvements.
Jhineugene
Ah – so by your definition, it is impossible for a virgin to be heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual, because they have never had sex? Regardless of their desires, fantasies, or identity? Well, ok, if you say so.
Meanwhile, what on earth would be wrong with a headline saying “College boy proposes to girlfriend in the middle of his own drag show”? (We’ll pass, for now, on why a young adult is being referred to as a “boy.” Why is the author’s supposition about the young man’s orientation a part of the story?
Sonlen
Remember… you suggested adding the “self-identified” part, so I rebutted why that idea is bad. Please don’t change your suggestion and then try to back up the new suggestion against my old arguments. Also his orientation is actually questioned in the story, so I am really having to rebut not only you but the author (who, while writing ‘straight’ in the title, hints that he thinks otherwise).
As well, I did not try to define sexual orientation, but I merely am pointing out that there doesn’t seem to be any actions in his life that point towards ANYTHING to suggest that he is not straight (and there are actions to suggest he IS straight). We have to take people at their words and actions to some extent. Otherwise we end up with that hilarious title at the end of my last comment.
Jhineugene
No, actually, “self-identified” would do it, because there *is* no other way to define sexual orientation. But you brought up the “all possibilities” straw man, for reasons best known to yourself.
For many people, his participation in a drag show would be considered “an action that… suggests that he is not straight.” For others, his proposal to a woman would be considered “… an action to suggest that he IS straight.” In fact, neither of them means anything. He could in fact be heterosexual. He could be bisexual. He could be gay, but have fallen in love with a woman (it happens, more often than many people think). He could be a pre-op transsexual who identifies as a lesbian. The fact is, that unless he has told you, YOU DON’T KNOW, and neither do I – and, unless there’s information unrevealed in this article, neither does the reporter. Which was and is my point.
Done now; three trips around this maypole is enough for me. Byel.
balehead
Hate to sound jaded like the rest……but the engagement was definately a “jump the shark” moment in this video…..he should have been proud to “own the dress” no matter what his sensuality is!!