‘I saw myself in RuPaul’: how Drag Race inspired LGBTQ+ Kenyans to find freedom

Inspired by the hit US show, a Nairobi group is using catwalk events to combat stigma and abuse

An audience wearing face masks sits around the edges of a nondescript room in an unassuming building in the centre of Nairobi. Sparsely furnished and decorated with a few posters advertising PrEP, a drug that reduces chances of contracting HIV, there is a low hum of excited chatter.

Then the speakers crackle into action, playing Sweet Dreams by Beyonce, and in struts Toyo, a 23-year-old transgender woman, wearing a figure-hugging sparkly blue dress accessorised with bright red painted nails and the ubiqitious face mask, in black. She walks to the end of the room, strikes a pose and struts back out. Toyo is followed by Miss K - or Kelvin, when not in drag - 24, who is wearing a red strappy dress, long black wig, fake Louboutin heels, and plenty of makeup.