Drag queen feted by Kamala Harris accused of multiple sexual assaults
By newseditors // 2024-03-28
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A drag star feted by Kamala Harris at the Biden White House and Vice President’s residence has been accused of multiple sexual assaults between 2012 to 2020. (Article by Debra Heine republished from AMGreatness.com) Darius Jeremy “DJ” Pierce, better known as  “Shangela,” has appeared on numerous television series and is best known for competing on RuPaul’s “Drag Race” and Dancing With the Stars. The accusations are described in sordid detail in a Rolling Stone exposé following a 16 month investigation researching the allegations, reviewing court documents, and interviewing several accusers. The report features five people who accused Pierce of sexually assaulting them or attempting to have sex with them while they were too inebriated to consent. The alleged offenses took place over a period of six years in Louisiana, Texas, California and the United Kingdom, and sometimes involved a second assailant, according to a Rolling Stone investigation. Three of the five accusers, who ranged in age at the time of their alleged assaults from 18 to 23, said they were aspiring drag queens at the time. In a letter to Rolling Stone, Pierce’s lawyer Andrew Brettler denied all accusations of sexual assault, calling the allegations “false and unsupported by any evidence or reliable witness testimony.” Separately, Daniel McGarrigle, a former production assistant on HBO’s “We’re Here” accused Pierce in May of 2023 of committing “sexual assault, gender violence false imprisonment, negligence, and sexual harassment, among other offenses” while they worked on the show in 2020. McGarrigle alleged in the lawsuit that he “threw up” after drinking with Pierce before waking up to the drag star “rubbing his penis against his buttocks, attempting to insert himself into his anus.” The lawsuit claimed Pierce thrust inside of McGarrigle while saying, “I know you want it, and you’re going to take it.” In a statement last year, Pierce said the allegations were “entirely meritless,” and that they “perpetuate damaging stereotypes that are harmful not only to me but also to my entire community.” “This newest filing is nothing but an attempt to shake down both me and a well-regarded television company,” Pierce said. “No one should be fooled: it has no basis in fact or in law, and it will not succeed.” According to Rolling Stone, “all parties reached a settlement in February and the case was dismissed, though details remain undisclosed.” “This case has been resolved, and the defendants and their counsel acted in good faith,” Daniel M. Gilleon, McGarrigle’s lawyer, told Rolling Stone. “As such, I feel it would be inappropriate to discuss this matter or its resolution. I don’t know anything about the new allegations, but I certainly recognize the courage it takes for a victim to come forward.” While Pierce and his lawyer deny that the alleged assaults and attempted assaults happened as described, what appears undeniable per Rolling Stone’s investigation is that throughout the years he has made a habit of engaging in lewd sexual acts with much younger males after allegedly plying them with alcohol. This is the person Kamala Harris chose to invite to the VP residence in June of 2022 to attend an LGBTQ “Pride” event. Harris specifically requested that Pierce come dressed as his drag queen persona Shangela. The event apparently marked the first time the VP residence had hosted a pride event featuring a transvestite. Pierce gushed about the experience in an Instagram post, writing, “I woke up today asking myself ‘did that really just happen?’ … Thank you Madame @vp for being an authentic ally and for not only holding this LGBTQ event at ur residence, but for also inviting me to make a few welcoming remarks.” “After laughing and sobbing on the phone with my Mom this morning, I took a sec to take this in. Me — the lil, country gay kid from Paris, TX just helped introduce the highest ranking female leader ever elected in our Country,” Pierce continued. “And I did it standing in my Truth. Proudly representing my community. Here’s to all the dreamers. I’m doing it, and so can YOU.” Later, in December of 2022, Joe Biden invited Pierce and other LGBTQ celebrities to the White House to celebrate the signing of “the Respect for Marriage Act,” which repealed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and required the federal government to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial civil marriages in the United States. Dressed in drag, Pierce donned a purple sequin dress and a pink and lilac coat and posed with Harris again for a photo posted on Instagram. “What an honor to be invited to the White House by our @potus and @drbiden yesterday to witness the signing of the Respect for Marriage Act,” Pierce wrote on Instagram. “The weather was chill but the emotions were warm and fuzzy … and as a drag queen whose community is specifically targeted right now, this type of inclusion meant A LOT. Thank you @vp Harris, President Biden, @speakerpelosi and those involved for always being such a fierce advocate for the LGBTQ+ community.” Harris’s first run-in with Pierce occurred in West Hollywood in 2019 while she was campaigning for president and trying to drum up support from LGBTQ voters. During an appearance at a gay night spot called “the Abbey,” Pierce showed Harris how to snap a fan. Pierce endorsed her for president in an interview with the the Los Angeles Blade. “I’m always staying abreast of what’s going on. I want myself and all of my followers – I want the millennials – I want everyone to be informed,” Shangela told the Blade. “And as I continue to learn more about the senator – I’m an advocate for her. I think she’s intelligent. I think she has a voice that’s not backing down and I think she’s been a longtime advocate for our community – an ally. So for that – she definitely has support from me, for sure.” Elon Musk registered his disgust for Pierce in a post on X: “The woke hide their evil in a moral cloak,” he wrote in response to Libs of TikTok’s post about the story. Read more at: AMGreatness.com
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