Lawmakers in the United States are taking on drag queens.
A growing number of states are set to enact strict new laws banning drag queens' shows from where kids might see them.
The crackdown isn't the only struggle facing America's queer community right now.
Inside a Tennessee conference centre, is its Governor Bill Lee. A man the United State's LGBTQ + community believes is public enemy number one.
Lee is among a growing list of governors waging war on America's drag queens.
On Friday (local time) the state of Tennessee passed a controversial new law targeting adult cabaret entertainment.
It means drag shows cannot occur in a location where they might be viewed by a minor.
A similar law is being tabled in Kentucky.
"This bill not only tells me that I'm not really human, worthy of rights but I am also not worthy to work," a drag queen said at a local government building.
The laws prohibiting public performances are the latest in a long-list of legislation targeting gay communities in America.
In 2015, a Supreme Court ruling meant same-sex marriage would be legalised in the United States of America.
But now, in 2023, LGBTQ+ communities are still struggling for equality.
In Iowa, hundreds of students staged a school walkout this week, protesting proposed laws there.
One of which would require teachers to 'out' transgender students to their parents.
"I'm out here today because I have so many friends who would be impacted by all this legislation
Frankly, I'm just really pissed off with how our legislators are acting," a student said.
Mississippi has taken action too, by banning gender reassignment for anyone under 18.
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves claimed children are "cutting themselves up, with experimental procedures".
"No child in Mississippi will have these drugs or surgeries," he said
But Governors like Reeves are set to face more protests in the coming days and weeks.
Because right now, the land of the "free" is proving far from it, for many.
