Children’s hospice cleared of ‘hate crime’ complaints over drag fun run
A children’s hospice has expressed relief, after police cleared a charity drag fun run reported as a ‘hate crime’ by trans activists.
Earlier this month, Derian House Children’s Hospice in Lancashire announced plans for a ‘Dames on the Run’ race – where men run dressed as Pantomime dames to raise funds for charity.
However, after complaints from trans activists, police confirmed to PinkNews that the event had been reported to them as a potential hate crime.
Trans activist Steph Holmes – who publicly slammed the charity event but later insisted she did not contact the police – had claimed that “the race pokes fun at cross-dressing and, by association, us, reducing us to objects to be laughed at.”
Police have since confirmed they will not be taking any action over the complaint – and the event is set to go ahead.
A statement from the hospice said: “Derian House were shocked to learn that our new flagship ‘Dames on the Run’ event had been reported as a potential hate crime. We are delighted that Lancashire Police have confirmed they are not treating it as such, and are therefore not investigating further.
“We would like to say thank you for the overwhelming messages of support we have received since we launched the event, which draws on the much-loved Pantomime Dame character.
“Dames on the Run is a celebration of the amazing and selfless work done by all the Derian Dads, who do so much to hold their family together in the face of their child’s devastating illness.
“As a children’s hospice we receive only 7% of our £3.5m target from the government, making the success of fundraising events such as this absolutely vital.
“We look forward with great anticipation to the 5k race on Sunday 11th October in Astley Park, and invite men from all walks of life to enter and run dressed as their favourite Pantomime Dame!
“You can find more information and enter online at www.derianhouse.co.uk/dames or by calling our Fundraising Team on 01257 271 271.”
Steph Holmes has accused media outlets including PinkNews of ‘factual inaccuracies’ surrounding the story – though Lancashire Police repeatedly confirmed “an incident was reported to us as a hate crime”.
