LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel found himself at the center of a social media storm after he invited a drag queen to read excerpts from Ted Cruz's new book, 'Unwoke: How to Defeat Cultural Marxism in America,' to a group of children.
The segment 'Drag Queen Storytime' on Kimmel's late-night show was intended to add a touch of humor to Cruz's conservative views, but it sparked a wave of online criticism and debate.
Jimmy Kimmel's unique approach to Ted Cruz's 'Unwoke'
To celebrate the release of his fourth book, Cruz's 'Unwoke' delves into his perspective on cultural Marxism and "woke" culture in America.
Kimmel decided to take a lighthearted jab at Cruz's anti-"woke" stance by having a drag queen, Trixie Mattel, read sections from the book to a group of children.
Mattel, known for her appearances on 'RuPaul's Drag Race' and her victory on 'RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars,' delivered the reading with her trademark flair.
“Ted’s been out trying to sell the book,” Kimmel explained.
“His last book, he had to get his own campaign to buy thousands of copies to get it up the list, which is sad. So we decided that, this time, we’d help him out with an assist from one of the stars of RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
However, what was meant to be a humorous take on Cruz's views turned into a divisive conversation.
As the drag queen read from the book, the children, who were initially unsure how to react to the unconventional situation, began expressing their candid opinions about Cruz's words.
One child boldly declared, "The book is boring," while others disagreed with Cruz's take on the 'The Little Mermaid' remake, believing both the original and the new version could be good.
“Instead of admitting that Disney had managed to ruin a classic, defenders of the subpar remake—including its star—accused the public of racism,” penned Cruz, as read by Mattel.
“But the original Little Mermaid was good and the other Little Mermaid was good—the new one,” chimed a little boy.
As Mattel proposed skipping a few pages, the same child suggested they should just "skip the book" altogether, which seemed to be his official review.
Mattel didn't want the kids to miss the part of Cruz's book where he attempted to explain his controversial trip to Cancun while his constituents were suffering from freezing weather conditions.
Yet, the kids remained unimpressed.
In the end, Mattel gave the children their very own copies of 'Unwoke' and encouraged them to do as they pleased with the books.
The children's response? They promptly tossed the books into the trash.
Netizens react to Jimmy Kimmel's 'Drag Queen Storytime'
A user tweeted, "Talking about “tanning nipples” in front of little kids is beyond weird. Hearing the crowd cheer after was even more disturbing." Another added, "@ABC. Why is this guy employed? Truly offensive."
While a user tweeted, "Jimmy used to be kinda funny - kinda..." another said, "Didn’t you do “the man’s show “ hypocritical if you to attack others."
"Why would you do that to children? They clearly look confused. Very odd Jimmy!! Are you ok??????," questioned a user.
"Not funny. Never has been funny. Never will be funny. @JimmyKimmelLive," stated a user.
