{"id":172317,"date":"2026-03-23T16:55:35","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:55:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/172317\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T16:55:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:55:35","slug":"drag-queens-rally-around-7-year-old-advocate-post-surgery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/172317\/","title":{"rendered":"Drag queens rally around 7-year-old advocate post-surgery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Republicans<\/a> have spent years now attacking drag queens<\/a>, labeling them as predators, and trying to put an end to drag queen story hours<\/a>, but for one 7-year-old girl, it\u2019s drag queens who stepped in and lifted her spirits while she was going through a life-threatening medical crisis.<\/p>\n

Drag queens Miss Bouv\u00e8\u00e9<\/a> (Eric Swanson) and Dixie Longate<\/a> (Kris Andersson) came to Anwyn Watts\u2019s hospital room earlier this month for a sing-along and celebration that meant everything to a little girl who has had four major surgeries since she was first rushed to the emergency room last December.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnwyn still tells everyone she had her very own drag show in her hospital room,\u201d her mother Stephanie Watts said.<\/p>\n

When Anwyn woke up in the middle of the night feeling sick, Stephanie Watts didn\u2019t think much of it until her daughter\u2019s personality seemed to shift and one side of her body went limp.<\/p>\n

After being taken to the hospital in an ambulance, doctors found a large golf-ball-sized mass in Anwyn\u2019s brain that was causing her to have strokes. She had to have surgery to remove the mass and another to relieve pressure in her brain. Ultimately, she was diagnosed with an arteriovenous malformation \u2014 a tangle of blood vessels Anwyn was born with, though her family was unaware because she had never had prior symptoms \u2014 and placed in a medically induced coma with a ventilator to breathe for her.<\/p>\n

\"\\u200bAnwyn<\/p>\n

Anwyn Watts in the ICU<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Stephanie Watts<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just her brain, she had tubes coming out of every part of her body,\u201d Stephanie Watts said. \u201cThere were lines in both of her arms, both legs, and ankles. No one wants to see their loved one sick, and then to see your child hooked up to machines that are keeping her alive. It was unbelievable.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Anwyn finally woke up, she couldn\u2019t walk or speak, but was finally able to sing when Miss Dixie and Miss Bouv\u00e8\u00e9 visited her, after months of treatments and therapy. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a sing-a-long, and we had a lot of fun,\u201d Stephanie Watts said. \u201cAnwyn said we were just jamming out, she had a lot of fun with them. She keeps talking about them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anwyn has loved drag queens since she attended her first Naples Pridefest with her family when she was just 3 years old. But she\u2019s not just a fan, she\u2019s already a fierce ally at her young age. Stephanie Watts describes their family as \u201cvery prideful\u201d and explained that her son, 28, is part of the LGBTQ+ community, and Anywyn takes her role as a supporter of the queer community very seriously. <\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter understands that love is love and it doesn\u2019t matter who you love,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"Miss<\/p>\n

Miss Bouv\u00e8\u00e9 and Dixie Longate with Anwyn Watts.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Stephanie Watts.<\/p>\n

When Naples, Florida, where the family is from, tried enforcing discriminatory restrictions on drag performances at the city\u2019s Pride celebration because the city council didn\u2019t want drag queens to \u201cbe visible to children because they believe it\u2019s harmful to our youth,\u201d Stephanie Watts said, Anwyn participated in protests and rallies, and even went to the courthouse to voice her opinion. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen she\u2019s asked how do you feel about drag queens, her answer is \u2018I like to dress up as a princess, but they like to dress up as queens,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cShe will literally shrug her shoulders, like \u2018What\u2019s the difference?\u2019 At the end of the day, you wash your makeup off, and you are who you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stephanie Watts said that her daughter \u201cwants to be free to be me\u201d when she grows up and hates that the drag queens she looks up to are under attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s angry, this kid has a voice when it comes to this administration,\u201d she said. \u201cIf she could vote, let me tell you! She\u2019s angry about a lot of what is happening in the world right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\\u200bAnwyn<\/p>\n

Anwyn Watts.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Stephanie Watts<\/p>\n

Anwyn\u2019s love of drag queens and willingness to protest to support them hasn\u2019t gone unnoticed. Not only did Miss Dixie<\/a> and Miss Bouv\u00e8\u00e9 <\/a>visit her at her bedside, but she was crowned the first \u201cNaples Princess of Pride,\u201d a title that will be bestowed upon her in person at PrideFest in April. <\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s so excited,\u201d Stephanie Watts said. “We\u2019re trying to find the perfect dress for her right now. She\u2019s very proud, so she tells everybody that she actually is a princess now because Naples Pride says so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laura Benanti, a friend of Anwyn\u2019s music therapist, also made an Instagram video<\/a> asking other drag queens to make video clips with encouraging messages for Anwyn, and Drag Race icon Nina West was one of the first queens to say she would help out.<\/p>\n

\"\\u200bAnwyn<\/p>\n

Anwyn Watts.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Stephanie Watts<\/p>\n

After three long months, Anwyn is finally home from the hospital, but she uses a wheelchair now and will need more surgeries and radiation treatments.<\/p>\n

Her family has set up a GoFundMe<\/a> to help pay for her medical bills, medical equipment, travel expenses to get to appointments and future surgeries, and to provide other financial support since her parents had to take the last three months off work.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so thankful for this,\u201d Stephanie Watts said. \u201cThings just keep adding up. Nothing is getting cheaper these days.\u201d<\/p>\n