Between Spotlight and Reality – On the International Day for Tolerance
My name is Christopher, I’m 29, and I’ve recently reinvented my professional path. After years devoted to dance and the stage, I decided to follow my wish to move into the world of PR.
Press Factory showed great openness and trust by giving me the opportunity to apply my communication and creative skills in a completely new environment.
And it’s exactly this kind of openness and tolerance towards the unfamiliar that I want to talk about in the following lines.
The stage has never really let go of me. As a drag queen, I’ve found a new way to live out my passion for expression and performance – only now, the spotlight has also revealed new shadows. Because as much as drag is about freedom, courage, and individuality, it also makes one thing very clear: tolerance often ends where it is being challenged. So, on this International Day for Tolerance, I’d like to share a few thoughts about shine and shadow, and about how much openness we are truly willing to live with.
Berlin is often seen as a city of diversity – a place where people of different backgrounds, orientations, and identities can live freely.
I love that idea. Yet between this ideal and everyday reality, I often sense a gap which becomes most visible when I step into a role that challenges conventional expectations. I often find myself on stage in high heels, a wig, and full makeup – presenting art that thrives on exaggeration and freedom. Most of the time, it feels amazing: to perform, to sparkle, to celebrate myself and to feel the tolerance that fills the room in those moments. When the audience cheers, sings along, and simply shows up as they are, it feels like a glimpse of genuine openness. Like a sense of togetherness that carries you. But sometimes, when the lights go out and I make my way home, that sense of openness suddenly fades. On the street, some looks speak louder than words. And sadly, it doesn’t always stop at words.
Many drag queens I know tell me they no longer use public transport because they don’t feel safe. I’ve reached that point myself. These days, I usually take a taxi when I’m in drag. But even that isn’t a guarantee for safety or respect. Sometimes, drivers just pass by and when they do stop, the ride can still be quite uncomfortable. Even within the drag community, which often presents itself as supportive and loving, things aren’t always as glittering as they appear. Where many hope for the same stages, competition and sometimes envy can grow. I’ve experienced that myself. Talking about tolerance and solidarity on stage often seems easier than truly living it.
The International Day for Tolerance reminds me that this word means far more than a polite nod toward diversity. It means allowing differences and recognizing every person’s right to a safe, self-determined life – regardless of whether we understand or share their way of living. Tolerance doesn’t ask for enthusiasm, only for respect.
Live and let live – so simple, and yet, apparently, so hard.
Tolerance is not decoration, not a PR buzzword, and not a fashionable statement. It’s an attitude that has to prove itself in everyday life. And at the end of the night, when the makeup washes down the sink, one thing remains: my wish that one day, tolerance won’t have to be demanded anymore – because it will have become a lived reality.
