RuPaul’s Drag Race star claims she was banned from wearing ‘period pad’ dress

Manila Luzon is currently appearing on the fourth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars

A Drag Race contestant claims she was banned from wearing a gown that resembled a giant menstrual pad on the show.

Drag artist, Manila Luzon, is currently appearing on the fourth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, a show which has become synonymous with pushing boundaries, overcoming stereotypes and, of course, killer lewks.

In the episode that aired on 4 January, Luzon wore a Chanel-inspired pink outfit for the ‘Curves and Swerves’ runway challenge.

However, the reality star has revealed that this was not the dress she originally planned to wear.

Taking to Instagram, Luzon revealed another outfit she had chosen to fit the theme, which was banned after head judge RuPaul deemed it to be in “bad taste”.

The look, which was created by designer Dallas Coulter, consisted of a corset made of a giant sanitary pad stained with fake blood and a large red skirt.

Luzon said she hoped the dress would help to “normalise menstruation”.

“I was really looking forward to wearing this gown that I think celebrates a perfectly normal human experience!” she wrote on Instagram.

“Many of my fans are young women who may feel pressured by society to be embarrassed by periods.

“It’s empowering to teach young women about their bodies, encourage them to celebrate them and to question people who tell them not to.

Luzon continued: “My goal with this look was to normalise menstruation by looking sick’ning even if I was on my period!

“Instead, I decided to wear the beautiful quilted dress you saw in the episode because it is not my show, it’s Ru’s.

“But because of Ru, I have my very own platform to speak for myself and show you all my interpretation!”

The post has since stirred up some major criticism for the show with many sharing their disappointment on social media.

“Look at this, a show that should be about inclusivity yet again proves patriarchal. I would SO LOVE to see this on the runway,” one person wrote.

Another added: “Wow. @RuPaul wouldn’t even let @manilaluzon wear a menstruation dress.

"You’re doing nothing for the stereotype that cis gay men hate vaginas, boo. Sincerely, A man who menstruates.”

Others took the opportunity to thank Luzon for trying to normalise menstruation.

“Period drama! As an endometriosis sufferer thank you for trying to normalise periods,” one person commented.

“Women need to be able to discuss periods without feeling embarrassed.”

RuPaul or the Drag Race production team are yet to respond to Manila Luzon claim.

This isn’t the first time RuPaul has faced criticism for his decisions on the show.

Last year, the Drag Race host was accused of transphobia after claiming that trans women who have “transitioned” couldn’t compete in the show.

When asked if a trans woman who was actively transitioning should be allowed to compete on the show, RuPaul said, “Probably not. You can identify as a woman and say you're transitioning, but it changes once you start changing your body.”

“It takes on a different thing; it changes the whole concept of what we're doing,” RuPaul added.

The 57-year-old LGBTQ advocate later apologised on social media for his comments.