Josh Miller Fuses Drag With Political Activism as Laura Menorah

Fifth-generation Denver native Josh Miller, who performs in drag as Laura Menorah, discovered his passion for political activism after moving to Greenwood Village as a preteen. "I grew up in Denver until I was about eleven, then my parents moved out to Greenwood Village, which, unbeknownst to me at the time, was very Republican and very Christian conservative," he recalls.

President George W. Bush, who was publicly against LGBTQ+ rights, was elected within the first few years that Miller lived in the southern suburb. "By that time, I knew that I was gay, but I was definitely not out of the closet. You walk in front of your house, and all your neighbors have Bush/Cheney signs, and you're like, 'They agree with this!'" Miller continues. "Between that and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan at the time, it woke me up at an early age to be interested in politics, and to be interested in building a great community for everyone to live in that incorporates everyone from every background, religion, race, gender and sexual orientation."

Now 35, Miller has been pursuing that mission ever since, with a lifetime of political activism both in and out of drag. "My passion for politics and my passion for entertaining fused together is a high unlike no other I receive in life," he emphasizes.

Miller left Colorado after high school to attend the University of Vermont, and found his views reflected in the ideology of Vermont's newly elected senator, Bernie Sanders. "Bernie Sanders had just been elected from the House to the Senate, and I was like, 'Who is this old Jewish liberal man spouting off everything that I love? And people are voting for him? And there's gays walking around in Tevas?' So I became even more politically involved," Miller explains.

During his summer breaks, he interned for Senator Ken Salazar and Representative John Salazar, and after graduating, he interned for Sanders himself, as well as former House speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representative Gabby Giffords. "I always say that money can't buy the mentors I've had, because I've had some pretty amazing mentors," Miller says. "And they've all turned into my personal friends and colleagues."
When he moved back to Colorado, Miller worked on Mayor Michael Hancock's campaign and with state Senator Joyce Foster before spending two and a half years as Representative Diana DeGette's political director.

"That really brought into perspective for me how women are treated in politics," Miller reflects. "It was amazing to me that Diana would pass a bill regarding FDA regulations to allow more medicine to get to the market, and people would still comment on her outfits. That also got me involved in the pro-choice movement. I really believe in the domino theory — that if those [rights] fall, gay rights are next, followed by civil rights. Some people really do want us going back to two bathrooms, two water fountains, separate rooms in public spaces — and I don't think that's being hyperbolic at all."

And DeGette values Miller in turn, saying, "Josh is not only great at what he does, he's a great person to be around. His work on behalf of the LGBTQ community has been truly remarkable, as have his tireless efforts to help those in need throughout the Denver area."

Laura Menorah was born from Miller's political activism six years ago, when he was tasked with raising money for Planned Parenthood. "When I was on the board of Planned Parenthood a few years back, I realized that I had to raise a lot of money, and I had to do it quickly. If you've been to a drag show, you know the dollar bills are flying. So I contacted Erik Arredondo at Tracks and asked, 'Can we do, like, a girl power-themed Drag Nation?'" Miller remembers.

Arredondo, the club's event manager at the time, agreed, and Miller went on stage in drag as Laura Menorah for the first time, with a face painted by Denver drag artist Jessica L'Whor. "I did the first thing a typical guy does in a dress: I moved my shoulders forward, and the whole zipper just snapped," he remembers with a laugh.

But with time, Miller developed Laura's character, drawing inspiration from old-school drag, classic pop-culture divas and his grandmother's bridge group. "[Laura is] a shticky, Jewish divorcée drag queen, which is a nod to the old-time drag queens. If Don Rickles, Mel Brooks and Joan Rivers had a child, it would be Laura Menorah," says Miller.
People warned him that if he wanted to continue being a drag queen, he would have to abandon his political ambitions. But he defied all expectations.

"So many people told me, 'Oh, my God, you do drag? Your political career is going to be over.' Since doing drag, I've received promotion after promotion. I ran Mayor Bloomberg's presidential campaign, and no politician has ever closed their door to me," he says. "In fact, my crowning achievement was being the emcee of the Obama dinner last year, and being the first drag queen to ever emcee a major political party event.

"Did I compare my tuck to Joe Manchin? Yes, I did."

Miller realized that hosting fundraisers as Laura was a surefire way to draw a crowd, and spent last summer organizing events for state Representative Meg Froelich, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser and Senator Michael Bennet. "I worked with Senator Bennet a lot. He had a very large LGBTQ+ fundraiser that we did together back in August or September, and he was really fantastic," Miller says.

And Bennet is also a fan of Miller's. "From fighting for reproductive rights and equality to rallying our community in times of tragedy, Laura Menorah uses her stage to advocate for a more fair and just world," the senator says. "I'm grateful for her efforts as we stand against hate and work together to realize the promise of equality in America."

Last December, Miller was even invited to the White House to witness President Joe Biden signing the Respect for Marriage Act. "That really was full circle, from being in eighth grade and seeing the president condemn our sexual orientation to having the gayest time ever on the White House lawn with Sam Smith and Cyndi Lauper," Miller says. "I realized that drag is this huge vehicle for activism."

For the past year, Miller's main avenue for drag has been Saturday Serve, a monthly drag brunch at The OG in the Rally Hotel.
"I really want to praise the Rally Hotel as an institution that...is exactly what we want in the community in terms of ally-ship. We have donated to different LGBTQ-related causes through our brunch; they let me choose the queerest of casts and let me empower everyone from drag kings to drag queens and everyone in between," says Miller. "From the moment you walk in, we preach inclusivity. We want to give you a good time, we want to make you laugh, and we want to help you escape any issues or problems you're having."

Ten out of twelve brunches so far have completely sold out, and have also been attended by politicians including Froelich and Bennet, according to Miller. "Senator Bennet came to our Club Q fundraiser at Saturday Serve, and I don't see many U.S. senators attending drag brunch fundraisers around the country," he notes. "I love that I've created a space where these politicians can come and campaign, and I can introduce them as really good people and use that to get the message out."

Going forward, Miller will continue to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, both in his current day job handling community and municipal affairs for Verizon, and as drag queen activist Laura Menorah. On Saturday, March 4, he'll celebrate the first anniversary of the wildly successful Saturday Serve with guest performers Zarah Misdemeanor, Chanel Banks, Samora Kash and DJ Kaptain. Then it's back to hitting the pavement.

"My plan for the future here is to keep marching, keep raising money for candidates and keep bringing awareness to the issues in our community," Miller concludes. "If it takes a neon-pink wig and some fierce jewels to do it, I'm going to do it."

Saturday Serve First Anniversary Show, 12:30 to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 4, at The OG in the Rally Hotel, 1600 20th Street. Reservations can be made on OpenTable, or bar seating is first come, first served.