TOM “CRYSTAL” RASMUSSEN & AMROU/ GLAMROU

Sisters doing it for themselves, Amrou ( aka Glamrou), 28, and Tom “Crystal” Rasmussen, 27, discovered drag and came out as non- binary together

Why do you think you’re a perfect pairing for the front cover?

T: We stand for a different kind of drag. One which isn’t concerned foremost with looks, but instead with speaking up and politics. We’re also a snapshot of what queer friendship can mean: we aren’t lovers, but we love each other. Like sisters, best friends, mothers.

A: I did this video [ once] looking at Islam, and got a lot of death threats. We are living in divisive times and I am aware that I’m sitting in the intersection of a lot voices against me. It’s nice to have Tom, my best friend, to be laughing and crying about it with. What advice would you give to your younger self?

A: The earliest memory I have is being seven years old in Islam class. We were talking about what’s a sin and, internally, in my head I was thinking, “I’m a sinner.”

So, I’d say: “Stop punishing yourself.”

C: My friend, drag king Chiyo Gomes, once said to me, “It doesn’t get better, it just gets different.” I would tell myself that. What does Pride mean to you? A: Surviving. That’s what I find amazing about drag and the different forms of queer expression. It’s in the face of trauma that queer people can respond with such joy and optimism.

C: Pride the day doesn’t mean the world to me. We all know the critiques of its commercialism and whitewashing, and I agree with most, if not all, of that. What pride ( with a small “p”) means to me is finding a place where you are allowed to be unabashedly yourself and to not be policed for it.