Harvard University has hired a drag performer known as “LaWhore Vagistan” as a visiting associate professor in gender and sexuality studies for the 2025–2026 academic year. The individual behind the persona is Tufts University Professor Kareem Khubchandani, who teaches performance studies and queer studies. The appointment has sparked concern from conservative observers questioning the direction of American higher education.
Khubchandani will teach two courses at Harvard: one on “queer ethnography” and another titled RuPaulitics: Drag, Race, and Desire. Harvard’s official announcement praised Khubchandani for blending scholarship and performance, highlighting his work as an “interdisciplinary artist-scholar” and performer. According to Harvard, the course offerings are part of the university’s continued focus on gender and identity politics within the curriculum.
LaWhore Vagistan, Khubchandani’s stage name, is known for performances that include provocative titles and themes. His website promotes drag as “a form of public intellectualism.” Critics argue that such language and branding are inappropriate for a university setting and reflect the growing presence of political activism within academia.
Harvard’s press release stated that Khubchandani “brings together performance studies, ethnography, queer nightlife, South Asian cultural production, and postcolonial studies.” His most recent book, Lessons in Drag: A Queer Manual for Academics, Artists, and Aunties, is expected to be released in October 2025.
Concerns are rising among Christian and conservative communities about Harvard’s direction. The hiring of a professor under a name as explicitly sexual as “LaWhore Vagistan” raises questions about the erosion of academic standards and the normalization of content that would previously have been considered obscene or vulgar.
