CHENEY – A singer’s gender identity as non-binary and an upcoming performance at next month’s Sedgwick County Fair became an online controversy over the weekend.

The Fair made social media posts at the end of the week promoting all of the upcoming concerts planned for the Fair, which is set to take place July 12-15 at the Sedgwick County Fairgrounds in Cheney. One of those performers, Hunter Gromala, identifies as non-binary.

It did not take long for comments against the performance to appear on social media. Quickly, comments in support of Gromala also were posted.

Many commenters said scheduling a non-binary performer is not compatible with their social and religious beliefs, and that it is not a fit with the Fair itself. A number said they would be skipping this year’s Fair, or possibly never attending again.

Other commenters stated their support for Gromala and the performance. They said people from all walks of life should feel welcome, as performers and as attendees. If a particular event is not for them, they said, people should just skip that event.

Many of the comments were considered hateful, Fair association vice president Marti Johnson said, and the Sedgwick County Fair Association made the decision over the weekend to cancel the online events – but not Gromala’s actual performance or any of the other shows.

Johnson said they were not able to simply turn off the comments on Facebook, so they canceled the Facebook events to pull the posts out of circulation.

“The social media exchanges were getting pretty nasty on both sides,” she said.

A meeting had been scheduled for Tuesday night, but was canceled because the Fair Association’s attorney was not available. A new date had not been set as of press time Tuesday.

Gromala was scheduled in an attempt to draw a younger crowd to the Fair, Johnson said. Gromala has 15,000 followers on Instagram and 50,000 more on TikTok.

Johnson said that Wednesday night, the opening night of the Fair, is usually a slow night on the fairgrounds despite the many people who attend the parade that evening.

“It’s an hour and a half out of the entire Fair,” Johnson said. “Come on Thursday, come on Friday, come on Saturday. They won’t be there.

“Nothing good comes from bigotry and lies, ever. And this started with bigotry and lies.”

A number of commenters thought that the Fair was bringing in a transgender performer to do a drag show, which organizers said is not accurate.

While Gromala said they identify as non-binary, they are not a trans individual.

Their identity is not part of their show, they said. The entire situation took Gromala by surprise. This is the first time they have had a show protested.

“I’m mainly shocked and confused. I thought maybe 10 people would show. I’d sing my songs and move on,” they said. “When they announced the show, I didn’t have any pronouns listed. They had had to dig for information. They went and hurt their own feelings.”

Gromala said they have not had any issues with prior performances, including at this spring’s Clearwater Art Walk where they sang and showcased artwork.

Rumors were swirling that some events and vendors might pull out of the Fair, although TSnews could not verify that.

Gromala grew up in the church and has been singing since before they were 10 years old. They led worship bands and sang for about 15 years.

They were taken back at first by the backlash, but then surprised by the amount of support that also has been shown. Their act is filled with songs they sang as a child.

“I sing ‘Hannah Montana’ on stage. I wear pink little outfits on stage. I’m harmless,” they said.

An email sent to Fair Association members – and to the news email at TSnews – urged the board members to reconsider Gromala’s performance.

“Not only is the question of being non-binary anti- scientific, but this kind of garbage is being shoved down our throats in the schools, in the libraries, and now even at our 4-H county fair,” the sender wrote. “I can tell you that when the news was shared with our 4-H club, parents of children were very upset with the board’s decision to allow such a decision to be made.”

The writer continued: “The county has quickly forgotten that the 4-H community was built off of God-fearing conservative families and agricultural communities who want to pass on traditional values through the generations. Parents are fed up with their voice not being heard! This kind of indoctrination should never be happening near children.”

It should be noted that the Sedgwick County Fair Association is an independent organization, and is not part of Sedgwick County government.

Gromala said they have booked at least three shows because of the controversy, and that the attention – good and bad – seems to have boosted their profile.

“I found groups and communities that I didn’t know existed,” they said.

Many people have asked if they’re doing OK.

“I’ve been able to sit back and watch the positivity. It has been overwhelming. It’s drowned out the negativity,” Gromala said.

Gromala is not worried about their safety. They have not been personally threatened. Johnson said the Fair had not received any threats against Gromala’s safety.

Gromala said on Tuesday morning that they will perform if the Fair leaves them on the schedule.

“I didn’t know the Sedgwick County Fair was inclusive. I think it’s more important that I do take that stage,” they said. “I’m not going to be hidden.”

Johnson was surprised that the issue became so big so quickly.

“Never in a hundred years did I think we’d be in a fair board meeting discussing a singer’s sexuality,” she said.

While Gromala hopes to be able to perform at the Fair, they will have a positive attitude no matter what.

“Regardless of the decision, I’m going to be OK.”