Editing RuPaul (section)

==Early life==

RuPaul was born in [[San Diego]] on November 17, 1960, the son of Ernestine "Toni" (née Fontenette) and Irving Andrew Charles. His parents were both from [[Louisiana]].<ref name="glbtq">{{cite encyclopedia | title = RuPaul (RuPaul Andre Charles) | encyclopedia = GLBTQ: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture | publisher = GLBTQ, Inc. | date = August 16, 2005| first=Tina |last=Gianoulis | url = http://www.glbtqarchive.com/arts/rupaul_A.pdf | access-date = March 24, 2009|archive-date=January 12, 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170112134716/http://glbtqarchive.com/arts/rupaul_A.pdf | url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="fdr1">{{Cite web |last=Reynolds |first=Daniel |date=October 9, 2020 |title=Watch RuPaul Learn His Ancestors Were Also Marriage Pioneers |url=https://www.advocate.com/television/2020/10/09/watch-rupaul-learn-his-ancestors-were-also-marriage-pioneers |access-date=October 14, 2020 |website=[[The Advocate (magazine)|The Advocate]] |language=en |archive-date=October 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011135651/https://www.advocate.com/television/2020/10/09/watch-rupaul-learn-his-ancestors-were-also-marriage-pioneers |url-status=live }}</ref> He was named by his mother; "Ru" came from ''[[roux]]'', the French term for the base of [[gumbo]] and other [[Creole peoples|creole]] stews and soups.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hunt |first=Bonnie |author-link=Bonnie Hunt |date=February 22, 2010 |title=The Bonnie Hunt Show: Interview with RuPaul, Part 2 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M1ysX6QqOk |access-date=February 3, 2024 |publisher=[[The Bonnie Hunt Show]] |at=0:49–1:05 |via=YouTube |archive-date=February 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240203232328/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M1ysX6QqOk |url-status=live }}</ref> According to DNA analysis by ''[[Finding Your Roots]]'' staff, his ancestry is 70% African and 30% European.<ref name=fdr1/><ref>{{Cite web|last=Robinson|first=Jennifer|title=Finding Your Roots: Slave Trade|url=https://www.kpbs.org/news/2020/feb/10/finding-your-roots-slave-trade/|access-date=October 14, 2020|website=KPBS Public Media|date=February 10, 2020|language=en|archive-date=October 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017183519/https://www.kpbs.org/news/2020/feb/10/finding-your-roots-slave-trade/|url-status=live}}</ref>

After his parents divorced in 1967, RuPaul and his three sisters lived with their mother, a [[Seventh-day Adventist]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Charles |first=RuPaul Andre |url=https://archive.org/details/lettinitallhango00rupa/page/31/mode/2up |title=Lettin it all hang out |publisher=[[Disney Publishing Worldwide#Incorporated|Hyperion]] |year=1995 |isbn=9780786861569 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=31}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spin.com/2013/04/rupaul-runs-the-world-drag-race-supermodel/|title=RuPaul Runs The World |work=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |date=April 1, 2013|first=Julianne Escobedo|last= Shepherd|access-date= March 10, 2017| archive-date=February 14, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170214023747/http://www.spin.com/2013/04/rupaul-runs-the-world-drag-race-supermodel/ |url-status=live}}</ref> He was raised in the [[Catholic]] faith and attended [[Patrick Henry High School (California)|Patrick Henry High School]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Cohen |first=Andy |title=Andy Cohen with RuPaul at Live Talks Los Angeles |date=December 9, 2016 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra_p-QQrvOw |access-date=February 3, 2024 |publisher=LiveTalksLA |language=en |author-link=Andy Cohen |via=YouTube |archive-date=May 5, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200505094453/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra_p-QQrvOw&gl=US&hl=en |url-status=live }}</ref> At 15, RuPaul and his sister Renetta moved to Atlanta, where they studied performing arts.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Aguirre |first=Abby |date=April 15, 2019 |others=Photography by Annie Leibovitz |title=How the World Fell Head Over Heels for RuPaul |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/rupaul-interview-may-2019-issue |work=[[Vogue (magazine)|Vogue]] |access-date=February 16, 2023 |archive-date=February 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230216190703/https://www.vogue.com/article/rupaul-interview-may-2019-issue |url-status=live }}</ref>