A mother has encouraged parents to allow their children to express themselves after her son made his drag debut at nine years old - with his alter-ego DunkaShay Monroe.

Vincent Garcia, from Los Angeles, California, has been experimenting with his mother Elizabeth Leyva's make-up and walking around their house in her stilettos since he was two.

He made his drag debut at Los Angeles Pride in June after becoming inspired to follow in the footsteps of his favourite stars from RuPaul's Drag Race - a reality show in which queens compete to become America's next drag superstar.

Elizabeth, 33, now hopes to encourage other parents to allow their children to express themselves, and to grow up without gender stereotypes forced upon them.

Nine-year-old Vincent Garcia, from Los Angeles, California, made his drag debut at LA Pride, with his alter-ego DunkaShay Monroe (Pictured)

She said: 'My message to other parents is not to be afraid of letting your children show you who they are.

'People dismiss children a lot and tell them they don't know what they want and are too young to understand – but they have their own minds, just like everyone else.

'The worst thing you can do is shut them down and be small-minded. At the end of the day, you should love and support your children 100 per cent, regardless of whether they want to be a doctor, a cop or a drag queen.'

Elizabeth, who also shares sons Xzavier, seven, and Abraham, five, with her partner Nick, 34, said she would never want Vincent to 'hide who he is'.

Vincent (pictured) became inspired to follow in the footsteps of his favourite stars from RuPaul's Drag Race - in which queens compete to become America's next drag superstar

His mother Elizabeth Leyva now hopes to encourage other parents to allow their children to express themselves (Pictured: Vincent and Elizabeth at RuPaul's DragCon LA 2019)

'From having three sons, I know 100 per cent that Vincent is sure of who he is,' she said.

'We have never pressured him or pushed anything on him. Everything he does, he comes up with himself.

'We'd never want him to hide who he is and are so proud of what an amazingly strong child he is.'

When Vincent expressed an interest in fashion and make-up at the age of two, Elizabeth was happy for him to experiment with her clothes and cosmetics.

When Vincent expressed an interest in fashion and make-up at the age of two, Elizabeth was happy for him to experiment with her clothes and cosmetics (Pictured wearing rainbow makeup at Long Beach Pride)

She said: 'He's always been into fashion. He, to this day, carries around a little notebook with him where he'll draw doodles of things he likes.

'The first proper thing he drew was a pair of heels. Then he started drawing dresses too and asking for Barbie dolls as presents, so he could style their outfits.

'We wanted him to freely express himself and, as he was so young, didn't want to say anything was strictly for girls or boys.

'Whether he asked for cars and action figures or dolls and make-up, we'd get them for him to help him explore and work out who he was.'

As the years passed, Vincent remained passionate about fashion, often customising his dolls' clothes to make them more individual – a love that was amplified by seeing RuPaul's drag race on television when he was seven.

Elizabeth said Vincent's love for fashion was amplified when he first saw RuPaul's Drag Race (Pictured: Vincent at RuPaul's DragCon LA 2019)

Then, a year later, he told Elizabeth some big news.

She recalled: 'He came in one day and said, "Mummy, I have something to tell you but I don't know if you'll be upset."

'I reassured him that he could tell me absolutely anything. I wanted to know he was comfortable talking to me.

'He then told me that he thought he might be gay. We have always been very open with our children and answered questions that they may have about the world, so Vincent knew about the LGBT community and what it means to be a part of it.

The youngster then told his mother and father Nick (pictured at Long Beach Pride) that he 'thought he might be gay'

Once out, Vincent then told his mother that he wanted to become a drag queen, like the performers he had seen on RuPaul's Drag Race

'As a mum, you know your children better than anyone, so I wasn't overly surprised that he was questioning if he was gay.

'That said, I wanted to leave it to him to tell me when he was ready, so I had never taken it upon myself to ask him or pressure him to come out.

'I told him I loved him unconditionally and would support him no matter what.'

Once out, Vincent then told his mother that he wanted to become a drag queen, like the performers he had seen on RuPaul's Drag Race.

She said: 'We looked into it first to work out whether it would be appropriate, but we were supportive and thought it was a great way of him expressing himself.

'It's no different to how other children put on a costume and play dress up.'

With that, Vincent's drag alter-ego DunkaShay Monroe – a name which combined the lyrics of a song his father would sing him and the surname of Marilyn Monroe – was born.

He first attended a festival in Long Beach before heading to Los Angeles Pride in drag (Pictured with his brothers Xzavier and Abraham)

At first, he would experiment with looks around the house, performing runway shows for his family.

Then, earlier this year during June's LGBT Pride month, he had his first outing to a festival in Long Beach, California.

'He wore make-up, but didn't have the full drag wig and dress then,' explained Elizabeth.

Shortly after, encouraged by the positive reactions he had received at Long Beach, Vincent decided to hit the city in full drag for Los Angeles Pride.

Donning a blue wig he had bought online alongside a sequinned gown he found in Goodwill, he took to the streets, much to the delight of the gathered crowds.

Vincent donned a blue wig he bought online for the Pride celebration alongside a sequined dress he found at Goodwill

Elizabeth said: 'I got a photo of Vincent holding his brothers' hands on the way there, which means the world to me. It shows how they'll all support one another no matter what.

'He really made his mark at LA Pride. People kept stopping him for photos, or to tell him how proud they were. He was in his element. It was so special to see.

'Now, while he still sees drag very much as playing, he has mentioned that he wants to make a career out of it. But Nick and I have told him he needs to stay in school and study, to have a plan B, C and D in case it doesn't work out.'

Although Elizabeth and the rest of the family are incredibly supportive of Vincent, he has experienced cruel comments and been bullied in the past – shockingly, even by adults.

But his parents have encouraged him to rise above any small-minded taunts he may come up against in later life.

Sadly, Vincent has experienced cruel comments and been bullied in the past – even by adults

Elizabeth said: 'Sadly, people have a lot to say about the LGBT community, so Vincent has come up against some bullying.

'He's had people come up and ask him point blank if he's gay. The way I see it, when a man loves a woman or vice versa, they are never made to explain themselves, so I tell Vincent that if he feels comfortable, he can talk about it, but he's certainly not obliged to justify himself.

'He is so strong and positive, though. I don't think I'd have been half as brave at his age.

'Whenever people are nasty, he stands up for himself but does it calmly and respectfully. He says to me that he thinks anybody who is bullying must not have been taught by their parents that if they can't say anything nice, not to say anything at all.

'He knows there will be times in his life when people don't understand who he is. We don't live in a perfect world where everybody accepts that love is love, and you can't help who you are.

His parents have encouraged him to rise above any small-minded taunts he may come up against in later life (Pictured at Long Beach Pride)

'All I can ask is that he remembers what we've taught him – to treat those that don't accept him with a smile, then move on and not let their negativity weigh him down. There is a way of standing up for yourself without escalating a situation.'

Elizabeth believes that children should be taught about the LGBT community so they 'know it's OK to be who they are' and that they should show each other respect.

She said: 'You can't help who you are. We're all human beings and nobody should be discriminated against for who they love.'

Now, Vincent continues to perfect his DunkaShay Monroe act – and has even been told by his parents that, if he gets good grades at school, he will be treated to a sewing machine so he can make his own costumes.

Elizabeth said: 'I leave it up to him to decide how he wants to express himself, especially out in public.

'Sometimes he won't want to wear makeup, but other times, he'll come out to dinner with us with lipstick and a pair of cat ears on.

'With make-up, we do put some restrictions in place as to how much he wears but that's to do with age, not gender. It'd be the same if I had a daughter – I'd still want her to have that chance to be a child.'