Local
Mayor promises greater visibility in LGBT community
Says hate crimes ‘being taken more seriously’

D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty pledged to be more visible in the LGBT community if elected to a second term. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Editor’s note: This is the first of a two-part series featuring exclusive interviews with the two leading Democratic candidates for mayor. Next week, an interview with City Council Chairman Vincent Gray.
D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty said his administration has a strong record of support on a wide range of LGBT issues, including marriage equality, but acknowledged he has not done “as good a job as I should have” in speaking out in public forums on issues of concern to that community.
In an exclusive interview Tuesday with the Washington Blade, Fenty promised to be far more visible in his approach to the LGBT community as well as other constituency groups.
“I’ve got to do a much better job being more visible in my second term, and I will,” he said. “I’ve got to get out in people’s doorsteps, at community events. You name it. I did not do as good of a job as I should have in my first term as mayor in getting out to the community.”
But on the substance of his administration’s policies and actions on LGBT issues, Fenty cited his signing of an historic same-sex marriage equality law, policies supportive of LGBT businesses, the cabinet-level work of his Office of GLBT Affairs, and a commitment to LGBT youth by his public schools chancellor, Michelle Rhee, as just some of his administration’s accomplishments.
“So it’s been a great four years and we’re really looking forward to the next four years in a second term after the Democratic primary,” he said.
When asked about complaints by some LGBT activists that Police Chief Cathy Lanier’s reorganization of the department’s Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit has made it less responsive to the community and that police were not investigating hate crimes as aggressively as they should, Fenty said he has full confidence in Lanier’s leadership and strategies.
Citing a sharp drop in overall crime in the city, including homicides, during his term, Fenty said crimes targeting LGBT people and others are “being taken more seriously, handled more professionally and we’re getting better results.”
Although he did not mention by name City Council Chairman Vincent Gray, his chief opponent in the Sept. 14 primary, the mayor said police officials such as Lanier rather than “politicians” should be setting strategies for fighting hate crimes. In campaign appearances, Gray has attacked Fenty for not taking a strong enough stand against hate crimes.
“You want law enforcement putting together strategy for keeping people safe,” Fenty said. “You don’t want civilians and you especially don’t want politicians to be the ones who are developing those strategies. And I believe Chief Lanier has done a great job doing that.”
Shortly after his interview with the Blade, Fenty joined New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg at a news conference in a downtown restaurant in which Bloomberg gave a ringing endorsement of Fenty’s re-election bid. Bloomberg cited the drop in D.C.’s crime rate as being among Fenty’s most significant accomplishments.
Bloomberg also defended Fenty’s decision to support and sign the city’s same-sex marriage law, saying government should not stand in the way of any citizen’s right to marry.
“They have a right to believe what they want to believe,” Bloomberg said of same-sex marriage opponents. “But just as with religious freedom, I do not believe it’s the government’s business to get involved in family lives, particularly when no one gets hurt. And I think you should have a right to marry anybody you want, love anybody you want. It seems to me it is just as basic a right as everybody else. Period. End of story.”
Following are excerpts of the Blade’s interview with Fenty. Visit washingtonblade.com for the full transcript and a video of the interview.
Washington Blade: What do you see as some of your main accomplishments in addressing issues of concern to the LGBT community?
Adrian Fenty: I think gay marriage and marriage equality is the biggest thing to happen over the past three-and-a-half years. When the bill was introduced, I think it meant a lot to the people who introduced it and to the community that I expressed my full support and that I said I would sign it as soon as it came to my desk. I think that left a lot of people feeling very certain that it would move fast through the local government, which I think helped prevent naysayers in the federal government and Congress from being opposed to it.
We’ve also been very supportive of GLBT businesses. We’ve been very supportive of equality in the workplace, in hiring. The chief [D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier] has done a fantastic job in really trying to address some of the hate crimes that are sometimes being committed against our GLBT neighbors. So it’s been a great four years and we’re really looking forward to the next four years in a second term after the Democratic primary.
Blade: Some of your critics in the LGBT community who are backing Vincent Gray say you have not been as visible as they would prefer in speaking out on a number LGBT-related issues, including hate crimes, and that you haven’t attended many LGBT events. Is that a fair criticism?
Fenty: Yes, it is a very fair criticism. It’s actually probably extremely fair. I’ve got to do a much better job being more visible in my second term, and I will.
Blade: Do you mean going to more events?
Fenty: Doing everything. I mean I have got to get out into the community. I’ve got to get out in people’s doorsteps, at community events. You name it; I did not do as good of a job as I should have in my first term as mayor in getting out to the community. And I should be held responsible for that, to do it better in the second term.
Blade: You’ve been praised for appointing Chris Dyer as head of the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs.
Fenty: I like Chris. He’s great.
Blade: But some in the LGBT community have expressed concern that while Chris appears before and speaks at a lot of community meetings, he’s not allowed to speak to the press, including the LGBT press. Under the administration of your predecessor, Mayor [Anthony] Williams, the GLBT office director was allowed to speak to the media as a spokesperson for the administration on LGBT issues.
Fenty: Well, to the extent that any of our directors have not spoken directly to the media, it’s pretty much part and parcel of either our general communications strategy or it may just be a particular issue. It depends. But we don’t treat the director for GLBT any different than we treat any of our other cabinet directors. Most things go through communications. There are certain issues that become very high profile and we just allow the communications office to handle them out of the EOM [Executive Office of the Mayor]. And that’s true of Public Works, Motor Vehicles, and of anything.
Blade: In terms of LGBT-related crimes, you and Police Chief Cathy Lanier held a press conference last Saturday on Mozart Street, N.W., to announce arrests in two recent homicides. One of the victims was a gay man.
Fenty: We sure did. We sure did have a press conference. The police department did a fabulous job closing a crime on Mozart in less than 72 hours after it occurred. And this is part and parcel of the police department, which under our administration has raised the homicide closure rate to about 80 percent. There was a time in the District of Columbia government where our homicide closure rate was abysmally low, way below the national average. And now it sits very comfortably somewhere in between 15 and 25 percentage points above the national average. Our homicides are down to where they were in 1966, and that was last year. This year we’re actually 17 percentage points where we were last year in terms of our homicides. So we’re talking about Chief Lanier for crimes that are involving our GLBT community — or crimes that involve just about anybody in our city — that they’re being taken more seriously, handled more professionally and we’re getting better results.
One of the reasons why we’re excited about another four years is because people like Chief Lanier are going to have an opportunity to use everything they’ve learned and all their accomplishments in the first term to do an even better job in the second term.
Blade: Didn’t Chief Lanier bring up at the same news conference the arrest of someone linked to the homicide of a gay man?
Fenty: Yes she did.
Blade: That case followed a string of anti-gay assaults mostly in the Dupont Circle area. The local group Gays & Lesbians Opposing Violence said that although there may be an overall drop in the crime rate, we may be facing an increase in crimes targeting LGBT people at this time. Do you have any thoughts on that?
Fenty: I thought the chief said at that press conference that she did not believe that one was a hate crime.
Blade: That’s correct. However, the police have said the man may have been targeted for a robbery in what they call a crime of opportunity. The other five were listed as hate crimes.
Fenty: Do you have a question?
Blade: The question, as some of the activists put it, is can your office and the police department more actively and aggressively fight hate crimes targeting the LGBT community?
Fenty: Well, you know, as I said at that press conference, I am not the policing expert. The chief and I have met with members of all different communities in Washington, D.C. We want to hear their issues and concerns. But it’s up to the chief of police to develop the proper policing strategies, not just for hate crimes involving the GLBT community but hate crimes in general and crime in general. You want law enforcement putting together a strategy for keeping people safe. You don’t want civilians and you especially don’t want politicians to be the ones who are developing those strategies. And I believe that Chief Lanier has done a great job doing that.
Blade: Concerning the city’s HIV/AIDS Administration, you and others have pointed out the reforms and improvements at that agency under the direction of Dr. Shannon Hader, who you appointed to head it. Have you had a chance to assess how the AIDS administration is doing since Dr. Hader resigned earlier this year to take another job?
Fenty: I think that most of the reforms that Hader has put in place continue, pretty seamlessly so far.
Blade: What’s the status of the search for a new permanent director of the AIDS administration? Has a decision been made on whether to retain the current interim director?
Fenty: There hasn’t been a decision yet. That will happen after the election.
Blade: Turning to the campaign, some of the more outspoken leaders of the LGBT community are supporting your main opponent, Vincent Gray. The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club endorsed him. What message do you have for the LGBT voters who may still be undecided?
Fenty: That the city is working fantastically and that my team should be re-elected so that we can continue the progress.
Blade: Going back to police issues, Chief Lanier’s changes to the Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit have been controversial with some in the LGBT community. She decentralized the unit and arranged to have officers from all of the police districts become affiliates with the GLLU, but she downsized the GLLU’s central headquarters located in Dupont Circle. Do you have any problems with that? Do you think it’s working as well as it should?
Fenty: Well, I think the results speak for themselves. The chief has done a great job addressing crime. And again, civilians should have a role in communicating to the government what results they would like to see. But on matters of subject matter expertise as serious as public safety and law enforcement, you’ve got to trust and enable the police department under a great chief to be able to make the right decisions. I believe we have a great chief. I believe we have the greatest chief in the country. So if we have the greatest chief in the country, then let’s support her in her decision making. She obviously cares a tremendous amount. And I think she’s obviously, she’s gotten more results as police chief than anybody in a long time.
Blade: The city has some financial issues because of the economy. You’re faced with less revenue and you’re putting in place some budget cuts. Will you have enough resources to keep the budget at a level that’s needed for the HIV/AIDS Administration and the Office of Human Rights, among other offices, which the LGBT community relies on for the enforcement of non-discrimination laws?
Fenty: Absolutely. Absolutely.
Blade: You don’t see any budget cuts in those agencies?
Fenty: I don’t see any service reductions.
Blade: On the same-sex marriage issue, if the opponents succeed in court to force a voter initiative to decide whether the same-sex marriage law should be overturned, would you campaign against overturning the law? Members of the LGBT community are wondering whether the city’s leaders would stand up and take a stand on that.
Fenty: Yes. Yes I would.
Blade: Have you seen any significant opposition to you because you signed the same-sex marriage bill?
Fenty: I think most people in Washington, D.C. are extremely supportive of equality, not just in marriage but in all issues in D.C. There’s nothing that we do that’s unanimous. But from what I can tell, there’s great support for the legislation that was introduced by [City] Council member [David] Catania, passed by the Council and signed by me as mayor.
Blade: Do you have any sense of if it goes before the voters whether they would support it or overturn it?
Fenty: Well as I just said, I think that it enjoys broad support in the community, that the majority support it.
Blade: Can you explain in your own words what went wrong when the mayor’s office earlier this year issued the proclamation supporting PFOX, Parents & Friends of Ex-Gays [& Gays], which is an anti-gay group?
Fenty: Our office issued a proclamation without doing a thorough enough investigation of who we were issuing the proclamation to and for. And it was a mistake. And I should be blamed for the mistake because it is my office.
Blade: Have steps been taken to prevent that from happening again?
Fenty: Yes they have. We have taken steps to do everything humanly possible to prevent something like that from ever occurring again.
Blade: In the area of economic development and small business, there’s been an ongoing concern by some in the LGBT community about over regulation and restrictions on nightlife venues and entertainment venues. Some of that came to light when the new baseball stadium displaced five or six or more adult-oriented businesses, with some catering to the gay community, that have been unable to relocate due to zoning restrictions. Are the existing liquor board and zoning regulations tilted too much against small business ventures like these, whether they are gay or straight?
Fenty: I believe that the laws and regulations are within the range that is necessary to promote small businesses and to allow them to thrive and prosper. As in any other laws and regulations, one of the big X-factors is how they are enforced and how they are administered. I’m sure that my administration can do a better job in administering and enforcing the laws and we will look forward to doing that as we move forward in this term and in the next term. And of course, just like any other law and regulation, the whole purpose of having a City Council and experts in the executive branch is because, from time to time, if those laws need to be adjusted, tweaked or modified — if we find that needs to happen, we will absolutely work with the community to make the necessary changes.
Blade: Concerning the Office of GLBT Affairs, do you meet regularly with Chris Dyer of that office on matters dealing with the community?
Fenty: Yes. Yes I do. It is not on a regular interval but they are regular meetings.
Blade: Is that considered a cabinet level position?
Fenty: Yes. The director of the Office of GLBT Affairs is at every one of my cabinet meetings, which happens once a month. And I would say, to expand on the first question, the director of the Office of GLBT Affairs meets with us as much as any director for the most part in the government.
Blade: Is it safe to assume that you’re planning to keep that office as it is?
Fenty: It’s a fantastic office and we absolutely will keep it and find ways to strengthen it.
Blade: Looking to the public schools, you’ve pushed through policies and changes that are highly controversial. Would it be too controversial for you to go a step further to see that the schools address head-on LGBT sensitivity-related issues? Experts have said that some of the root causes of anti-LGBT hate crimes and prejudice are a lack of understanding and education in the schools about minorities and diversity.
Fenty: So you’re asking whether we’re going to do more?
Blade: That’s right. There’s some of this in the existing curricula on health-related issues, including HIV and AIDS. But would it be too controversial to include more on LGBT-related issues in the schools?
Fenty: I don’t think it would be too controversial at all. And I think the [schools] chancellor [Michelle Rhee] is just in concert with all of her other groundbreaking and nationwide leading reforms of education and her ability to tackle tough issues and be a real leader for urban school system improvement. I believe she will continue to make the types of adjustments that are needed to make sure that our school system is the most inclusive school system in the country. I was very glad that the chancellor accepted the invitation of the organizers of the Gay Pride parade to walk in the parade at the front with a sign that said “DCPS supports all of our kids.” And that obviously includes some of our young people who are GLBT.
Blade: On a personal level, do you know any LGBT people as friends or relatives that have had an impact on you in your public policy positions?
Fenty: Well, of course I do. But I believe that as mayor what’s important is to take from your personal experiences and to take from the experience of your constituents in developing great policy and being a really great administrator.
Blade: Is there any other message that you want to conclude with to the LGBT voters who will be deciding on who to support for mayor?
Fenty: Sure. We want to ask all of your readership and viewership to support us on Sept. 14. The city has moved forth fantastically. Crime is down. The schools are finally being improved. City services have never been greater. There’s tons of economic development — fantastic things. Services for the poor are improving. And all this is happening in the midst of [a] recession, which I think goes to show it’s not just our strong ability to get things done for the people of the city but also to do it with less revenue and with more bang for the buck.
Blade: Thank you.
Virginia
Va. court allows conversion therapy despite law banning it
Judge in June 30 ruling cited religious freedom.

In 2020, the state of Virginia had banned the practice of conversion therapy, but on Monday, a county judge ruled the ban violates the Virginia Constitution and Religious Freedom Restoration Act, allowing the therapy to start once more.
The conversion therapy ban, which can be seen in Va. Code § 54.1-2409.5 and 18VAC115-20-130.14, was overturned on June 30 as a result of two Christian counselors who argued that their — and all Virginia parents’ — constitutional right to freedom of religion had been encroached upon when the state legislature passed the ban.
A Henrico County Circuit Court judge sided with John and Janet Raymond, two Christian counselors represented by the Founding Freedoms Law Center, a conservative organization founded in 2020 following Virginia’s conversion therapy ban. Virginia’s Office of the Attorney General entered a consent decree with FFLC, saying state officials will not discipline counselors who engage in talk conversion therapy.
Conversion therapy, as the legislation described it, is considered to be “any practice or treatment that seeks to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward individuals of the same gender.” The ban’s reversal will now allow parents to subject their children to these practices to make them align better with their religion.
This decision comes despite advice and concern from many medical and pediatric organizations — including the American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and the American Counseling Association, to name a few — all of which denounce conversion therapy as dangerous and harmful to those subjected to it.
The American Medical Association, the largest and only national association that convenes more than 190 state and specialty medical societies, says that “these techniques are the assumption that any non-heterosexual, non-cisgender identities are mental disorders, and that sexual orientation and gender identity can and should be changed. This assumption is not based on medical and scientific evidence,” with attached data indicating people subjected to conversion therapy are more likely to develop “significant long-term harm” as a result of the therapy.
The AMA goes as far as to say that they outright “oppose the use of reparative or conversion therapy for sexual orientation or gender identity.”
FFLC has a clear goal of promoting — if not requiring — conservative ideology under the guise of religious freedom in the Virginia General Assembly. On their website, the FFLC argues that some progressive policies passed by the Assembly, like that of freedom from conversion therapy, are a violation of some Virginians’ “God-given foundational freedoms.”
The FFLC has argued that when conservative notions are not abided by in state law — especially when it involves “God’s design for male and female, the nuclear family, and parental rights” — that the law violates Virginians’ religious freedom.
A statement on the FFLC’s website calls gender dysphoria among children a “contagion” and upholds “faith-based insights” from counselors as equal — in the eyes of the law — to those who use medical-based insights. This, once again, is despite overwhelming medical evidence that indicates conversion therapy is harmful.
One study showed that 77 percent of those who received “sexual orientation change efforts,” or conversion therapy, experienced “significant harm.” This harm includes depression, anxiety, lowered self-esteem, and internalized homophobia. In addition, the study found that young LGBTQ adults with high levels of parental or caregiver rejection are “8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide,” with another study finding that “nearly 30 percent of individuals who underwent SOCE reported suicidal attempts.”
Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, a Democrat representing Fairfax, said that the overturning of the ban on religious merit disregards the entire concept of having professionally licensed counselors.
“I have no problem if somebody wants to go look at religious counseling from their priest or their minister, their rabbi, their imam — that’s perfectly fine,” Surovell told the Virginia Mercury. “When somebody goes to get therapy from somebody licensed by the commonwealth of Virginia, there’s a different set of rules applied. You can’t just say whatever you want because you have a license. That’s why we have professional standards, that’s why we have statutes.”
District of Columbia
GenOUT Chorus offers solace, strength to LGBTQ teens
Summer camp held from June 23-27

As Pride month draws to a close and Washington begins to take down its rainbow flags and WorldPride decorations, it can be easy to confine the ideas of LGBTQ liberation to June. One historic organization in Washington has been speaking out — or singing out if you will — to ensure that LGBTQ youth are allowed to explore and be themselves every month of the year.
The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington is one of the oldest and largest LGBTQ choruses in the world. With more than 300 members and more than 40 years in the D.C. LGBTQ community, to say it is an institution would be an understatement.
Beginning in 1981, following an inspiring performance by the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus at the Kennedy Center, a group of 18 gay men — led by a “straight” woman and friend of Washington’s gay community, Marsha Pearson — created the GMCW. Since its establishment the organization has only grown in number and relevance within the city. From hosting multiple concerts a year, international equality trips, and creating a dedicated space to “inspire equality and inclusion with musical performances and education,” the GMCW is one of the cornerstone organizations in the Washington LGBTQ community.
One of the most remarkable parts of the GMCW is its youth outreach program and choir: GenOUT. The outreach ensemble specializes in providing a space for Washington’s LGBTQ and allied youth, ages 13-18, to find their voice through song and connect that voice to community. The GenOUT program has been around since 2001, and since 2015 has provided a platform for their voices to be heard — literally — making it the first LGBTQ youth chorus in the Washington area.
The Washington Blade sat down with GenOUT Director C. Paul Heins and member Ailsa Ostovitz to discuss why GenOUT, and more specifically the GenOUT summer camp, which was held from June 23-27, has become an essential space for LGBTQ youth in the D.C. area to find their voice amid less-than-supportive administration and rising anti-LGBTQ rhetoric in the nation.
“This is my 11th season with GenOUT, and also the 11th season with Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington,” Heins said when explaining how he ended up in the director role for the self-selected, no audition required youth outreach ensemble. “I was hired in August of 2014 to start GenOUT. I spent that first fall researching other choruses, figuring out the infrastructure, promoting the chorus, and building relationships with schools, organizations, and faith communities. And then we started in January of 2015 with nine brave singers and since then, we’ve had 150+ singers from 80 or more schools in the DMV participate.”
Ailsa Ostovitz, on the other hand, being in high school had not had as much experience with choirs — yet her commitment and unwavering passion for the work she — and the other performers within GenOUT provide to each other was unmistakable.
“I’ve been a part of the course since April of 2022, and that was like seventh grade— which is wild to think about,” Ostovitz said when reflecting on how long she had been a part of GenOUT. She explained how she had begun to develop a drive for filling leadership roles within GenOUT after gaining valuable experiences and education from the organization.
“This is my first year in leadership,” she added. “The rest of the years, I kind of hung back. I really wanted to — especially last season — kind of put myself in the position of a peer and think ‘What would I want from people that are supposed to represent me to the adults? What would I want out of that?’”
And with those questions in mind, Ostovitz explained she buckled down and worked hard to get to where she is now as a member of the leadership team within the GenOUT choir.
“I spent a lot of time working with my section leader, and, looking up at him and being like, ‘What are you doing now that I can do in the future?’ And so this year, I ran for leadership,” Ostovitz said. “I got section leader, and that was cool. I’ve just spent a lot of time — most of my time in this course — learning leadership skills to kind of help me in all sorts of things in life, because I like to take control of things, and I like doing stuff.”
These leadership skills are just a handful of the things that students like Ostovitz learn while participating in the program. This year’s theme was “Make Them Hear Us!: Empowering LGBTQ+ and Allied Youth Through Music, Media, and Community,” and provided multiple opportunities for GenOUT’s members to engage with new concepts, ideas, and experiences.
From field trips to mentoring opportunities to an end-of-camp performance, it becomes clear when speaking to those familiar with the GenOUT experience: it is not your traditional summer day camp.
“The title of the camp references the anthem that GMCW has sung for many years,” Heins said. “‘Make Them Hear You’ from the musical ‘Ragtime’ encourages us to share important stories — stories that honor the fights that we’ve been fighting, the rights that we have won, affirmations that we seek for every human being, and the focus on media — specifically developing young people’s understandings of the kinds of media that they can access and use to share their voice.”
The camp offers singing and dancing lessons, creative writing exercises, LGBTQ+ history lessons, and open discussions about identity — providing an outlet for students to figure out who they want to be and find their voice.
“What this camp does, I believe, is it helps foster young people’s voices and not only encourages them to speak, but to give them the skills to speak in a way that will be heard meaningfully,” Heins added. “I have noted that youth in queer choruses like GenOUT have said that singing in a chorus allows young people to express themselves more honestly and with greater passion than other forms of expression. They’ve also said that singing with others that understand you on a very deep, profound level, makes the expression much easier and more beautiful. I think that experience is what really makes this a special opportunity for young, LGBTQ and allied people.”
Ostovitz echoed Heins’s sentiment, emphasizing that the space GenOUT provides allows her to feel empowered in ways more than by creating leadership skills that will help her later in life. GenOUT has allowed for her to see the humanity and similarities LGBTQ youth all face in a straight world.
“Joining the chorus and being in this camp, it really gives people a chance to see that every person is going through the same experience you are, on a level of finding your own identity and being confident in that,” Ostovitz said. “It really, really serves a purpose by showing there are still queer people. They’re not fizzling out — young people are queer. We want to use our voices to express what we feel and how things are affecting us, and I think that using music to do that is probably one of the most powerful ways to do that.”
In addition to allowing for internal growth and honing their singing abilities, both Ostovitz and Heins pointed out the other valuable skills students learn while in the GenOUT program. Ostovitz explicitly highlighted the mentorship program GenOUT has with GMCW, and how it has helped students like her figure out their future.
“Because we are so connected with GMCW, we run a mentorship program where, if you want to explore career, identity, whatever, we can connect you with somebody from GMCW,” Ostovitz said. “You get to spend a whole semester with a person working on your voice or your career or your what you want to do in higher education. It’s not only for things related to your queer identity, but it’s also just for life. It’s really cool.”

This year’s theme, centering around media and the many ways people can share their voice, was highlighted through the camp’s field trips to two legacy media organizations — WAMU and NBC Washington — and a discussion with staff from the Washington Blade, including Publisher Lynne Brown and International News Editor Michael K. Lavers.
“GenOUT provides a chance to get to know people from all around this area, but it also connects you to older folks, It connects you to people from the past, as well as we learn about LGBTQ history,” Heins said. “I think a camp specific thing is we want young people to understand how they can share their stories beyond just talking to their friends. There are these forms of media that are out there to share your stories, to have your voices heard, and to have a sense that these media are there for everyone. It’s not just a thing for people aged 21 and over. That was something that Lynne and Michael from the Blade were sharing with; that anyone can write in a letter to the editor. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be published, but that anyone has that opportunity. And I think that’s a great way for them to say the Blade is open to you to share your voice.”
The concept that there are people who want to, or may need to hear queer voices represented is one that is not lost on Ostovitz.
“There is something Thea says that has kind of integrated into our chorus — that someone out there needed to hear you, needed to hear your voice, needed to hear your story,” Ostovitz said. “That’s something that I kind of live by in this chorus, where I’m like, ‘I believe that there is someone out there that needed to hear this song for whatever reason, whatever it did for them. And I’m hoping to learn how much more can this chorus do for not just our little community, but how much more can it do around the world or the country — especially now.”
Living in the political center of the U.S., Ostovitz explained, has impacted how she approaches her identity, her education, and the urgency of using her voice — both as a student and as a young queer person navigating an increasingly hostile national climate.
“Being so close to the political center of the country and also a student at the same time has not been the easiest thing in the world as of late,” she said. “You’re thinking a lot about ‘Oh, I wonder if this program in my school will still exist next year,’ because a lot of the funding for physics and science programs in general has been cut. So I’m fortunate enough that Maryland has been pretty good about going against this administration. And so being in this chorus gives me a second to step back from my academics and just go somewhere for the two hours of rehearsal.”
For Ostovitz, just having those two short hours a week to focus on music — without thinking about the political climate that paints her and her choir peers as nefarious for being LGBTQ — provides solace.
“Everybody else is going through the same thing as I am, but we’re all also working towards the same goal, which is acceptance and uplifting of everybody and everyone — no matter who they are,” she said. “It kind of settles you down and grounds you. And then you just make music with people, and it’s really like a stress reducer for me.”
“Is it too trite to say that that would make people feel less alone, knowing that it’s not just a DMV thing, but that there are queer people all over?” Heins asked Ostovitz.
“No, it’s not — for sure,” Ostovitz responded. “It was a bit eye-opening.”
“A lot of us are fortunate enough to have families that support us enough to trust us and help us be passionate and mean what we do with the work that we do in this chorus — because it is optional,” Ostovitz added. “It is optional to have the courage that we have to practice and commit as much as we do, and the fact that we have a whole organization backing us on that is pretty cool.”
“We often say that we sing for those who can’t sing in a chorus like ours,” Heins said. “We sing for people who don’t have the freedom or the option to live their authentic lives. I think that’s very powerful.”
“It’s a very unique experience to be surrounded by so many people that get it,” Ostovitz said. “It’s a very joyful experience when we perform our big shows at the Lincoln Theater, being part of that production is also a very unique experience. So I think everything about this chorus is very joyfully unique.”
“I feel very proud, and I feel very inspired,” Heins said. “I feel inspired by the young voices. I feel a sense of inspiration in my own music-making, when I am able to take a piece from its very beginning all the way to the stage in a polished form. And I feel that sense of pride in knowing that I’ve helped this group of young people develop their confidence to do really amazing things.”
“GenOUT sang 22 times last year, which for any chorus is a big deal, but for a youth chorus coming from thither and yon, it is really a big deal,” Heins added. “I’m just really inspired and proud, and know that when I am in a nursing home somewhere and these folks are still out working and I know the country will be in good hands.”
Virginia
Walkinshaw wins Democratic primary in Va. 11th Congressional District
Special election winner will succeed Gerry Connolly

On Saturday, Fairfax County Supervisor James Walkinshaw won the Democratic primary for the special election that will determine who will represent Virginia’s 11th Congressional District.
The special election is being held following the death of the late Congressman Gerry Connolly, who represented the district from 2008 until 2024, when he announced his retirement, and subsequently passed away from cancer in May.
Walkinshaw is not unknown to Virginia’s 11th District — he has served on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors since 2020 and had served as Connolly’s chief of staff from 2009 to 2019. Before he passed away, Connolly had endorsed Walkinshaw to take his place, claiming that choosing Walkinshaw to be his chief of staff was “one of the best decisions I ever made.”
The Democratic nominee has run his campaign on mitigating Trump’s “dangerous” agenda of dismantling the federal bureaucracy, which in the district is a major issue as many of the district’s residents are federal employees and contractors.
“I’m honored and humbled to have earned the Democratic nomination for the district I’ve spent my career serving,” Walkinshaw said on X. “This victory was powered by neighbors, volunteers, and supporters who believe in protecting our democracy, defending our freedoms, and delivering for working families.”
In addition to protecting federal workers, Walkinshaw has a long list of progressive priorities — some of which include creating affordable housing, reducing gun violence, expanding immigrant protections, and “advancing equality for all” by adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the Fair Housing Act.
Various democratic PACs contributed more than $2 million to Walkinshaw’s ad campaigns, much of which touted his connection to Connolly.
Walkinshaw will face Republican Stewart Whitson in the special election in September, where he is the likely favorite to win.
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