Local
Bowser names lesbian activist as head of GLBT Affairs Office
Media professional Alexander-Reid joins the administration
Sheila Alexander-Reid (Photo by Ron Simms, Jr.)
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser on Thursday named veteran lesbian activist and media professional Sheila Alexander-Reid as director of the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs.
Alexander-Reid becomes the third openly gay or lesbian cabinet-level official that Bowser has appointed so far to her administration, which began when the new mayor took office on Jan. 2.
As an activist involved in the local community for many years, Alexander-Reid is well known to the city’s LGBT community leaders and activists.
She most recently worked as Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at the Washington Blade. Prior to joining the Blade last year, Alexander-Reid worked as Director of Strategic Engagement for the Washington City Paper. Both positions involved marketing, advertising sales and community outreach duties.
Alexander-Reid is the founder and former executive director of Women in the Life Association, a social justice organization advocating for lesbians of color. She has also served as producer and host of Inside Out, the D.C. area’s only LGBT radio show, which has aired on WPFW FM. She served as vice president of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political group, from 2008 to 2011.
“We’re sorry to see her go,” said Blade publisher Lynne Brown, “but we know she’ll do terrific work for the city under Mayor Bowser and we wish her the best in this important new role.”
In December, Bowser named lesbian housing and services-for-the-homeless expert Polly Donaldson as director of the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development. Bowser named Matt Brown, who served as director of the D.C. Department of Transportation under Mayor Vincent Gray and who’s gay, as director of the Mayor’s Office of the Budget.
She has also named several other LGBT people to middle-level positions in her administration, prompting some familiar with the mayor’s office to say Bowser is expected to surpass Mayor Gray in making the most LGBT mayoral appointments of any D.C. mayor.
Virginia
VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade
Abigail Spanberger took office on Saturday
The inaugural ceremonies for Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger were held in Richmond, Va. on Saturday. Among the groups marching in the parade were Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond.
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Virginia
Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin introduced SJ3
The Virginia Senate on Friday by a 26-13 vote margin approved a resolution that seeks to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) introduced SJ3. The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee on Wednesday approved it by a 10-4 vote margin.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
A resolution that seeks to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2021. The resolution passed again in 2025.
Two successive legislatures must approve the resolution before it can go to the ballot. Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates have said the resolution’s passage is among their 2026 legislative priorities.
“It’s time for Virginia’s Constitution to reflect the law of the land and the values of today,” said Ebbin after Friday’s vote. “This amendment, if approved by voters, would affirm the dignity of all committed couples and protects marriage equality for future generations.”
Maryland
Layoffs and confusion at Pride Center of Maryland after federal grants cut, reinstated
Trump administration move panicked addiction and mental health programs
By ALISSA ZHU | After learning it had abruptly lost $2 million in federal funding, the Pride Center of Maryland moved to lay off a dozen employees, or about a third of its workforce, the Baltimore nonprofit’s leader said Thursday.
The group is one of thousands nationwide that reportedly received letters late Tuesday from the Trump administration. Their mental health and addiction grants had been terminated, effective immediately, the letters said.
By Wednesday night, federal officials moved to reverse the funding cuts by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, estimated to total $2 billion, according to national media reports. But the Pride Center of Maryland’s CEO Cleo Manago said as of Thursday morning he had not heard anything from the federal government confirming those reports.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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