Local
New leader takes helm of Virginia Partisans
The new president of Virginia’s LGBT Democratic group says reaching out to other organizations and raising money to elect pro-gay candidates will be the main priorities for the organization.
Terry Mansberger, 48, a gay resident of Annandale, Va., was announced as the new president of Virginia Partisans on Saturday. The group selects new leaders — as well as other officers — every two years through a mail-in vote.
Mansberger, a product manager for AT&T, said that when he takes office Jan. 1 he wants to start work on building membership and will reach out to other LGBT organizations to accomplish that goal.
“I want to grow membership and I want to grow access to the state — beyond where we’ve been traditionally in Northern Virginia,” he said.
The goal of building membership, Mansberger said, “goes hand-in-hand” with the goal to support the Democratic candidates Virginia Partisans wants to elect.
Still, Mansberger predicted that 2010 would be somewhat of a breather for his organization, noting that only congressional seats in Virginia will be up for grabs. Elections for offices within Virginia will next occur in 2011.
Mansberger said Virginia Partisans would play a role in policy-making in Richmond by influencing Democratic officials. Even with more limited Democratic influence following Republican wins in the 2009 election, Mansberger pointed to some areas where progress can be made.
“There’s some areas around workplace equality and non-discrimination, things like that, that I think would have a broader appeal than that hot-button marriage issue,” he said.
Despite its losses on the ballot this year, Mansberger said the Democratic ticket for the most part did a good job in embracing LGBT Virginia residents. He noted that Democratic gubernatorial nominee Creigh Deeds reached out early to LGBT people in his campaign and attended some Virginia Partisans events.
“We had a good relationship with Creigh Deeds,” he said. “I talked to him quite a bit and his campaign was certainly supportive, [and] wanted our support.”
By comparison, Mansberger said Steve Shannon, the Democratic candidate who sought to become Virginia attorney general, didn’t embrace the state’s LGBT population until later in the campaign cycle.
“I would have liked to seen him go after [Virginia attorney general-elect Ken] Cuccinelli’s radical positions on GLBT [issues] a bit earlier, but he waited to the 11th hour and it was too late,” he said. “His campaign is the only one that really didn’t seriously reach out to us.”
Mansberger said he was frustrated by the lack of enthusiasm among Democrats in this year’s races. He acknowledged that Deeds voted twice for the constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, but said he had “come a long way on the issue” and “was willing to help and support us.”
“Given the alternative, I really don’t understand why people would sit on the sidelines the way they did,” he said.
While saying he wants to reach out to other LGBT groups, Mansberger noted a distinction between Equality Virginia and Virginia Partisans. He said Equality Virginia serves a more educational role, while Virginia Partisans is geared toward electing candidates and influencing the Democratic Party.
“We support Democrats first and foremost and we make sure that we hold the Democratic Party to the fire on our issues and make sure that we’re not just getting lip service, but we actually have candidates that embrace and work for us,” he said.
In recent years, there has been some occasional friction between Equality Virginia and Virginia Partisans. The groups sometimes support different candidates in state House races. And tensions rose last year when Equality Virginia honored former Republican Del. Vince Callahan at its annual dinner.
Callahan had supported some pro-LGBT legislation, but sometimes during his political career voted against pro-gay measures and voted twice in favor of the constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Virginia Partisans criticized the choice, while Equality Virginia defended the decision as advancing its non-partisan role.
Mansberger said “certainly it’s important” to make differences of opinion known when they exist between the two organizations, but noted that he doesn’t think such differences have caused a “real rift” between the two groups.
Virginia Partisans elected a number of officers Saturday. Tiffany Joslyn, an Arlington, Va., resident, was as elected as vice president; Alexandra Beninda, a transgender Arlington, Va., resident, was elected as treasurer; Brian Cook, a gay Arlington, Va., resident, was elected as secretary; and Clifton Taylor, a Falls Church, Va., resident, was elected as assistant secretary.
Maryland
The UMD student reporter who dared to record Andy Harris — and kept recording
Anti-LGBTQ Republican threatened to have police remove Cat Murphy from briefing
By BRENDA WINTRODE — A University of Maryland student journalist targeted by U.S. Rep. Andy Harris during an informal press briefing Tuesday said she’ll continue to cover the Republican politician who threatened to have police remove her from the room.
Cat Murphy, a graduate student at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism and a reporter for the student newswire Capital News Service, appeared on CNN Wednesday to recount a post-debate clash that has gone viral on social media and been broadcast on national news.
CNN anchor Jake Tapper asked Murphy, 22, how she had processed the exchange one day later.
“It has been a lot,” she said. “But I was focused on doing my job and asking my questions that I wanted answers to. And I think I did that.”
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
Center Arts Gallery celebration, auction to take place on Oct. 17
D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark event’s 10th anniversary
The D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center is hosting its 10th anniversary celebration of the opening of its Center Arts Gallery on Saturday, Oct. 17, at the Center’s offices at 1827 Wiltberger St., N.W., from 6 – 9 p.m.
“For 10 years, the D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center’s Arts Gallery has been more than a place where art is displayed,” a statement released by the center says.
“It has been a space where LGBTQ+ artists are seen, celebrated, and connected to community, and where their work has given expression to the stories of joy, resistance, grief, beauty, survival, courage, and imagination,” the statement adds.
It says those attending the event would have an opportunity to bid on donated artwork in an auction and to meet and interact with “the artists whose creativity has helped bring Center Arts Gallery to life, enjoy wonderful food and music, and celebrate a decade of LGBTQ+ artistic expression.”
But the statement posted on the LGBTQ+ Community Center’s website says free general admission tickets have sold out, with $75 VIP tickets still available. It says the proceeds from ticket sales will be used to help support the LGBTQ+ Community Center’s operations.
Attendees and others were also invited to an event after party at the LGBTQ bar and cafe Spark Social from 9-11 p.m. at 2009 14th St., N.W.
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Congratulations to Richard Garrett on being honored by Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer with the Order of the First State. Garrett is executive director of the Children’s Beach House, in Lewes, Del. Upon accepting the honor he said, “I am deeply honored to be recognized by Governor Meyer with the Order of the First State, but I hope this occasion also shines a light on children who are struggling in some of the same ways I struggled as a child and teenager. Perseverance, connection, patience, and the presence of caring adults made all the difference in my life. For 24 years, my greatest privilege has been helping Children’s Beach House create that same sense of belonging and possibility for children and families across Delaware. They are strong, smart, resilient, and resourceful—and they deserve every opportunity to discover just how much they are capable of becoming.”
He told the Blade, “In many ways, my own childhood helps explain why this work has been so deeply personal to me. I grew up in a family that struggled financially, and I had a speech impediment so severe that, as a young child, I often could not be understood without one of my siblings acting as an interpreter. Thankfully, I had strong parents and a mother who was an educator. She spent countless hours helping me practice consonant blends and trying to master the “R” and “S” sounds. Just as importantly, she understood that being around other children my own age would teach me things that no adult could. What made a difference in my life were competent, caring adults who built relationships with me and gave me the sense of safety and belonging I needed. People like Sister Kathleen Swan, OSF; Father Gerald M. Dunne, OSFS, Dr. Susan Cassidy and her husband, John Bronson, to name a few! In many respects, my story mirrors the work we do every day at Children’s Beach House. The children and families we serve are strong, smart, resilient, and resourceful. Sometimes what they need most is for someone to recognize those strengths, stand beside them, and give them the relationships and opportunities they need to flourish.”
Over the years Garrett has grown the Children’s Beach House’s annual budget from approximately $650,000 in 2003 to $4.5 million while strengthening impact, visibility, and organizational infrastructure. He raised $2.5 million in Delaware foundation capital grants, and established a $7 million endowment for the Margaret H. Rollins Center, a $1 million capital endowment, and increased the general operating endowment to $6 million.
In addition to all that Garrett is the founder and owner of Midway Motion and Fitness. He is also looking forward to the groundbreaking of Midway Pickleball in 2027. He is treasurer of the Community Foundation Board of Kiwanis Club of Coastal Delaware. He began his career as executive director of the Delaware County Children’s CAMP, Media, Pa.; and was director of Student Affairs for the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades, Media, Pa.
Garrett earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Neumann University, Aston, Pa.; and did his graduate studies in vocational education, Temple University.
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