Local
Md. school district restores access to gay web sites
A school district in northeast Maryland has stopped blocking student access
A school district in northeast Maryland has stopped blocking student access to LGBT-related web sites.
Two months after the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland challenged Harford County Public Schools on the issue, students and others thanked district leaders for taking the “positive step.”
“This is a positive step toward inclusiveness in HCPS policy,” says a March 19 letter addressed to Robert Tomback, the district’s superintendent, and Mark Wolkow, who leads the district’s board of education. Several students, parents, teachers and attorneys signed the letter.
“We have brought together a group of concerned HCPS students, parents, teachers and alumnae to continue to brainstorm how we can work with you and to make our school system a safer and more supportive place for our LGBT and allied community members.”
A filter had prevented students from accessing many well-known state and national LGBT groups, including the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, as well as various religious organizations that are supportive of gay rights. The filter did not impede student access to sites that condemn homosexuality.
“One of the problems with Harford’s filtering scheme is that it only allowed students access to information on one side of the public debate on LGBT issues,” said Alli Harper of Baltimore’s Brown, Goldstein & Levy law firm, which cooperated with the ACLU on the issue.
Harper said that one female student was blocked from researching a paper “arguing the ‘pro’ side of the marriage equality issue. She had to get an extension to do the assignment outside of school. Meanwhile, the students making the ‘con’ argument were able to access the information needed via the school computers.”
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PHOTOS: Helen Hayes Awards
Gay Men’s Chorus, local drag artists have featured performance at ceremony
The 41st Helen Hayes Awards were held at The Anthem on Monday, May 19. Felicia Curry and Mike Millan served as the hosts.
A performance featuring members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and local drag artists was held at the end of the first act of the program to celebrate WorldPride 2025.
The annual awards ceremony honors achievement in D.C.-area theater productions and is produced by Theatre Washington.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
District of Columbia
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade
WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.
The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.
Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.
Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.
Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”
“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”
“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.
The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.
2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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