Local
Stein Club backs Mendelson
Kwame Brown wins support in Council chairman race
The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club this week endorsed D.C. City Council member Phil Mendelson over his gay challenger, Clark Ray. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political group, voted this week to endorse at-large D.C. City Council member Phil Mendelson over his gay challenger, Clark Ray, 62 percent to 35 percent.
Stein members also on Monday endorsed at-large Council member Kwame Brown in the race for City Council Chairman over his main rival, former Ward 5 Council member Vincent Orange, 80 percent to 16 percent.
The club’s endorsement of Mendelson and Brown for the Sept. 14 Democratic primary followed its decision last month to endorse City Council Chairman Vincent Gray over Mayor Adrian Fenty in the hotly contested mayoral race.
Mendelson, whose gay supporters portrayed him as an unfailing straight ally who shepherded the city’s same-sex marriage law through the Council last year, received just two points above the 60 percent threshold required for an endorsement under the club’s rules.
Monday’s endorsements came after the candidates spoke during a club forum at the gay nightclub Town, and members debated whom to back. About 100 members voted on the endorsements, according to Stein Club President Jeffrey Richardson.
A third candidate running in the at-large Council race, D.C. shadow senator Michael Brown, did not receive any votes from Stein members, although he received loud applause for what he said was the main mission of his candidacy: to promote D.C. statehood.
Michael Brown expressed strong support for the city’s same-sex marriage law and pledged to be a “champion” for LGBT rights if elected to the at-large Council seat.
During the forum, several Mendelson supporters praised Ray as a highly qualified candidate. But they said it would be wrong not to stand behind Mendelson, a pro-LGBT Council member who has a record of support on a wide range of LGBT issues such as same-sex marriage equality, gay adoptions and domestic partnership laws during his nearly 12 years on the Council.
“Here in the District of Columbia, we have more rights as members of the LGBT community than we do in other states,” said transgender activist Jeri Hughes. “And it’s due to legislation from men like Phil Mendelson. So no matter how much I love Clark Ray, I’m not going to forget what Phil Mendelson has done and the progress that has been made in the District. I’m supporting Phil Mendelson.”
Ray, who also praised Mendelson for his role in helping pass the local same-sex marriage law, said he was running to bring change to a Council “status quo” that has impeded progress for city residents.
“I’m a firm believer that for a city to breathe and move forward, you need fresh leadership,” he said.
Ray pointed to his many years of experience in public service, including his work for Vice President Al Gore in the Clinton administration, his role as head of the constituent services office under former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and a similar post under Mayor Adrian Fenty. Ray also served as director of the Department of Parks & Recreation under Fenty.
“I have not asked any one of you to vote for me because I’m an openly gay man,” Ray told Stein Club members. “I want you to vote for me because I’m qualified.”
But Ray and his supporters also stressed that as an openly gay man, he would provide the LGBT community with another “seat at the table” in city government, where he would have a greater understanding of the needs and concerns of LGBT people.
“I’m not only a friend of the LGBT community, I am a member of that community,” he said.
If Ray wins the election, he would become the third openly gay person on the 13-member City Council. Gay Council members David Catania (I-At Large) and Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), who are running this year for re-election, are considered strong favorites to win another term on the Council.
Among the club members who spoke on Ray’s behalf at the Stein forum were Nick McCoy and Carlene Cheatam, two of the lead organizers of a coalition of local activists and city residents who lobbied the Council to pass the same-sex marriage law.
Among the club members supporting a Mendelson endorsement were lesbian activist Barbara Helmick and nationally recognized gay rights attorney Nancy Polikoff.
Polikoff told club members that while Mendelson’s work on the same-sex marriage law captured most of the community’s attention, he introduced and played a key role in passing a gay adoption law that is considered the most far-reaching such measure in the country.
“None of this would have happened without Phil,” she said.
Mendelson said after Stein Club members voted that he was honored to have won the club’s endorsement and he would continue his commitment to LGBT rights and causes.
During a question and answer period, one written question directed at Ray asked whether he would consider running for the other at-large Council seat that would become vacant if Kwame Brown wins his race for Council chairman.
Under the city’s election rules, the D.C. Democratic State Committee would appoint Kwame Brown’s interim replacement until a special election is held several months later. Ray said he’s running to win in his race against Mendelson but added that he would view a Council vacancy created by Kwame Brown’s possible election as Council chairman as a development “of interest” to him.
Several club members supporting Mendelson said they would back Ray for an at-large seat vacated by Brown.
Orange addresses flip
on same-sex marriage
In his opening remarks at the Stein forum, Orange addressed an issue he seemed to know would hurt him in his quest for the club’s endorsement: his stated opposition to same-sex marriage during his unsuccessful mayoral bid in 2006.
In a development that riled LGBT activists, Orange said then that any of his fellow candidates for mayor who backed a proposed same-sex marriage bill were not fit to hold public office.
“In 2006, I did say marriage was for a man and a woman,” he told Stein members Monday. “Now, in 2010, I strongly support the Marriage Equality Act.”
Orange added that he had a long record of support on LGBT civil rights issues during his tenure as a Ward 5 Council member and later in his post as an executive with the Potomac Electric Power Company, where he said he pushed for a company policy of providing benefits to employees’ domestic partners.
When gay activist Lane Hudson, a Kwame Brown supporter, questioned Orange’s commitment to same-sex marriage, Orange reiterated his support for the same-sex marriage law, calling it the “law of the land.”
“I made some mistakes that I’m not proud of,” he said, referring to his 2006 comment. Orange said he changed his position to support marriage equality “long before” he decided to enter the Council chairman’s race.
Kwame Brown was among the 11 Council members who voted for the same-sex marriage bill in December. He told Stein members he’s strongly committed to LGBT equality in all areas, not just marriage.
He noted that his commitment to same-sex marriage is “unwavering,” despite expressions of outrage against his vote on the marriage bill by some community activists and clergy members who opposed the bill.
In response to an audience question, Kwame Brown said he opposes a ballot measure proposed by same-sex marriage opponents that would allow city voters to decide whether to keep or overturn the law.
Orange said he supports the marriage law but did not say, after repeated requests to comment on the matter, what his position is on a possible ballot measure to overturn the marriage law.
“I’m not going to speculate on hypotheticals,” he said.
Ray told the Blade he was disappointed but not discouraged over the Stein Club’s decision to endorse Mendelson.
“This is not going to hinder me at all,” Ray said. “I’m in this thing for the long haul and I’m in this to win. I plan to take my message to all residents — gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, straight, questioning — all the residents of the District of Columbia.”
Although Michael Brown, the D.C. shadow senator, received no votes from Stein Club members in his bid for the at-large seat, some political observers have said he poses a potential problem for Ray.
Michael Brown the shadow senator, who is white, has the same name as popular at-large D.C. Council member Michael Brown, who is black and is the son of the late Democratic National Committee chair and Clinton administration official Ron Brown.
Some activists say a significant number of voters are likely to confuse shadow senator Brown with Council member Brown and mistakenly vote for shadow senator Brown in the at-large Council race.
This would hurt Ray, some political observers say, because voters likely to back the wrong Brown would not be supporters of Mendelson, who enjoys widespread name recognition citywide, but instead could be potential votes for Ray.
The city’s two shadow senators, along with one shadow representative, hold unpaid elected posts created by the city to advocate voting rights for the District. They are not members of Congress and have no congressional authority or duties.
Virginia
Prominent activists join ‘Living History’ panel at Freddie’s Beach Bar
Event organized by owner of new Friends of Dorothy Café in Alexandria
Six prominent LGBTQ community leaders and elders, including a beloved drag performer, talked about their role in advancing the rights of LGBTQ people and their thoughts on how the upcoming generation of LGBTQ youth should get ready to join the movement participated in an April 23 “Living History” panel discussion at Freddie’s Beach Bar.
The event was organized by Dorothy Edwards, who plans to open Friends of Dorothy Café in Alexandria. She said the café will be an LGBTQ community “intergenerational space” that will host events like the one she organized at Freddie’s Beach Bar.
“It will be a space for connection, storytelling, and belonging, especially for LGBTQ+ youth and community members who don’t always have places like that,” she said in a statement announcing the event at Freddie’s.
The six panelists at the Freddie’s event included Kierra Johnson, president of the D.C.-based National LGBTQ Task Force; Freddie Lutz, owner of Freddie’s Beach Bar located in the Crystal City section of Arlington, Va.; Donnell Robinson, who for many years performed in drag as the icon Ella Fitzgerald; Taylor Chandler Walker, a local transgender rights advocate, author and public speaker; Heidi Ellis, coordinator of the D.C. LGBTQ Budget Coalition; and Leti Gomez, an LGBTQ Latino community advocate and chair of the board of the American LGBTQ+ Museum.
Dr. Ashley Elliott, an LGBTQ community advocate and clinician who also goes by the name Dr. Vivid, served as moderator of the panel discussion, asking each of the panelists a serious of questions before opening the event to questions from the audience.
Among the issues discussed by the panelists was who was “centered” and who was excluded in the earlier years of LGBTQ organizing. Elliot also asked the panelists to address topics such as racism within queer spaces, gender dynamics, and strategies for coalition building between the LGBTQ community and other movements, including civil rights, feminism, and immigrant rights.
Each of the panelists expressed various thoughts on how the LGBTQ rights movement can make changes in response to the questions: “What can we do better?” and “Who is being left out?”
“I’m overwhelmed and so thankful that everyone on this panel said yes and agreed to come,” Edwards told the Washington Blade at the conclusion of the event. “I think every one of those people, including the moderator, was so brilliant and has done such good work for this community,” she said.
Edwards noted that each of the panelists, who have been involved in LGBTQ advocacy work for many years, talked about how they interact with younger LGBTQ people who are just beginning to become involved in activism.
“Truly, it’s an intergenerational conversation, and their wisdom and their words and their experiences can be disseminated to younger generations and people who want to do this work, people who want to fight for our community,” Edwards said.
“I was pleasantly surprised,” Lutz said. “I thought it was a good turnout, and everybody was very enthusiastic and engaged,” he said. “And I think it was great and fabulous.”
Lutz has operated Freddie’s Beach Bar for more than 25 years and has hosted numerous LGBTQ events. A sign above the front entrance door to the popular LGBTQ bar and restaurant says, “Straight Friendly Gay Bar.”
Peters said the April 23 event was recorded and she will make arrangements for the recording to be released for others to view it. The Blade will post the link in this story when it becomes available.
District of Columbia
Second trans member announces plans to resign from Capital Pride board
Zion Peters cites ‘lack of interest in the Black trans community’
Zion Peters, a member of the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors who identifies as transgender, told the Washington Blade he plans to resign from the board “due to the lack of interest in the trans community, specifically the Black trans community.”
Peters continued, “Nobody has checked on me in the last two months so that shows their level of unprofessionalism towards their board members and the community as a whole.”
If he resigns, Peters would be the second known trans person to resign from the Capital Pride board since February, when longtime trans activist Taylor Lianne Chandler informed the board of her resignation in a detailed letter that was sent to the Blade by an anonymous source.
Chandler, who served as chair of the Capital Pride Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, and Intersex Committee, stated in her Feb. 24 letter that she resigned from the board out of frustration that the board had failed to address instances of “sexual misconduct” within the Capital Pride organization. The organization’s and the board’s transgender-related policies were not cited in her letter as a reason for her resignation.
The Blade learned of Peters’s plans to resign from an anonymous source who thought Peters had already resigned along with four other board members identified by the anonymous source. The others, who Capital Pride confirmed this week had resigned, include Anthony Musa, Bob Gilchrist, Kaniya Walker, and Dai Nguyen.
Musa and Gilchrist told the Blade they resigned for personal reasons related to their jobs and that they fully support Capital Pride’s work as an organization that coordinates the city’s annual LGBTQ Pride events.
The Blade has been unable to reach Walker and Nguyen to determine their reasons for resigning.
Capital Pride CEO Ryan Bos and Board Chair Anna Jinkerson didn’t respond to a Blade question asking if they knew why Walker or Nguyen resigned.
In response to a request by the Blade for comment on the resignations and the concern raised by Zion Peters about trans-related issues, Bos and Jinkerson sent separate statements elaborating on the organization and the board’s position on various issues.
“We can confirm that the individuals you referenced, except for Zion, no longer serve on the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors,” Jinkerson said in her statement.
She added that following the WorldPride festival hosted by D.C. last May and June that was organized by Capital Pride Alliance, the group anticipated a “significant level of board transition,” with many board members reaching the end of their terms. But she said many board members chose to extend their service or apply for an additional term, showing a “powerful reflection of commitment.”
Without commenting on the specific reasons for the resignations of Peterson, Walker, and Nygun, Jinkerson noted, “As with all volunteer leadership roles, transitions occur for a range of personal and professional reasons, and we appreciate those transitions with both understanding and gratitude.”
In his own statement, Bos addressed Capital Pride’s record on transgender issues.
“The Capital Pride Alliance is committed to supporting and uplifting the Trans community through our work with the Trans Coalition under the Diversity of Prides Initiative, our partnership with Earline Budd on the LGBTQ+ Burial Fund with a focus on our Trans siblings, our collaboration with the National Trans Visibility March, and our ongoing investment in programming for Transgender Day of Visibility and Transgender Day of Remembrance,” Bos said in his statement.
“We also recognize there is always continued work to be done, and we always welcome feedback from our community to ensure our commitment remains unwavering,” he said.
At the time of her resignation in February, Chandler said she could not provide specific details of the instances of sexual misconduct to which she referred in her resignation letter, or who allegedly engaged in sexual misconduct, saying she and all other board members had signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement preventing them from disclosing further details.
Board Chair Jinkerson in a statement released at that time said she and the board were aware of Chandler’s concerns but did not specifically address allegations of sexual misconduct.
“When concerns are brought to CPA, we act quickly and appropriately to address them,” she said. “As we continue to grow as an organization, we’re proactively strengthening the policies and procedures that shape our systems, our infrastructure, and the support we provide to our team and partners,” she said.
Rehoboth Beach
Rehoboth Summer Kickoff Party set for May 15 with Ashley Biden
The Washington Blade’s 19th annual Summer Kickoff Party is scheduled for Friday, May 15 in Rehoboth Beach, Del.
Ashley Biden, daughter of President Joe Biden, has joined the list of speakers, the Blade announced. She will accept an award on behalf of her brother Beau Biden for his LGBTQ advocacy work as Delaware attorney general. (Her appearance was rescheduled from last year.)
The event, to be held this year at Diego’s (37298 Rehoboth Ave. Ext.) from 5-7 p.m., is a fundraiser for the Blade Foundation’s Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship in Journalism, which funds a summer position reporting on LGBTQ news in Delaware. This year’s recipient will be introduced at the event.
The event will also feature remarks from state Rep. Claire Snyder-Hall. New CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Dr. Robin Brennan and Blade editor Kevin Naff will also speak. The event is generously sponsored by Realtor Justin Noble, The Avenue Inn & Spa, and Diego’s.
A suggested donation of $25 is partially tax deductible and includes a drink ticket and light appetizers. Tickets are available in advance at bladefoundation.org/rehoboth or at the door.
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