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
Gay 1920s-era Hollywood star to be honored in Staunton, Va.
Billy Haines became acclaimed designer after anti-gay policies ended his acting career
A project is underway in Staunton, Va., to honor William ‘Billy’ Haines, who was born and raised in Staunton before becoming an out gay 1920s and early 1930s-era Hollywood movie star whose acting career ended around 1934 when he refused demands that he conceal his sexual orientation and end his relationship with his male partner.
Haines left the movie business around that time to start what became a highly successful interior design and furniture business in Los Angeles that he led until his death in 1972 at age 72, and which remains in business today, according to the Arcadia Project, a Staunton-based nonprofit initiative.
In a statement released last month, Arcadia Project announced it is working to revitalize a long-vacant movie theater in downtown Staunton that it plans to rename after Haines. It says a fundraising campaign is under way to support efforts to reopen the theater and the larger building in which it is housed as a “dynamic mixed-use cultural center.”
The statement notes that Haines left Staunton at age 14 and resided in Hopewell, Va., and Greenwich Village in New York City until 1922, when he was “discovered” by a talent scout and sent to Hollywood.
“Between 1922 and 1934, Haines appeared in 54 movies during his meteoric and highly successful career,” the Arcadia Project statement continues, noting he transitioned from silent movies to talkies and was fully open about being gay. “But when Hollywood’s moral crackdown of the 1930s demanded that he end his relationship with his longtime partner Jimmie Shields, Haines refused,” it says.
“For LGBTQ people – then and now – Haines’s choice resonates deeply. Rather than deny who he was, he reinvented himself as an interior designer to the stars,” according to the statement.
It says he helped invent the so-called Hollywood Regency style home and designed homes for Hollywood legends such as Joan Crawford, Gloria Swanson, Carole Lombard, George Cukor, and Jack Warner as well as for political figures like Ronald Reagan when he was governor of California.
“As there is no monument, marker or public recognition for Haines in his hometown of Staunton, Va., Arcadia Project, in collaboration with the LGBTQ+ community in Staunton seeks to commemorate him inside a new cultural center,” the statement says.
It quotes Arcadia Project Executive Director Pamela Mason Wagner as saying, “Naming the movie theater in Haines’ honor is more than an act of historical recognition – it is a powerful statement about visibility, belonging, and whose stories are valued in our community.”
The statement says project leaders hope to open the cultural center in early 2027, with a fundraising campaign seeking to raise $250,000 to renovate the theater.
“If the full goal is not reached, a smaller space within the building will be named for Haines, scaled to the amount of funds raised,” it says. “We truly hope friends and admirers of Billy Haines everywhere will want to participate.”
Donations for the project can be made through this site: www.thearcadiaproject.org
District of Columbia
Your queer D.C. voting guide
June 16 primary nears; Lewis George, McDuffie lead in polling for mayor
LGBTQ voters in the nation’s capital are choosing among a long list of LGBTQ supportive candidates running for mayor, D.C. City Council, and the position of D.C. Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives in the city’s June 16 primary election.
LGBTQ activists who have spoken to the Washington Blade appear to be divided in their support for the two leading Democratic candidates for mayor – D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4) and former D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large) in a seven-candidate race.
Among the other five Democratic mayoral candidates is Rini Sampath, a cyber security consultant who told the Blade she identifies as queer.
“We’re living in an extremely diverse community, an extremely unique community,” she told the Blade. “And being able to self-label, self-identify as queer is something that I just want to take pride in.”
But a poll conducted by the Washington Post and George Mason University’s School of Policy and Government released on June 5 shows Sampath receiving just 3 percent in a sample of likely voters in the D.C. Democratic primary.
The poll, conducted from May 27-June 1, shows Lewis George leading in the mayoral primary with 36 percent compared to McDuffie, who had 25 percent. However, 25 percent of those polled were undecided in the mayoral race, according to the Post, indicating at least some of the undecided voters could go to McDuffie.
“Undecided voters are concentrated among groups that lean toward McDuffie, including moderates, Black voters and those ages 65 and older,” the Post story reporting on the poll states.
Another factor making it more difficult to predict the election outcome is the start in this year’s D.C. primary of ranked choice voting, which enables voters to select as many as five candidates on their ballot as their first through fifth choice depending on how many candidates are running for a specific office, including the office of mayor.
The ranked choice process takes effect if no candidate receives at least 50 percent of the vote in a race with three or more candidates and serves as an instant run-off using voters’ second-choice or third or more choice votes until one candidate receives 50 percent of the vote.
In what appears to support the belief of many local political observers that Lewis George and McDuffie are the two leading mayoral candidates, the poll shows the remaining candidates receiving less than 5 percent.
They include former D.C. Council member Vincent Orange with 4 percent, local real estate manager and developer Gary Goodweather with 3 percent, and former U.S. Department of Homeland Security contractor Hope Solomon and real estate broker and Ward 1 community activist Ernest Johnson each receiving 1 percent.
Goodweather, a political newcomer, has attended LGBTQ events in his mayoral campaign and has expressed strong support on LGBTQ issues.
With that as a backdrop, the Capital Stonewall Democrats, the city’s largest LGBTQ political group, has endorsed Lewis George for mayor and GLAA DC, formerly known as the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, awarded Lewis George its highest candidate rating score of +10.
GLAA said it did not issue a rating for McDuffie because his campaign did not return a GLAA candidate questionnaire on which it bases its ratings. A spokesperson for the McDuffie campaign said campaign workers later discovered the questionnaire landed in the spam folder of their email account and McDuffie would have returned it had he received it.
At GLAA’s invitation, McDuffie completed the questionnaire and GLAA has posted it with its full responses to a list of 10 questions on the GLAA website along with the questionnaire responses from other candidates, including Lewis George. Like Lewis George, McDuffie expressed strong support for a wide range of LGBTQ issues in his responses, but GLAA said it could not issue a rating for him due to the missed deadline for submitting the questionnaire.
According to GLAA, just two other mayoral candidates returned the questionnaire and received a rating. Sampath received a +6.5 rating, and Johnson received a rating of +4.5. Under the GLAA rating system, a -10 is the lowest possible rating, with a +10 being the highest.
D.C. Board of Elections records show that no Republican candidate is running for mayor and one Statehood Green Party candidate – Robert L. Gross – is running unopposed on the primary ballot for voters registered as Statehood Green Party members. GLAA’s website shows Gross did not receive a rating under the group’s policy of not rating candidates that do not return the questionnaire.
The Statehood Green Party and its candidates for local D.C. offices have historically been supportive of LGBTQ rights.
LGBTQ activists who are backing Lewis George or McDuffie appear to be gravitating to the two based on their political leadings separate from LGBTQ issues, just like voters in general. Lewis George, who identifies as a Democratic Socialist, is popular among progressive voters.
McDuffie, who is seen as a more moderate candidate like current D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, is being supported by LGBTQ activists who hold those views, some of whom currently work in the Bowser administration.
Among Lewis George’s LGBTQ supporters are longtime Ward 8 community leader Phillip Pannell and former Capital Stonewall Democrats President Howard Garrett. Among the LGBTQ McDuffie backers are longtime D.C. Democratic activists John Fanning and David Meadows.
“The rights of LGBTQ residents in our country are under attack,” Pannell told the Blade. “We need a mayor of our nation’s capital who will be a progressive voice and force in standing up for our rights and advancing the quality of life for our community,” he said. “That is one of the reasons I enthusiastically support Janeese Lewis George for mayor.”
Fanning, a member of the staff of D.C. Council member Anita Bonds (D-At-Large), said he has observed McDuffie’s work on the Council firsthand. “He has been out and upfront on many of our issues and he has been an ally to our community,” Fanning said. “And I feel more comfortable with his judgements when it comes to city policy,” Fanning said, adding, “And I sense he has more of a pulse on how to grow our economy.”
In the race for D.C. Delegate to the U.S. House, five Democrats are competing in the June 16 primary, including D.C. Council members Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) and Robert White (D-At-Large). Pinto and White have been outspoken supporters of the LGBTQ community. Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed White.
Also running as Democrats for the congressional seat are community activists Kinney Zalesne, Trent Holbrook, and Greg Jaczko, who have expressed support for LGBTQ issues at candidate forums. Denise Rosado is running unopposed for the congressional seat as a Republican, and Kymone Freeman is running unopposed as a Statehood Green Party candidate in the primary.
Under D.C.’s “closed” primary system voters can only vote for a candidate for a specific political party if they are registered members of that party in the primary. In the general election in November, voters can vote for any candidate regardless of party affiliation.
GLAA has said it does not issue candidate ratings for the D.C. Delegate position, which has been held for many years by Democratic incumbent Eleanor Holmes Norton, who announced earlier this year that she is retiring and not running for re-election. Norton has been a longtime outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter.
D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), also a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter, is running unopposed for re-election in the Democratic primary, He received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +6.5 rating from GLAA.
Nine Democrats are running for the At-Large D.C. Council seat currently held by Bonds, who is also retiring and not running for re-election. Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed local pharmacist, community activist, and LGBTQ ally Oye Owolewa, who received a +9 rating from GLAA.
The other Democrats running for the at-large seat who received a rating from GLAA include Lisa Raymond, +7.5; Dwight Davis, +6.5; Dyana Forester, +6; and Fred Hill, +5.5.
Board of Elections ballot records show that Darrell Green is running unopposed for the at-large seat in the Republican Primary and Darryl Moch is running unopposed in the primary as a Statehood Green Party candidate.
In the Ward 1 D.C. Council race, five LGBTQ supportive candidates are competing in the Democratic primary, including two LGBTQ candidates – gay rights activist Miguel Trindade Deramo and bi candidate Aparna Raj. The Ward 1 seat became vacant when incumbent Democrat Brianne Nadeau announced she was not running for re-election.
Capital Stonewall Democrats announced it did not make an endorsement in the Ward 1 race because the endorsement vote by its members was divided and none of the candidates received a required 60 percent of the vote for an endorsement.
GLAA awarded its highest +10 rating to both Deramo and Raj as well as to Ward 1 Democratic candidate Rashida Brown. It assigned a rating of +5.5 to candidate Terry Lynch but did not issue a rating for the fifth Democratic candidate – Jackie Reyes Yanes, who did not return the GLAA questionnaire.
The group didn’t issue ratings for Ward 1 Republican candidate Jett James Jasper or Statehood Green Party candidate Jude Cranniitch, both of whom are running unopposed. GLAA has said it sent out its questionnaire to all candidates listed by the Board of Elections to be placed on the ballot and does not rate those who do not return the questionnaire.
In the Ward 3 D.C. Council race, incumbent Council member Matthew Fruman (D), also an outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter, is running unopposed in the Democratic primary, with no GOP or Statehood Green Party candidate running in the primary. Fruman received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement but was not rated by GLAA.
In the Ward 5 Council race, incumbent Zachary Parker, the Council’s only gay member, is being challenged by two Democrats in the primary – community activists Bernita Carmichael and Bridget French. Parker received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +7 rating from GLAA. Carmichael and French did not receive a GLAA rating.
Political observers in the ward believe Parker is the favorite to win the primary as well as the general election in November, when he will be challenged by Republican Jeffrey Kihien-Palza and Statehood Green Party candidate Joyce Robinson-Paul, who are running unopposed in their party primaries on June 16.
In Ward 6, incumbent Council member Charles Allen (D). a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter, received the Capital Stonewall Democrats endorsement and a +6.75 rating from GLAA. He is being challenged in the primary by Democrats Gloria Ann Nauden and Michael Murphy. Ward 6 political observers consider Allen the strong favorite to win the primary and the general election, when he will be challenged by Republican Jorge Rice, who is running unopposed in the GOP primary. No Statehood Green Party candidate is running for the Ward 6 Council seat.
Capital Stonewall Democrats did not make an endorsement for the D.C. Council special election for the At-Large Council seat that became vacant when then-independent Council member McDuffie resigned to enable him to run for mayor as a Democrat. Under the city’s Home Rule Charter adopted by Congress, that At-Large seat is restricted to a “non-majority party” candidate, meaning a non-Democrat.
The three candidates running for the seat, all independents, include incumbent Doni Crawford, who was temporarily appointed to the seat earlier this year; former D.C. Council member Elisa Silverman; and Jacque Patterson, president of the D.C. Board of Education. All three have expressed support for LGBTQ issues. GLAA issued a +6.5 rating for Crawford and a +5.75 rating for Silverman.
In the race for D.C. Attorney General, Capital Stonewall Democrats has endorsed incumbent Brian Schwalb, who is an outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter. He is being challenged in the Democratic primary by D.C. attorney and law firm partner J.P. Szymkowicz, who is a Ward 3 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner.
Attorney and local law firm partner Manuel Rivera is running unopposed for the Attorney General office in the Republican primary. No Statehood Green Party candidate is running for the AG post. GLAA issued a rating of +4.5 for Rivera but did not issue ratings for Schwalb or Szymkowicz.
Finally, in the race for the so-called “shadow” D.C. U.S. Senator and D.C. U.S. Representative—offices with no voting or official authority in Congress that were created to lobby Congress on behalf of D.C. issues—Capital Stonewall Democrats did not make an endorsement. In the Democratic primary Paul Strauss is running unopposed for the shadow U.S. Senate seat and Franklin Garcia is running unopposed for the shadow U.S. House seat. Both have been LGBTQ rights supporters.
No Republican or Statehood Green Party candidates are running for either of the two “shadow” positions. GLAA does not issue ratings for the two positions.
Following are short excerpts from the detailed statements four of the seven Democratic mayoral candidates submitted to the Capital Stonewall Democrats or the Washington Blade.
Kenyan McDuffie: “As mayor, every piece of legislation I sign, craft, or endorse should also encompass the interest and input of the LGBTQ community members and advocates…From housing to health care and everything in between… We have a dire crisis regarding the rise in homelessness especially among the youth in our LGBTQ communities. In my administration that simply cannot be the status quo and will not be…I have been a consistent champion for our LGBTQ community and will remain so as mayor of D.C.”
Janeese Lewis George: “As mayor, I will protect our LGBTQ+ neighbors against federal attacks on their identity, including their health care…On the Council I have been a strong supporter of pro-LGBTQ+ bills, including making D.C. a sanctuary for people seeking gender-affirming health care as well as addressing discrimination and harassment in nightlife and hospitality…And as mayor, I am prepared to move up and win those fights – a fight for D.C. statehood, a fight for our true economy, and a real opportunity to uplift our Black queer and trans youth.”
Gary Goodweather: “A Goodweather administration will defend every D.C. law protecting LGBTQ residents. I will establish a Defend DC office to coordinate the District’s legal and public response to federal overreach, with LGBTQ+ protections explicitly within its mandate…My affordable D.C. plan will produce 50,000 new homes with 36,000 affordable units, and I will ensure LGBTQ+ youth housing programs are funded as a budget priority.”
Rini Sampath: “I am an immigrant, proud queer woman, and a 10-year resident of Washington, D.C…For me, LGBTQ+ voters including transgender and nonbinary residents, are not a separate or symbolic constituency; they are a core part of a broader, multiracial, cross-ward coalition rooted in equity and opportunity.”
Vincent Orange: “I have a long and consistent record of supporting LGBTQ+ equality and inclusion in the District of Columbia, grounded in both policy and personal commitment. As the District’s Democratic Committeeman from 2006 to 2015, I publicly supported marriage equality and voted accordingly … During my time on the D.C. Council, I worked to advance protections for LGBTQ+ residents, including authoring and passing legislation to prohibit discrimination against transgender individuals in the workplace.”
15 LGBTQ candidates running for Democratic State Committee
At least 15 known LGBTQ candidates are running for seats on the D.C. Democratic State Committee in the city’s June 16 Democratic primary.
Under local Democratic Party rules, the State Committee includes a total of 38 members, half of whom must be women and half of whom consist of men. The highest two positions include National Committeeman and National Committeewoman. Other positions include seven At-Large Committee men and seven At-Large Committee women, and two Committee men and two Committee women for reach of the city’s eight wards.
Democratic primary voters can vote for as many as seven At-Large male and At-Large female candidates and for two male and two female candidates in each of the ward committee races.
The known LGBTQ Democratic State Committee candidates are as follows:
National Committeeman
Phillip Pannell, Free DC Slate
David Meadows, Democrats United to Free DC slate
At-Large Committeeman
Jordan Kagelmayer, Free DC slate
Malake Glee, Free DC slate
At-Large Committeewoman
Lia Lake Kuduk, Free DC slate
Sonya Joseph, Free DC slate
Ward 1 Committeewoman
Vita Rangel, Free DC slate
Ward 2 Committeeman
Steven M. McCarty, Free DC slate
John Fanning, Democrats United to Free DC
Ward 3 Committeeman
Kurt Vorndran, Democrats United to Free DC slate
Michaell Haresign, Democrats United to Free DC slate
Ward 4 Committeewoman
Corey Welcher
Ward 7 Committeeman
Jimie Williams, Democrats to Free DC slate
Ward 8 Committeeman
Alejaibra Sloan, Free DC slate
Pride month festivities continue through the end of the month and there’s a new event for Rehoboth/Dewey Beach residents and visitors, Pride on the Bay, set for June 27.
Boaters will tie up at the sandbar near Massey’s Landing from 12-4 p.m. Visit Pride on the Bay’s Facebook page for a map of the exact location. You can rent pontoons for the day at Dewey Beach Watersports (deweybeachwatersports.com).
Aqua Bar & Grill is sponsoring the inaugural event and will provide a floating DJ for the afternoon. Aqua will then host an after-party back on land (57 Baltimore Ave., Rehoboth Beach).
Local part-time resident Brian Sparrow is organizing the gathering, citing the need for more Pride-oriented events at the beach.
“I decided to create an event in June for Pride month,” Sparrow told the Blade. “There aren’t many Pride events in Rehoboth and Dewey where we can take advantage of the Rehoboth Bay.”
He noted that there is another event called “Bay Pride” but that it is held in late summer on a Sunday. “Having the event on Saturday will allow for more boat renting options for visitors and friends to join,” Sparrow said, adding that he plans to make this an annual event.
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