National
DOJ appeals lesbian Air Force officer’s reinstatement
But Witt able to resume service in U.S. military
The Obama administration is appealing a federal district court’s decision to reinstate back into the U.S. Air Force a lesbian nurse who was discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
On Tuesday, the U.S. Justice Department filed an appeal notice with the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals asking the appellate body to reconsider a decision by a Washington State district court to allow Maj. Margaret Witt back into the Air Force.
The three-page notice gives no explanation for why the Obama administration is appealing Witt v. Air Force and simply states that “notice is hereby given” that the Justice Department has made the filing.
In September, U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Leighton ruled that Witt, who was discharged in 2006 after serving in the Air Force for 19 years as a flight nurse, should be allowed back into the military.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said in a statement the administration filed the appeal as it “traditionally does when acts of Congress have been held unconstitutional,” but said this filing “in no way diminishes” President Obama’s commitment to repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” legislatively this year.
“Indeed, it clearly shows why Congress must act to end this misguided policy,” Gibbs added.
Gibbs said the president and administration officials “have been working with the Senate” to move forward during the lame duck session with passage of the fiscal year 2011 defense authorization bill, which contains repeal language.
But Jon Davidson, legal director for Lambda Legal, blasted the Obama adminstration for appealing to a higher court the decision to reinstate Witt.
“Notwithstanding President Obama’s concession that the military’s current anti-gay policies are hurting national security, his administration is continuing to pursue the discharge of a decorated officer who did not ‘tell,’ who would not have even been investigated under the military’s current guidelines, and whose discharge has been found not to promote unit cohesion or morale,” Davidson said.
Davidson called the decision to appeal the district court’s ruling — in addition to not suspending discharges pending review of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell — a “significant failure on the part of our nation’s Commander in Chief.”
Doug NeJaime, who’s gay and a law professor at Loyola Law School, said he thinks the decision to appeal the Witt ruling is consistent with the Obama administration’s decision to appeal U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Phillip’s recent ruling that struck down “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
“So just as the government is appealing the substance of Judge Philip’s decision …, the government is appealing the substantive decision here as well,” NeJaime said. “While disappointing, it is in some ways consistent with the appeal in Log Cabin Republicans.”
In a statement, Witt said she’s “thrilled” to be able to resume her service in the Air Force and said the people in her unit “are like family members.”
“Thousands of men and women who are gay and lesbian honorably serve this country in our military,” she said. “Many people forget that the U.S. military is the most diverse workforce in the world — we are extremely versed in adaptation.”
According to the ACLU of Washington, which represented Witt in the litigation, Witt will be the first openly gay person to serve in the military due to a court order.
NeJaime said he thinks the Obama administration’s decision not to seek a stay on Witt’s reinstatement as it appeals the case is the result of pressure to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
“Given all the pressure on the administration in light of the failed attempts to repeal [‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’], it seems appropriate that the government would not seek to prevent Major Witt’s service pending appeal,” NeJaime said.
Federal Government
UPenn erases Lia Thomas’s records as part of settlement with White House
University agreed to ban trans women from women’s sports teams
In a settlement with the Trump-Vance administration announced on Tuesday, the University of Pennsylvania will ban transgender athletes from competing and erase swimming records set by transgender former student Lia Thomas.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found the university in violation of Title IX, the federal rights law barring sex based discrimination in educational institutions, by “permitting males to compete in women’s intercollegiate athletics and to occupy women-only intimate facilities.”
The statement issued by University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson highlighted how the law’s interpretation was changed substantially under President Donald Trump’s second term.
“The Department of Education OCR investigated the participation of one transgender athlete on the women’s swimming team three years ago, during the 2021-2022 swim season,” he wrote. “At that time, Penn was in compliance with NCAA eligibility rules and Title IX as then interpreted.”
Jameson continued, “Penn has always followed — and continues to follow — Title IX and the applicable policy of the NCAA regarding transgender athletes. NCAA eligibility rules changed in February 2025 with Executive Orders 14168 and 14201 and Penn will continue to adhere to these new rules.”
Writing that “we acknowledge that some student-athletes were disadvantaged by these rules” in place while Thomas was allowed to compete, the university president added, “We recognize this and will apologize to those who experienced a competitive disadvantage or experienced anxiety because of the policies in effect at the time.”
“Today’s resolution agreement with UPenn is yet another example of the Trump effect in action,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, UPenn has agreed both to apologize for its past Title IX violations and to ensure that women’s sports are protected at the university for future generations of female athletes.”
Under former President Joe Biden, the department’s Office of Civil Rights sought to protect against anti-LGBTQ discrimination in education, bringing investigations and enforcement actions in cases where school officials might, for example, require trans students to use restrooms and facilities consistent with their birth sex or fail to respond to peer harassment over their gender identity.
Much of the legal reasoning behind the Biden-Harris administration’s positions extended from the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County, which found that sex-based discrimination includes that which is based on sexual orientation or gender identity under Title VII rules covering employment practices.
The Trump-Vance administration last week put the state of California on notice that its trans athlete policies were, or once were, in violation of Title IX, which comes amid the ongoing battle with Maine over the same issue.
New York
Two teens shot steps from Stonewall Inn after NYC Pride parade
One of the victims remains in critical condition
On Sunday night, following the annual NYC Pride March, two girls were shot in Sheridan Square, feet away from the historic Stonewall Inn.
According to an NYPD report, the two girls, aged 16 and 17, were shot around 10:15 p.m. as Pride festivities began to wind down. The 16-year-old was struck in the head and, according to police sources, is said to be in critical condition, while the 17-year-old was said to be in stable condition.
The Washington Blade confirmed with the NYPD the details from the police reports and learned no arrests had been made as of noon Monday.
The shooting took place in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, mere feet away from the most famous gay bar in the city — if not the world — the Stonewall Inn. Earlier that day, hundreds of thousands of people marched down Christopher Street to celebrate 55 years of LGBTQ people standing up for their rights.
In June 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn, members of the LGBTQ community pushed back, sparking what became known as the Stonewall riots. Over the course of two days, LGBTQ New Yorkers protested the discriminatory policing of queer spaces across the city and mobilized to speak out — and throw bottles if need be — at officers attempting to suppress their existence.
The following year, LGBTQ people returned to the Stonewall Inn and marched through the same streets where queer New Yorkers had been arrested, marking the first “Gay Pride March” in history and declaring that LGBTQ people were not going anywhere.
New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, whose district includes Greenwich Village, took to social media to comment on the shooting.
“After decades of peaceful Pride celebrations — this year gun fire and two people shot near the Stonewall Inn is a reminder that gun violence is everywhere,” the lesbian lawmaker said on X. “Guns are a problem despite the NRA BS.”
New York
Zohran Mamdani participates in NYC Pride parade
Mayoral candidate has detailed LGBTQ rights platform
Zohran Mamdani, the candidate for mayor of New York City who pulled a surprise victory in the primary contest last week, walked in the city’s Pride parade on Sunday.
The Democratic Socialist and New York State Assembly member published photos on social media with New York Attorney General Letitia James, telling followers it was “a joy to march in NYC Pride with the people’s champ” and to “see so many friends on this gorgeous day.”
“Happy Pride NYC,” he wrote, adding a rainbow emoji.
Mamdani’s platform includes a detailed plan for LGBTQ people who “across the United States are facing an increasingly hostile political environment.”
His campaign website explains: “New York City must be a refuge for LGBTQIA+ people, but private institutions in our own city have already started capitulating to Trump’s assault on trans rights.
“Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis confronting working class people across the city hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard, with higher rates of unemployment and homelessness than the rest of the city.”
“The Mamdani administration will protect LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers by expanding and protecting gender-affirming care citywide, making NYC an LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city, and creating the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.”
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