Local
Effort underway to award Kameny Freedom Medal
Activists say highest civilian honor should go to gay legend
Frank Kameny (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
An effort is under way to have gay activist Frank Kameny honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, from the White House.
Long-time San Francisco-based activist/blogger Michael Petrelis is unofficially spearheading the effort. He says Kameny is highly deserving.
“He is a civic-minded American who has brought America more freedom through his activism,” Petrelis said. “Listen, Frank is 86 years old. Before I was even born, he was doing gay activism work at a very dangerous time … if you want to go through all the things he’s done over the years, we’d be here for the next two hours.”
Widely considered one of the most influential figures in early gay liberation, Kameny was fired from the Army Map Service in 1957 for being gay. He protested it and argued his case to the Supreme Court. In 1961 he and fellow activist Jack Nichols co-founded the Mattachine Society of Washington and by 1965, he was picketing at the White House and Philadelphia’s Independence Hall for gay rights, among many other activities over the years.
Petrelis says his friend Bob Roehr, a D.C.-based journalist, suggested the idea to Petrelis two years ago. It hadn’t occurred to Petrelis, but he immediately thought it was a great idea. He’s hoping some of the national LGBT rights groups — he mentions Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal and the Task Force — will pick up the effort. Several have commented on Petrelis’ site that they agree it’s a great idea, including Kameny colleague Charles Francis, London’s Peter Tatchell and law professor Art Leonard.
“Few people are as deserving of the Presidential Medal of Freedom as Dr. Franklin Kameny,” wrote Richard Sincere, president of Virginia-based Gays and Lesbians for Individual Liberty. “At a time when nobody stood up for the rights of America’s gay and lesbian citizens, Dr. Kameny rose to the task.”
The effort, though, has not been without controversy. When Petrelis floated the idea in the comments section of a recent Blade article about a new White House interim LGBT liaison, some said the community has more pressing concerns.
“Kameny’s been honored plenty over the years,” wrote New Jersey-based trans activist Rebecca Juro. “And this isn’t something [that] should be high on our community’s agenda. What should be top on the agenda is that we still live in a country where in 29 states you can still be fired or thrown out of your home just for being gay and in 35 just for being transgender.”
Kameny concedes his house is overflowing with accolades. One wall in his upstairs office is covered in plaques. There’s another mountain in a spare bedroom that haven’t been hung yet. A table in the dining room is full of freestanding trophies and mementos such as White House pens used to sign significant gay-related legislation. A spare D.C. street sign designating three blocks of 17th Street N.W. in his honor is propped up on a living room sofa.
Kameny says he would be highly honored if the White House chose to award him the medal, which comes in the form of star medallion surrounded by gold eagles attached to a blue-and-white ribbon.
“It would be very nice,” Kameny said. “It would sort of tie up what has been a very long effort and it would leave me feeling very content. I’m deeply appreciative of Michael Petrelis’ effort.”
The White House has been noncommittal on the matter. Outgoing White House LGBT liaison Brian Bond told Petrelis that Kameny’s name was “in consideration.”
“He sent me about 25 words in the tersest of statements back in 2009 when I first proposed the idea, then I’ve never heard from him ever again about this,” Petrelis says. White House spokesperson Shin Inouye said in an e-mail this week, “the best we can do is point you to the website.”
Lesbian tennis legend Billie Jean King has been awarded the Medal of Freedom. Harvey Milk, the slain pioneering member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, was awarded the medal posthumously.
Kameny says he hopes he’s most remembered for coining the phrase “gay is good.”
Virginia
Black transgender woman murdered in Va.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray killed in Petersburg on March 13
A Black transgender woman was murdered in Petersburg, Va., on March 13.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray, who was also known as Mable, was a drag queen who won the Miss Mayflower EOY pageant in 2015. Reports also indicate she was a well-known community activist in Virginia and in North Carolina.
Local media reports indicate police officers found Sanchez-McCray, 42, shot to death inside a home in Petersburg. These initial media reports also misgendered her.
“My heart is shattered and heavy with grief at the news of Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray’s murder — the first trans life stolen from us this year,” said Victoria Kirby York, director of public policy and programs for the National Black Justice Coalition, in a statement.
Kirby York in her statement also criticized the media coverage of Sanchez-McCray’s murder.
“The early reports of Shyyell’s death stripped her of her identity by misgendering her, a deeply damaging and persistent failure by law enforcement and media that haunts these cases again and again,” she said. “Misgendering doesn’t just erase a person’s truth — it can derail justice entirely, or worse, bury a case in silence as investigators chase the wrong identity, the wrong face, the wrong name.”
Authorities have not made any arrests.
The Petersburg Bureau of Police has asked anyone with information about Sanchez-McCray’s murder to call Petersburg-Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at 804-861-1212.
District of Columbia
Trans Day of Visibility events planned
Rally on the National Mall scheduled for Saturday
The Christopher Street Project has a number of events planned for the 2026 Trans Day of Visibility, including a rally on the Mall and an “Empowerment Ball” at the Eaton Hotel. Plenaries, panel discussions and meetings with members of Congress are scheduled in the three days of programming.
Announced speakers include N.H. state Rep. Alice Wade; Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Precious Brady-Davis; activist and performer Miss Peppermint (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”); Lexington, Ky. Councilwoman Emma Curtis; Rabbi Abby Stein; D.C. activist and host Rayceen Pendarvis; Air Force Master Sgt. Logan Ireland; among other leaders, advocates and performers.
Conference programming on Thursday and Friday includes an educational forum and a Capitol Hill policy education day. Registration for the two-day conference has closed.
The “Trans Day of Visibility PAC Reception” is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 from 7:30-9 p.m. at As You Are (500 8th St., S.E.). Special guests include Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada) and Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Tickets are available at christopherstreetproject.org starting at $25.
The National Council of Jewish Women and the Christopher Street Project host a “Trans Day of Visibility Shabbat” on Friday, March 27 from 7-8 p.m. at Sixth & I (600 I St., N.W.). The service is to be led by Rabbi Jenna Shaw and Rabbi Abby Stein.
The “Now You See Me: Trans Empowerment Social & Ball” is scheduled for Friday, March 27 from 6-11 p.m. at the Eaton Hotel (1201 K. St., N.W.). The trans-themed drag ball is hosted by the Marsha P. Johnson Institute with support from the D.C. Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs, the Capital Ballroom Council, the Christopher Street Project, the Center for Black Equity, Generation for Common Good, and Parenting is Political. RSVP online at christopherstreetproject.org.
The National Transgender Day of Visibility Rally is scheduled for Saturday, March 28 on the National Mall at 11 a.m. The rally will include speakers and performances. Following the rally, attendees are encouraged to participate in the “No Kings” rally being held at Anacostia Park.
Virginia
Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ends
Voters in November will consider repealing marriage amendment
The Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ended on March 14.
Lawmakers have yet to approve a budget, but they did pass a resolution that paves the way for a referendum on whether to repeal the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Lawmakers also advanced House Bill 60, which would protect PrEP users from insurance discrimination.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger has until April 13 to decide to pass, amend, or veto legislation before it goes back to the House of Delegates on April 22.
Spanberger on Feb. 6 signed the bill that sets the stage for the marriage amendment referendum. Voters will consider whether to “remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law?”
Equality Virginia has been working during this legislative cycle to urge lawmakers to allocate funding towards LGBTQ rights. The budget would expand funding for schools, competency training for the 988 suicide hotline, and funding to provide gender affirming care to LGBTQ youth.
“As the budget moves through conference and the Reconvene Session approaches on April 22, Equality Virginia remains focused on ensuring our victories this session translate into durable protections,” Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Progress on marriage equality, nondiscrimination protections, and HIV care funding was essential, but Virginia must do more.”
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