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Gay physician to host private D.C. Obama fundraiser
Event takes place one day before president attends HRC gala
The party invitation. (Image courtesy Facebook event page)
President Barack Obama is scheduled to be the guest of honor at an exclusive fundraising dinner for his re-election campaign Friday night at the Georgetown home of gay physician and businessman James D’Orta.
An announcement of the event on Facebook says participants are being asked to contribute $35,800 per person to attend a pre-dinner photo reception, the dinner itself, and a “VIP clutch” with the president.
Those attending the photo reception and dinner only are being asked to contribute $35,800 per couple and those attending just the pre-dinner reception are asked to contribute $10,000 per person, according to the Facebook announcement.
“We were elated to learn that President Barack Obama will once again keynote the Human Rights Campaign Dinner in Washington, D.C.,” said former HRC President Elizabeth Birch and HRC board member Terry Bean in a written message included in the Facebook announcement.
“Many of our closest friends will be in town for the 3,000 person, sold-out event this Saturday, Oct. 1,” Birch and Bean wrote in the announcement. “What is even more exciting, though, is that the president will be attending a small private LGBT-related event on Friday night, September 30, at the beautiful home of Dr. James D’Orta in Washington,” the two said.
“This will be a special moment to thank the president for his continued commitment to achieving full equality for LGBT Americans and to ensure he has the support necessary to make that goal a reality,” said Birch and Bean. “If you are able to attend at any of these levels, please RSVP today.”
Birch, Bean, and former HRC staff member and gay Catholic activist Phil Attey are identified in the announcement as people who created the Facebook page to promote the event.
D’Orta is well known in gay rights circles as a contributor to LGBT- and AIDS-related causes as well as other charitable endeavors. He is founder, CEO and chairman of Consumer Health Services, Inc., a D.C.-based physicians consulting firm. He’s also a longtime supporter of the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates for public office, including gay former D.C. Council candidate Clark Ray.
D’Orta’s upscale townhouse in Georgetown, where he lives with his partner and three kids, was once the home of the late New York governor, diplomat, and Democratic Party leader Averell Harriman.
Gay Democratic activist Peter Rosenstein, who is a friend of D’Orta’s, said the dinner isn’t an exclusively gay event and a number of straight Obama supporters were expected to attend. He said the Obama campaign is organizing the event.
Photos
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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