Local
Donations sought for Kameny funeral
Friends, activists developing plans for public ceremony
Friends of Frank Kameny, who died last week, expect a funeral to be held within the next two weeks. (Photo by Joe Tresh)
Friends who worked closely with veteran gay activist Frank Kameny are asking the community to contribute to a local LGBT-oriented charitable group to help it meet the cost of Kameny’s funeral, which they say is expected to be held within the next two weeks.
The group, Helping Our Brothers and Sisters (HOBS), has assisted Kameny for the past year or two, helping him meet basic household needs such as the delivery of groceries, assistance in paying utility and property tax bills, and providing transportation to and from community events, according to HOBS co-founder and President Marvin Carter.
Kameny, one of the nation’s most prominent gay rights advocates, died in his home in Washington on Oct. 11 at the age of 86.
Messages of condolence over his passing continue to pour in from across the country. Nearly all major news media outlets have published obituaries recognizing Kameny as a leading figure in the LGBT rights movement over the past 50 years.
Longtime Kameny friend and gay rights advocate Bob Witeck, CEO of Witeck-Combs Communications, said friends and activists who have known Kameny for many years are developing plans for a Kameny funeral that they hope will be held in a public building in Washington.
He said Kameny’s friends and associates working on funeral plans are asking members of the LGBT community and supporters from the community at-large to make a tax deductable contribution to HOBS, which has established a Kameny funeral fund.
Contributions can be made at helpingourbrothersandsisters.com or sent by mail to HOBS, P.O. Box 53477, Washington, D.C. 20009.
“HOBS is an all-volunteer micro-charity that helps marginalized GLBT individuals in the Washington, D.C. area meet short-term needs,” the group states on its website. “HOBS’s focus is on those who do not fit the criteria for help from other organizations and agencies.”
Witeck said Kameny’s friends and associates also are planning a separate memorial service in a larger space with a target date of Nov. 15, which will mark the 50th anniversary of the Mattachine Society of Washington, the city’s first gay rights group that Kameny co-founded.
Funeral arrangements could not be made immediately, Witeck said, because Kameny’s Washington friends had to reach out to his surviving sister, 83-year-old Edna Lavey, who lives in Riverhead, N.Y. Under D.C. law, Lavey, as the next of kin, has sole legal authority to decide on what to do with Kameny’s remains.
“She’s been very gracious and very supportive of our efforts to plan the funeral,” said Witeck.
He said that under advice from lawyers, Lavey has agreed to sign a legal document giving Witeck and other friends in Washington authority to move ahead with funeral plans, including the release of Kameny’s body from the D.C. Medical Examiner’s office to a D.C. funeral home.
According to Witeck, friends will fulfill Kameny’s long-stated wish to be cremated and to have a non-religious funeral or memorial service.
One option under consideration is an offer to accept a donated cemetery plot to have Kameny’s ashes interred at D.C.’s historic Congressional Cemetery near the gravesite of the late gay Air Force veteran Leonard Matlovich. Matlovich, a decorated combat veteran in the Vietnam War, approached Kameny for assistance in his decision to become the first active duty member of the military to publicly declare that he was gay in 1975 in an effort to challenge the ban on gay service members.
The widespread media coverage of Matlovich’s declaration, which included the now famous cover story in Time magazine with the headline “I am a homosexual,” has been credited with kicking off the campaign that led to the repeal this year of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
The Blade will report all details surrounding Kameny’s funeral and memorial service as soon as they become available.
Maryland
Md. Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs released updated student recommendations
LGBTQ students report higher rates of bullying, suicide
The Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs has released updated recommendations on how the state’s schools can support LGBTQ students.
The updated 16-page document outlines eight “actionable recommendations” for Maryland schools, supplemented with data and links to additional resources. The recommendations are:
- Developing and passing a uniform statewide and comprehensive policy aimed at protecting “transgender, nonbinary, and gender expansive students” against discrimination. The recommendation lists minimum requirements for the policy to address: name, pronoun usage, and restroom access.
- Requiring all educators to receive training about the specific needs of LGBTQ students, by trained facilitators. The training’s “core competencies” include instruction on terminology, data, and support for students.
- Implementing LGBTQ-inclusive curricula and preventing book bans. The report highlights a “comprehensive sexual education curriculum” as specifically important in the overall education curriculum. It also states the curriculum will “provide all students with life-saving information about how to protect themselves and others in sexual and romantic situations.”
- Establishing Gender Sexuality Alliances “at all schools and in all grade levels.” This recommendation includes measures on how to adequately establish effective GSAs, such as campaign advertising, and official state resources that outline how to establish and maintain a GSA.
- Providing resources to students’ family members and supporters. This recommendation proposes partnering with local education agencies to provide “culturally responsive, LGBTQIA+ affirming family engagement initiatives.”
- Collecting statewide data on LGBTQ youth. The data on Maryland’s LGBTQ youth population is sparse and non-exhaustive, and this recommendation seeks to collect information to inform policy and programming across the state for LGBTQ youth.
- Hiring a full-time team at the Maryland Department of Education that focuses on LGBTQ student achievement. These employees would have specific duties that include “advising on local and state, and federal policy” as well as developing the LGBTQ curriculum, and organizing the data and family resources.
- Promoting and ensuring awareness of the 2024 guidelines to support LGBTQ students.
The commission has 21 members, with elections every year, and open volunteer positions. It was created in 2021 and amended in 2023 to add more members.
The Governor’s Office of Communication says the commission’s goal is “to serve LGBTQIA+ Marylanders by galvanizing community voices, researching and addressing challenges, and advocating for policies to advance equity and inclusion.”
The commission is tasked with coming up with yearly recommendations. This year’s aim “to ensure that every child can learn in a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment.”
The Human Rights Campaign’s most recent report on LGBTQ youth revealed that 46.1 percent of LGBTQ youth felt unsafe in some school settings. Those numbers are higher for transgender students, with 54.9 percent of them saying they feel unsafe in school.
Maryland’s High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey reveals a disparity in mental health issues and concerns among students who identify as LGBTQ, compared to those who are heterosexual. LGBTQ students report higher rates of bullying, feelings of hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts. Nearly 36 percent of LGBTQ students report they have a suicide plan, and 26.7 percent of respondents say they have attempted to die by suicide.
The commission’s recommendations seek to combat the mental health crisis among the state’s LGBTQ students. They are also a call for local and state governments to work towards implementing them.
Virginia
Va. lawmakers consider partial restoration of Ryan White funds
State Department of Health in 2025 cut $20 million from Part B program
The Virginia General Assembly is considering the partial restoration of HIV funding that the state’s Department of Health cut last year.
The Department of Health in 2025 cut $20 million — or 67 percent of total funding — from the Ryan White Part B program.
The funding cuts started with the Trump-Vance administration passing budget cuts to federal HIV screening and protection programs. Rebate issues between the Virginia Department of Health and the company that provides HIV medications began.
Advocates say the funding cuts have disproportionately impacted lower-income people.
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, a federal program started in 1990, provides medical services, public education, and essential services. Part B offers 21 services, seven of which remained funded after the budget cuts.
Equality Virginia notes “in 2025, a 67 percent reduction severely destabilized HIV services across the commonwealth.”
Virginia lawmakers have approved two bills — House Bill 30 and Senate Bill 30 — that would partially restore the funding. The Ryan White cuts remain a concern among community members.
Both chambers of the General Assembly must review their proposed changes before lawmakers can adopt the bills.
“While these amendments aren’t a full restoration of what community-based organizations lost, this marks a critical step toward stabilizing care for thousands of Virginians living with HIV,” said Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman. “Equality Virginia plans to continue their contact with lawmakers and delegates through the conference and up until the passing of the budget.”
“We appreciate lawmakers from both sides of the aisle who recognized the urgency of this moment and will work to ensure funding remains in the final version signed by the governor,” added Rahaman.
District of Columbia
D.C. Black Pride theme, performers announced at ‘Speakeasy’
Durand Bernarr to headline 2026 programming
The Center for Black Equity held its 2026 DC Black Pride Theme Reveal event at Union Stage on Monday. The evening, a “Speakeasy Happy Hour,” was hosted by Anthony Oakes and featured performances by Lolita Leopard and Keith Angelo. The Center for Black Equity organizes DC Black Pride.
Kenya Hutton, Center for Black Equity president and CEO, spoke following the performances by Leopard and Angelo. Hutton announced this year’s theme for DC Black Pride: “New Black Renaissance.”
Performers for 2026 DC Black Pride were announced to be Bang Garcon, Be Steadwell, Jay Columbus, Bennu Byrd, Rue Pratt and Akeem Woods.
Singer-songwriter Durand Bernarr was announced as the headliner for the 2026 festivities. Bernerr gave brief remarks through a video played on the screen at the stage.
DC Black Pride is scheduled for May 22-25. For more information on DC Black Pride, visit dcblackpride.org.
13 HIV/AIDS activists arrested on Capitol Hill
PHOTOS: Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade
An undeclared war of distraction by the felon
Talarico beats Crockett in Texas primary
