Local
O’Malley confident voters will uphold marriage
Md. governor addresses conference of gay Catholics
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley spoke Friday at the New Ways Ministry’s annual symposium. (Washington Blade photo by Steve Charing)
BALTIMORE — Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley received a warm reception as he addressed an audience of nearly 400 Catholics who attended the New Ways Ministry’s Seventh National Symposium of Catholicism and Homosexuality at Baltimore’s Renaissance Inner Harbor Hotel on March 16. New Ways Ministry, based in Mount Rainier, Md., is a national Catholic organization that focuses on LGBT issues.
O’Malley, a practicing Catholic, opened his brief remarks by stating, “I did not come here as a Catholic. I came here as the governor of all of Maryland.”
Acknowledging that Maryland is comprised of citizens who represent a variety of backgrounds including different ethnicities, perspectives, traditions and faith traditions, O’Malley said, “we should expect and demand from all our leaders … to protect rights equally among all people.”
O’Malley discussed Baltimore’s important place in history especially during the War of 1812 and its connection to the Star-Spangled Banner. “The flag had been stitched together by black and white hands here in Baltimore. And the thread that stitched those stars and stripes together was the thread of human dignity.”
He added that we all want the same things for our kids: we want them to live in a loving, caring, committed and stable home protected equally under the law. “For a people of many different faiths, for a people committed to the principle of religious freedom, the way forward is always to be found through greater respect for the equal rights of all; for the human dignity of all.”
He added, “The very reason for Maryland’s founding was for religious freedom. And at the heart of religious freedom is respect for the freedom of individual conscience.”
The governor indicated the passage of the marriage equality bill in the General Assembly was “based on the fundamental beliefs, the fundamental principles we share, foremost among them is our belief in the dignity of every individual.”
O’Malley acknowledged the referendum battle ahead. “In Maryland, we were able to find a way to protect individual civil marriage rights and religious freedom. And while it is likely to be challenged on the ballot, I believe that ultimately the voters…will come down on the side of human dignity.”
Appropriately, O’Malley concluded his address on a religious note.
“The mystery of human existence; the mystery of our own relationships with one another; the mystery of our own individual relationships with the creator of creation … these are deep, deep mysteries. Every person must search for the truth that is at the center of that mystery. This search requires individual freedom. And it also requires religious freedom.”
The symposium was titled, “From Water to Wine: Lesbian/Gay Catholics & Relationships” and was held March 15-17. It received the endorsement of 45 national Catholic organizations. Many of the nearly 400 attendees were priests and nuns and all of them active leaders in their church communities.
Other speakers included former Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, retired Bishop Geoffrey Robinson from Australia and Barbara Johnson, the lesbian denied communion at her mother’s funeral in Gaithersburg.
“As Catholics, we are proud of Gov. O’Malley’s ardent support of marriage equality,” said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry. “His support is in the best tradition of Catholicism’s legacy of social justice for all. We are happy to have this opportunity to thank him for his work and to show how faithful Catholics support full equality for LGBT people.”
The organization came under fire by Cardinal Edmund F. O’Brien who said, “In no manner is the position proposed by New Ways Ministry in conformity with Catholic teaching.”
In response, DeBernardo told the Blade, “Thousands of Catholic people and hundreds of Catholic institutions from across the country continue to support our programs and attend our events. They recognize that what we are doing is authentically Catholic.”
District of Columbia
D.C. Latinx Pride celebrates culture and heritage
Your guide to events throughout June
Organizers with the Latinx History Project have planned a host of events this Pride season with parties, poetry, drag and more.
The festivities begin with the DC Latinx Pride 2026 Kickoff at Crush Dance Bar (2007 14th Street, N.W.) on Friday, June 12 from 6-10 p.m. The party will include a coronation ceremony for the 2026 Royal Court: Ms. DC Latinx Pride Vida Rangel and Mx. DC Latinx Pride Steph Niaupari. RSVP at latinxhistoryproject.org. The event is free, though donations are accepted.
An outdoor event is planned for Sunday, June 14 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Anacostia River Park (1500 Anacostia Dr., S.E.). Cultivating Queer Outdoor Joy is a “peaceful outdoor community event focused on grounding, connection, and queer joy in nature.” The event is free.
A panel discussion is planned for The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Rd., N.W., 2nd floor) on Monday, June 15 from 6-8 p.m. La Plática: The Future of 2 Spirits and Trans Natives will focus upon the “stories, leadership and vision of Two-Spirit, Indigiqueer and Trans Native people.” RSVP to the free event at latinxhistoryproject.org.
A sex-positive poetry workshop, “Hoetry: Writing Erotic Poetry,” is planned for Wednesday, June 17 from 6-8 p.m. at The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Road, N.W.). The event is free.
The workshop So You Wanna Do Drag? is planned for Thursday, June 18 from 5:30-8 p.m. at The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Road, N.W.). Featured guests Ricky Rose and Mari Con Carne will hold a style showcase to discuss the basics of developing a drag persona. RSVP to the free event at latinxhistoryproject.org.
The Latinx History Project is collaborating with Rumba Queer DC to produce an official Latinx Pride Party: Sin Vergüenza. The event is at the multi-level venue, Transmission (1353 H Street, N.E.) on Thursday, June 18 from 7 p.m.-1 a.m. There are dance lessons, vendors and three different music experiences in the sprawling venue. There will also be a drag showcase from 10-11 p.m. The event is 21+ and tickets are available at shotgun.live/en/events/sin-verguenza. Tickets are $15 for entry into the party. Tickets to participate in the dance lesson are $29.98. Participants may choose between a bachata lesson or a salsa lesson from 7-8 p.m.
La Fiesta: Official DC Latinx Pride Party is planned for Friday, June 19 from 10 p.m. – 2 a.m. at Bunker (2001 14th Street, N.W.). Serena Morena from “Drag Race México” and “Drag Race UK vs The World” is slated to headline the 21+ event. Early tickets are available for $15 (plus $0.38 service fee) until June 16. The door cover charge without early tickets is $20. Attendees can also purchase a meet and greet experience with Serena Morena for $30. Tickets are available at latinxhistoryproject.org.
The Latinx History Project plans to march in the Capital Pride Parade on Saturday, June 20 and to have a table at the Capital Pride Festival on Sunday, June 21. Visit latinxhistoryproject.org to register to march alongside LGP in the parade or to staff the table at the festival.
The DC Latinx Pride 2026 Closing Event is scheduled for Friday, June 26 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Mexican Cultural Institute (2829 16th Street, N.W.). The free event is a panel discussion “centering the experiences of immigrants who have lived in Latin America and now call the United States home.”
Visit latinxhistoryproject.org for more information.
District of Columbia
JR.’s hosts meet & greet for mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George
Event organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, Queers for Janeese
D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George spoke to a crowd of LGBTQ supporters on June 1 at a meet & greet event held at JR.’s on 17th Street in the Dupont Circle neighborhood.
The event, organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, which has endorsed Lewis George for mayor, with support from a group called Queers for Janeese, was followed by a “get out the vote” canvassing endeavor in which several of those attending the meet & greet visited the homes of nearby residents known to be Lewis George supporters.
The purpose of the canvassing was to remind Lewis George supporters to return their mail-in ballots or go to the polls on June 16 to elect Lewis George as the city’s next mayor, according to Matthew Kavanagh, one of the leaders of Queers for Janeese who attended the meet & greet event at JR.’s.
Local political observers consider Lewis George, a Ward 4 D.C. Council member, and former At-Large D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie, to be the two leading candidates in this year’s race for mayor. The two are among seven mayoral candidates competing in the city’s June 16 Democratic primary.
Lewis George told those attending the meet & greet, which was held on the JR.’s outdoor patio, that she has a long record of advocating for and initiating city polices and laws in support of the LGBTQ community. She said large corporate donors were backing her opponents and urged her LGBTQ supporters to help raise funds for her in the remaining days of the campaign.
Among those attending the meet & greet was gay longtime Dupont Circle civic activist Randy Downs who last November opened a nearby eatery called Protest Pizza. “I am queer and I am a Janeese supporter,” Downs told the Blade.
Stevie McCarty, president of Capital Stonewall Democrats, who also spoke at the meet & greet event, said his group would organize events in support of Lewis George in the remaining days of the campaign. Among them, he said, was an LGBTQ bar crawl in which supporters of Lewis George, including the candidate herself, would visit LGBTQ bars to promote her candidacy.
Virginians for Marriage Equality on Monday launched a campaign in support of repealing Virginia’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman, former state Sen. Adam Ebbin, former state Del. Mark Sickles, and American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia Executive Director Mary Bauer are among those who spoke at the launch that took place in Richmond. State Del. Kirk McPike (D-Alexandria), who co-chairs the campaign, also participated.
“This amendment is about making clear that the government has no business deciding which marriages or which families are worthy of recognition,” said Bauer. “The ACLU of Virginia has been fighting for Virginians’ right to marry who they love since the landmark case, Loving v. Virginia, which struck down the ban on interracial marriage. Now we are proud to carry that legacy forward by standing with our coalition partners in the fight to pass this amendment and finally enshrine the right to marriage equality in the commonwealth’s constitution.”
Voters in 2006 approved the Marshall-Newman Amendment.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is a Republican, in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
Two successive legislatures must approve a proposed constitutional amendment before it can go to the ballot.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger in February signed a bill that finalized the referendum’s language.
The referendum will take place on Nov. 3.
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