Local
Md. marriage referendum supporters submit 113,000 signatures
Maryland Marriage Alliance delivers 113,000 signatures to Secretary of State
Del. Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery County) (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Same-sex marriage opponents claimed on Tuesday that they have collected enough signatures to place the issue before Maryland voters in November.
Derek McCoy, executive director of the Maryland Marriage Alliance, said during a Tuesday afternoon press conference outside the Maryland Secretary of State’s office in Annapolis that his organization submitted 113,000 signatures. They have yet to be certified, but the group submitted more than double the 55,736 signatures necessary to place the referendum on the ballot.
The Maryland Marriage Alliance hopes to collect 150,000 signatures by the June 30 deadline.
The group did not immediately return the Blade’s request for comment, but a Public Policy Polling survey last week found that 57 percent of Marylanders would vote for the same-sex marriage law that Gov. Martin O’Malley signed in March. The same PPP poll found that 55 percent of the state’s black voters back marriage rights for same-sex couples.
The Baltimore-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People announced its support of nuptials for gays and lesbians during their National Board of Director’s quarterly meeting in Miami on May 19.
“Given the low bar for petitioning a law to the ballot in Maryland, we’ve always expected same-sex marriage opponents to meet that threshold and then some—up to their stated target of 150,000,” said Josh Levin, campaign director for Marylanders for Marriage Equality. “But don’t confuse meeting the legal requirement with intensity or measure of support. It’s clear those opposed to marriage equality are losing ground.”
Maryland Del. Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery County) echoed Levin.
“We’ve always been planning to fight a referendum fight,” she told the Blade as she discussed the likely referendum. “We know when this comes to referendum we’re going to win. Public opinion is continuing to evolve rapidly and support is on our side.”
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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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