Local
Fast Five Fix: July 11
Queer/trans Bollywood film takes Bangladesh by storm, Calvin Klein turned his ex straight, Canada wins in number of out gays per capita, and Frank Ocean’s new song is going to be your new fav
Its Slurpee day! Speaking of chilly reception, Towleroad says Rep. Barney Frank, who married this weekend, says that — while they’ve not said bad things to him — House Republicans failed to show to the wedding or publicly congratulate him. At least he’s not a Texas Democrat: Dallas Voice says that most of them are passing on the opportunity we reported on earlier this week to fight the anti-gay elephant in Congress’s room, the Defense of Marriage Act. Now here’s all the queer news that fit to regurgitate in bullet form:
- Autostraddle tells us about the movie taking Bangladesh by storm: ‘Common Gender,’ a Bollywood film about a love story between a “hijra” and a Hindu boy.
- Maybe fashion designer Calvin Klein is just so incredible in bed, that his ex-boyfriend Nick Gruber knew he could never be satisfied by another man again. Well, for whatever reason he may have, Queerty says that Gruber is back with girls (and a Girls Gone Wild girl at that). How sad, he purrty.
- Google tells us more about that ‘Legalise Love’ conference and campaign, where they hope to eradicate anti-gay laws in the nations where they have offices so “all of our employees have the same inclusive experience outside of the office as they do at work.”
- Is Canada more queer (per capita) than the U.S.? A new poll says yes: 5% in the general population and (read to the bottom, talk about a buried lead) 10% of those 18-34 say “Yes I Am” like Melissa Etheridge, says the National Post.
- Queerty says both queeresque pop icon Lady Gaga and feisty gay porn king Michael Lucas are launching their own social networks. So yeah, that’s happening.
VIDEO | New Frank Ocean performance on Jimmy Fallon debuts new queer love song, first TV performance ever for the newly out rising R&B powerhouse on his first full solo project outside of Odd Future. And its gorgeous. I mean effing gorgeous. Its your new favorite song, no joke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyWRUzQoi6g
(h/t JoeMyGod)
“I could never make him love me. I could never make him love me.” Yes, I’m playing this on repeat all day.
Tonight, our friends at Outrage recommend ‘iCandy’ ladies night at MOVA, ‘Smart Ass Trivia’ at Nellie’s, ‘New Meat’ amateur stripper audition at Ziegfeld’s/Secrets or Cobalt karaoke if you need to get over your hump day.
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)
PHOTOS: Helen Hayes Awards
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
House passes reconciliation with gender-affirming care funding ban
PHOTOS: D.C. Trans Pride
Men convicted of murdering two men in NYC gay bar drugging scheme sentenced
Looking back at 50 years of Pride in D.C
WorldPride events round-up
Pope Leo XIV: Family based on ‘stable union between a man and a woman’
Wes Moore signs HIV decriminalization bill
