Local
Trans activists sworn in as D.C. human rights commissioners
Mayor administers oath of office to Budd, Beninda, 11 others
The Director of the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs, Jeffrey Richardson (center) looks on as Mayor Vincent Gray makes history swearing in Alexandra Beninda (second from right) and Earline Budd at the Wilson building on Wednesday.
In what LGBT activists considered an historic development, Mayor Vincent Gray on Wednesday administered the oath of office to transgender advocates Earline Budd and Alexandra Beninda as members of the D.C. Commission on Human Rights.
Budd and Beninda, who were nominated for the position by Gray and confirmed last month by the City Council, were among 13 newly appointed members to the commission to be sworn in by Gray at a ceremony at the John A. Wilson Building steps away from the mayor’s office.
Also sworn in at the ceremony was Michael Ward, who was nominated by Gray and approved by the City Council for a second term as commissioner. Ward is gay.
The appointments of Budd and Beninda represent the first time a transgender person has been named to the city’s Commission on Human Rights, which acts as an adjudicatory body that enforces the city’s Human Rights Act. The act, among other things, bans discrimination in employment, housing, education, and public accommodations based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, race, religion, and ethnicity.
“I’m very pleased and I’m looking forward to the challenge and I’m always honored to be a representative of my community,” Budd said after the ceremony. ‘I’m going to do the best I can in this position and make sure that discrimination comes to an end.”
Beninda said she, too, was looking forward to joining Budd on the commission.
“I’m definitely very excited about getting started, and tonight we have our first meeting,” she said. “I look forward, myself and Earline, to be able to represent our LGBT community overall and especially our transgender community in terms of making sure our voices are heard.”
Thursday’s swearing-in ceremony came one day after a top official with Gray’s 2010 election campaign pleaded guilty in federal court to helping disburse and conceal $653,000 in illegal campaign funds.
U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen, the lead prosecutor in the case, said the funds allegedly came from businessman Jeffrey Thompson, whose company receives millions of dollars a year from a city contract to operate the District’s Medicaid program.
Gray has denied playing any role in illegal campaign activities, but the latest revelations raised concern among political observers and community activists that the continuing federal investigation could force Gray to resign. The mayor said on Thursday, in response to a flurry of questions by reporters, that he has no intention of resigning, even after three City Council members, including gay Council member David Catania (I-At-Large), called for his resignation.
LGBT activists attending Budd and Beninda’s swearing-in ceremony declined to discuss the campaign finance allegations, saying it was not an appropriate topic for the occasion. Gray received strong support in the LGBT community in the 2010 election and LGBT activists have said over the past several weeks that they remain supportive of the mayor.
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Congratulations to Yadiel Meléndez, on their new role as Community Associate, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Meléndez is piloting a new role as a Community Associate at the Wanda Alston Foundation, where they support queer and trans young people in finding their footing, building independence, and experiencing a housing community where they are seen, valued, and affirmed. They are coming into this role with more than a decade of experience as a community organizer and operations specialist, supporting diverse communities through service, advocacy, and program coordination.
Previously they worked for Right Proper Brewing Shaw as a server and bartender and at Sephora, Washington, DC, and at FreshFarm, DC, in bilingual food access. They also worked freelance to build foundational structures for local queer BIPOC performance art coalitions, producing variety shows to curate space for marginalized performance artists in the community. They were a production manager for Haus of Hart Productions, a BIPOC centric performance art production. They also worked as field staff with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in Stafford, Va.
Meléndez is bilingual, Spanish and English. Their work is guided by a commitment to dignity, safety, and trauma-informed engagement, particularly within LGBTQ and BIPOC communities.
Congratulations also to Ben Rosen LICSW, on his new role as program director, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Rosen previously worked with Fountain House’s OnRamps program, helping to build a new, innovative outreach program for individuals considered chronically homeless, and living with serious mental illness, in the Times Square area of New York. Rosen is a Psychotherapist, having worked with SG Psychotherapy, and as the psychotherapist with the Nest Community Health Center (URAM).
Rosen has a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts: Musical Theatre, Minor in Psychology (Cum Laude) from Malloy University Conservatory; and his M.S.W. in Clinical Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups, from The Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College, N.Y. He is independently licensed in New York and Washington, D.C.
Rehoboth Beach
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Attendees encouraged to wear appropriate gear
Diego’s in Rehoboth Beach hosts a monthly leather happy hour. April’s edition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear appropriate gear. The event is billed as an official event of BLUF, the free community group for men interested in leather. After happy hour, the attendees are encouraged to reconvene at Local Bootlegging Company for dinner, which allows cigar smoking. There’s no cover charge for either event.
District of Columbia
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
Two memorial events scheduled in D.C.
Two celebrations of life are planned for Sean Christopher Bartel, 48, who was found deceased on a hiking trail in Argentina on or around March 15. Bartel began his career as a television news reporter and news anchor at stations in Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., before serving as Senior Video Producer for the D.C.-based International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union from 2013 to 2024.
A memorial gathering is planned for Friday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the IBEW International Office (900 7th St., N.W.), according to a statement by the DC Gay Flag Football League, where Bartel was a longtime member. A celebration of life is planned that same evening, 6-8 p.m. at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.).
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Calendar: April 10-16
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
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