Local
Gay couple attacked in possible hate crime
Yoga instructor suffers fractured jaw, broken cheekbone

A D.C. gay man is recovering from surgery for a broken cheekbone and fractured jaw following an incident early Sunday morning, July 22, in which three unidentified male suspects attacked him and his partner near the intersection of 3rd and U streets, N.E.
Michael Roike told the Blade the suspects approached him and his partner, yoga instructor Michael Hall Jr., 29, after the two got out of one of the popular upscale cars for hire known as Uber Sedan and began walking to their apartment located about two blocks away.
Roike said one of three attackers punched Hall in the face, knocking him to the ground. He said one or more of the others started punching him, but his injuries were not serious. He said an ambulance took Hall to Howard University Hospital, where he later underwent surgery during which doctors inserted a metal plate to repair a seriously broken facial bone.
“We are investigating an aggravated assault that may have been motivated by hate bias,” said D.C. police spokesperson Gwendolyn Crump. Crump told the Blade the department’s Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit was notified of the incident.
“Sunday, July 22, at approximately midnight, two complainants were in the 1900 block of 3rd Street, N.E., when three suspects appeared from an unknown direction and began to yell homophobic slurs at them,” Crump said in an email.
“The three suspects then approached the complainants and assaulted them,” she said. “Suspects fled in an unknown direction…Lookout is for three black males wearing dark clothing.”
Roike said the driver was unfamiliar with the area, which is considered part of the city’s Eckington neighborhood, and turned onto a wrong street. Rather than direct the driver to their apartment building the two men decided to get out and walk the remaining two blocks, Roike said.
He said that while the attackers knocked Hall to the ground he fought back while the others attacked him before he began to scream as loud as he could for help. A woman from a nearby house ran out with a male friend and began shouting at the attackers, prompting them to run away, Roike said.
“She was like our guardian angel,” he said. “If that lady hadn’t come running out I don’t know what would have happened. When she came out the kids dispersed. They got his phone but they didn’t get anything else,” he said, referring to Hall’s cell phone.
Police are seeking information from possible witnesses. Crump said anyone with information that could help in the investigation should call police at 202-727-9099. She said anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s Text Tip Line by text messaging 50411.
The attack against Roike and Hall came about four months after another 29-year-old gay man suffered a broken jaw and other serious injuries from an attack by at least four assailants who shouted anti-gay names at him at Georgia Avenue and Irving Street, N.W., in Columbia Heights.
Similar to Roike and Hall, the victim, who has requested that his name be withheld, was arriving home in a cab on March 12 and decided to get out about two blocks from his home. The assailants, who remain at large, attacked him minutes after he left the cab and began walking home.
The attack in March against the 29-year-old gay man took place within a few days of a shooting of a man at the nearby Columbia Heights International House of Pancakes restaurant, which police listed as an anti-gay hate crime, and the beating of a transgender woman in Northeast D.C. The three incidents prompted friends of the 29-year-old and LGBT activists to organize a protest march in Columbia Heights against anti-LGBT violence that drew more than 700 people.
World Pride 2025
Episcopal bishop to speak at WorldPride human rights conference
Trump demanded apology from Mariann Edgar Budde over post-Inauguration sermon

The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde is among those who are scheduled to speak at the WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference that will take place from June 4-6.
Budde, who is the bishop of the Diocese of Washington, in January urged President Donald Trump “to have mercy” on LGBTQ people, immigrants, and others “who are scared right now” during a post-Inauguration service that he and Vice President JD Vance attended at the Washington National Cathedral. Trump criticized Budde’s comments and demanded an apology.
The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde speaks at the Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 21, 2025. (PBS NewsHour clip)
A press release the Washington Blade received notes Icelandic Industries Minister Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, UK Black Pride founder Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, and Bob the Drag Queen are among those who are also expected to participate in the conference.
The conference will take place at the JW Marriott (1331 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) and registration is open here.
World Pride 2025
Pabllo Vittar to perform at WorldPride
Brazilian drag queen, singer, joined Madonna on stage in 2024 Rio concert

A Brazilian drag queen and singer who performed with Madonna at her 2024 concert on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach will perform at WorldPride.
The Capital Pride Alliance on Thursday announced Pabllo Vittar will perform on the Main Stage of the main party that will take place on June 7 at DCBX (1235 W St., N.E.) in Northeast D.C.
Vittar and Anitta, a Brazilian pop star who is bisexual, on May 4, 2024, joined Madonna on stage at her free concert, which was the last one of her Celebration Tour. Authorities estimated 1.6 million people attended.
District of Columbia
$3.7 billion RFK stadium proposal draws support from Team DC
Washington Commanders ‘proud’ to champion LGBTQ community

Miguel Ayala, president of the D.C. LGBTQ sports organization Team D.C., has expressed support for the $3.7 billion deal reached between Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Washington Commanders football team to bring the team back to D.C. in a redeveloped site on the grounds of the city’s long shuttered RFK stadium.
With the deal calling for the city to provide $1 billion in taxpayer funds for infrastructure related costs for the massive redevelopment project — and with the Commanders to provide the remaining $2.7 billion — as of this week the deal did not have majority support on the D.C. Council, which must vote to approve it.
Ayala’s support for the project on behalf of Team D.C. raises the question of whether members of the city’s influential LGBTQ community might play some role in urging the D.C. Council to approve the project.
The proposal comes at a time when the Washington Commanders team includes a message of support for the LGBTQ community on its website. The message follows its hosting last October of its 4th annual LGBTQ Pride Night Out at the Commanders game against the Cleveland Browns.
“The Washington Commanders are proud to champion the LGBTQ+ community and its allies,” the team states on its website. “Through the unifying power of sports, we aim to create a culture where all feel welcome and celebrated.”
In a statement released to the Washington Blade, Ayala points out that the Commanders are among every D.C.-based professional sports team that hosts a Pride Night Out event, which Team DC helps to organize.
“Each year, our events have grown stronger, with vibrant tailgates, on-field celebrations, and powerful moments that shine a spotlight on our community,” Ayala said. “We can’t wait to kick off our first Night Out at the Commanders Stadium in 2030.”
He was referring to plans by the Commanders organization and the D.C. mayor’s office to have the stadium deal approved by the D.C. Council in July, with construction of the new stadium to begin then, and with a planned completion in time for the 2030 professional football season.
Ayala also points out that the RFK stadium grounds currently serve as home to LGBTQ-related sports activity, including the D.C. Gay Flag Football League and the D.C. Front Runners group. He added that the RFK grounds will serve as the playing fields for this year’s WorldPride Capital Cup sports competition, where LGBTQ rugby and soccer teams from around the world will compete.
“This new stadium will be more than just a field – it will be a powerful new addition to the vibrant, diverse, and proud communities we champion every day,” he said in his statement.
At an April 28 news conference, Bowser, Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris and other city officials provided details of the stadium project, noting that it includes a massive development of the new stadium and the surrounding 180 acres of land.
In addition to the 65,000-seat domed stadium, officials said the project would include 5,000 to 6,000 residential housing units, with 30 percent designated as “affordable” for low- and moderate-income residents. They said the project would also include parks and recreation areas, hotels, restaurants, retail, and neighborhood amenities.
“As we focus on the growth of our economy, we’re not only bringing our team home, but we’re also bringing new jobs and new revenue to our city and to Ward 7,” Bowser said in a statement
Opponents of the project, including D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), have said they don’t believe the city should use its own funds for a stadium and the related development.
So far, just four Council members have expressed support for the project. Mendelson and two other Council members have expressed opposition, and the remaining five have not yet said whether they would vote for or against it. The project needs seven of the current 12-member Council for it to be approved.
Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), the Council’s only gay member, who initially had not taken a position on the proposal, this week said he was looking at the project more favorably, according to news media reports.
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