Local
Del. guv courts gay Dems
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell; Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, the son of Vice President Joe Biden; and U.S. Rep. John Carney (D-Del.), the state’s sole member of the U.S. House, were among nearly a dozen elected officials who attended a Rehoboth Beach fundraiser on July 28 for the Delaware Stonewall Democrats.
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell was among nearly a dozen elected officials who attended a Rehoboth Beach fundraiser on July 28 for the Delaware Stonewall Democrats. (Photo by Molly Keresztury via Wikimedia)
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell; Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, the son of Vice President Joe Biden; and U.S. Rep. John Carney (D-Del.), the state’s sole member of the U.S. House, were among nearly a dozen elected officials who attended a Rehoboth Beach fundraiser on July 28 for the Delaware Stonewall Democrats.
Markell and Biden praised the group for playing a key role, along with the statewide LGBT group Equality Delaware, in successfully lobbying the legislature last year for a civil unions bill that Markell signed into law.
“I think a marriage equality bill is inevitable in Delaware and my guess is it will be fairly soon,” Markell told the Blade at the fundraiser, which was held at Mariachi Restaurant located near the Rehoboth boardwalk.
“I don’t know for sure it will happen in this next session but I don’t think it’s far off,” he said in discussing a state same-sex marriage bill. “And it’s something that I would support.”
Biden told those attending the event that he and his parents were deeply moved earlier this year when the Biden family watched Vice President Biden declare his support for same-sex marriage on the Sunday morning news show “Meet the Press.”
Noting that his father’s interview on the program was taped two days in advance, Beau Biden said he, his wife and their two children and his mom and dad gathered in the living room of the vice president’s house in Washington to watch the program together.
“That Sunday morning when you were all watching ‘Meet the Press,’ I was sitting there with my mom and my dad,” he said. “I watched my dad and I watched him watching and my mom watching. But even more than that, I watched my kids watching us watch this,” said Beau Biden.
“I have an eight year old and a seven year old, who know their dad and their grandpop watch the news a bunch,” he told the crowd, which was listening in silence. “And they knew something was going on because at the end of the interview we all had tears in our eyes — my mom and my dad, my mom and I. And they asked me what was going on.
“And I tried to explain to them why what my dad said was so meaningful to me and to my mom … But to me what it means and I think what it meant to them was I’m not going to have to explain to them anymore as they get older why their parents’ friends can’t get married.”
Biden joined Markell in expressing support for a same-sex marriage bill in Delaware.
Others attending the fundraiser were three out gay candidates running for state offices — Mitch Crane, who is running for the statewide office of insurance commissioner; Andy Staton, who’s running for a seat in the State Senate from the Rehoboth area; and Marie Mayor, who’s running for a State House of Representatives seat in the area of Milton, Del.
A gay man was murdered in Petersburg, Va., on March 13.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray, who was also known as Saamel and Mable, was a drag queen who won the Miss Mayflower EOY pageant in 2015. Reports also indicate Sanchez-McCray, 42, was a well-known community activist in Virginia and in North Carolina.
Local media reports indicate police officers found Sanchez-McCray shot to death inside a home in Petersburg.
Sanchez-McCray’s brother, Jamal Mitchell Diamond, in a public statement the Washington Blade received from Equality Virginia and GLAAD, said Sanchez-McCray was not transgender as initial reports indicated.
“Our family has always embraced the fullness of who he was. He used the names Saamel, Shyyell, and Mable interchangeably, and we honor all of them. There is no division within our family regarding how he is being represented — only a shared commitment to preserving his truth with love and respect,” said Diamond.
“He was also deeply committed to community work through Nationz Foundation, where he worked and completed multiple state-certified programs to support marginalized communities,” added Diamond. “That work meant a great deal to him.”
Authorities have not made any arrests.
The Petersburg Bureau of Police has asked anyone with information about Sanchez-McCray’s murder to call Petersburg-Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at 804-861-1212.
District of Columbia
Trans Day of Visibility events planned
Rally on the National Mall scheduled for Saturday
The Christopher Street Project has a number of events planned for the 2026 Trans Day of Visibility, including a rally on the Mall and an “Empowerment Ball” at the Eaton Hotel. Plenaries, panel discussions and meetings with members of Congress are scheduled in the three days of programming.
Announced speakers include N.H. state Rep. Alice Wade; Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Precious Brady-Davis; activist and performer Miss Peppermint (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”); Lexington, Ky. Councilwoman Emma Curtis; Rabbi Abby Stein; D.C. activist and host Rayceen Pendarvis; Air Force Master Sgt. Logan Ireland; among other leaders, advocates and performers.
Conference programming on Thursday and Friday includes an educational forum and a Capitol Hill policy education day. Registration for the two-day conference has closed.
The “Trans Day of Visibility PAC Reception” is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 from 7:30-9 p.m. at As You Are (500 8th St., S.E.). Special guests include Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada) and Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Tickets are available at christopherstreetproject.org starting at $25.
The National Council of Jewish Women and the Christopher Street Project host a “Trans Day of Visibility Shabbat” on Friday, March 27 from 7-8 p.m. at Sixth & I (600 I St., N.W.). The service is to be led by Rabbi Jenna Shaw and Rabbi Abby Stein.
The “Now You See Me: Trans Empowerment Social & Ball” is scheduled for Friday, March 27 from 6-11 p.m. at the Eaton Hotel (1201 K. St., N.W.). The trans-themed drag ball is hosted by the Marsha P. Johnson Institute with support from the D.C. Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs, the Capital Ballroom Council, the Christopher Street Project, the Center for Black Equity, Generation for Common Good, and Parenting is Political. RSVP online at christopherstreetproject.org.
The National Transgender Day of Visibility Rally is scheduled for Saturday, March 28 on the National Mall at 11 a.m. The rally will include speakers and performances. Following the rally, attendees are encouraged to participate in the “No Kings” rally being held at Anacostia Park.
Virginia
Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ends
Voters in November will consider repealing marriage amendment
The Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ended on March 14.
Lawmakers have yet to approve a budget, but they did pass a resolution that paves the way for a referendum on whether to repeal the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Lawmakers also advanced House Bill 60, which would protect PrEP users from insurance discrimination.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger has until April 13 to decide to pass, amend, or veto legislation before it goes back to the House of Delegates on April 22.
Spanberger on Feb. 6 signed the bill that sets the stage for the marriage amendment referendum. Voters will consider whether to “remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law?”
Equality Virginia has been working during this legislative cycle to urge lawmakers to allocate funding towards LGBTQ rights. The budget would expand funding for schools, competency training for the 988 suicide hotline, and funding to provide gender affirming care to LGBTQ youth.
“As the budget moves through conference and the Reconvene Session approaches on April 22, Equality Virginia remains focused on ensuring our victories this session translate into durable protections,” Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Progress on marriage equality, nondiscrimination protections, and HIV care funding was essential, but Virginia must do more.”
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