Local
Will casino push impact Md. marriage referendum?
Polls suggest gaming will have little impact, but others say it’s a ‘crap shoot’
Governor Martin O’Malley (Blade photo by Pete Exis)
As Maryland lawmakers prepare to debate the proposed expansion of gambling in the state, same-sex marriage supporters are divided over whether the issue will influence the outcome of the November referendum.
Josh Levin, campaign director of Marylanders for Marriage Equality, pointed to a Maryland pollster who said in an undated memo that a referendum, no matter “how controversial,” would not “by itself drive up turnout among ‘reluctant’ voters in a presidential year.” The memo specifically notes that 2,631,434 Marylanders voted in the 2008 presidential election, compared to only 2,525,424 who cast votes in the gaming referendum that allowed five casinos with slot machines and table games on video screens to open in the state. (Voters approved Question 2 by a 58.6 to 41.4 percent margin.)
The Washington Post last month noted that a second poll of 700 Maryland voters that the Mellman Group conducted on behalf of MGM Resorts International between June 28 and July 7 found 63 percent of gambling proponents support same-sex marriage. The survey found that only 34 percent of those who oppose gaming are against nuptials for gays and lesbians. MGM is seeking rights to build a proposed National Harbor casino.
“Both issues are going to motivate voters to get out on both of the issues,” said Levin, referring to the Mellman Group survey. He spoke to the Blade hours after Gov. Martin O’Malley, who signed the same-sex marriage law in March, announced a special legislative session to decide the fate of the proposed National Harbor casino in Prince George’s County that will start on Aug. 9. “Where we have the momentum, we don’t see it affecting turnout in ways that will be harmful to us.”
Neither O’Malley’s office nor the Maryland Family Alliance, the group that backs the November same-sex marriage referendum, returned the Blade’s requests for comment.
Some LGBT advocates fear that the group of existing Maryland casino operators will target conservative blacks and white evangelicals who traditionally oppose gambling — and same-sex marriage — in a well-funded campaign against the proposed National Harbor complex. A separate referendum on the Maryland Dream Act that would extend tuition to undocumented immigrants further complicates the electoral landscape.
“It’s a tricky question because gambling and marriage have never been on the ballot together in Maryland,” said Jeff Krehely, vice president of LGBT programs at the Center for American Progress. “Knowing there could be a morality argument against gambling, I feel like having any kind of gambling effort on the ballot is going to increase those with a more conservative perspective on the world to come out to the ballot referendum.”
A Gonzalez Research and Marketing poll in January found the economy, jobs, education and taxes — and not same-sex marriage — were the top issues among Maryland voters. Less than one percent of respondents identified nuptials for gays and lesbians as their biggest concern.
Only 19 percent of those who took part in the annual Conservative Political Action Committee straw poll in D.C. in February described “traditional values” as their top issue going into this year’s election cycle. Only 1 percent of those who voted in the 2011 CPAC straw poll cited stopping same-sex marriage as their primary concern.
In spite of these numbers, some Maryland LGBT activists are not ready to discount the impact a gambling referendum could have on efforts to defend the state’s same-sex marriage law.
“At this point it’s a crap shoot,” the Rev. Meredith Moise, co-chair of Baltimore Black Pride, told the Blade. “I do know some of the pastors are organizing against the gambling pieces for good reason — focus on gaming is taking away from a lot of important issues and just the money drain it will bring to the community is unfathomable. Anytime you have something that can motivate and organize anti-gay constituencies could spell trouble for us.”
Moise noted that churches that both support and oppose nuptials for same-sex couples have joined anti-gaming efforts. She stressed that she feels these congregations “have agreed to disagree about gay marriage for the sake of their coalitions.”
Moise added that activists have found that those whom she described as allies and potential allies remain unaware of the November referendum.
“We are still educating people and having conversations about marriage equality,” she said. “LGBT folks and community activists are having conversations about marriage equality. What we are hearing and experiencing is that people know the bill passed but don’t know that it will be on the ballot in November.”
Milton, Del., will host its Pride Fest this Saturday with the theme “Small Town, Big Heart.” The town’s population of just over 3,000 is in its sixth year hosting Pride.
The event is hosted by Sussex Pride and Milton Theatre and will take place from 4-8 p.m. in the area surrounding the theater. Admission is pay-what-you-can and proceeds will support the Milton Theatre’s education wing campaign, an initiative dedicated to expanding arts education and creating spaces for the next generation of performers and artists.
The musical act schedule includes Goldstar at 4 p.m., Magnolia Applebottom and Friends at 5:30 p.m., and Mama’s Blacksheep at 6:45 p.m. There will be vendors, food trucks, and a Kids Fest with an inflatable obstacle course.
“In our little corner of the world, LOVE leads the way! Milton Pride 2025 is a celebration for EVERYONE — neighbors, families, allies, and friends — because acceptance, kindness, and community belong to us all,” Milton Theatre’s website reads. “Whether you’re here to cheer, learn, or simply feel the joy … you’re welcome exactly as you are. Let’s come together and celebrate Milton, a SMALL TOWN … with a BIG HEART!”
District of Columbia
Drive with Pride in D.C.
A new Pride-themed license plate is now available in the District, with proceeds directly benefiting local LGBTQ organizations.
Just in time for Pride month, the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles has partnered with the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs to create a special “Pride Lives Here” license plate.
The plate, which was initially unveiled in February, has a one-time $25 application fee and a $20 annual display fee. Both fees will go directly to the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Affairs Fund.
The MOLGBTQA Fund provides $1,000,000 annually to 25,000 residents through its grant program, funding a slew of LGBTQ organizations in the DMV area — including Capital Pride Alliance, Whitman-Walker, the D.C. Center for the LGBTQ Community, and the Washington Blade Foundation.
The license plate features an inclusive rainbow flag wrapping around the license numbers, with silver stars in the background — a tribute to both D.C.’s robust queer community and the resilience the LGBTQ community has shown.
The “Pride Lives Here” plate is one of only 13 specialty plates offered in the District, and the only one whose fees go directly to the LGBTQ community.
To apply for a Pride plate, visit the DC DMV’s website at https://dmv.dc.gov/
The nation’s capital welcomed WorldPride this past weekend, a massive celebration that usually takes place in a different city every two years.
The Saturday parade attracted hundreds of thousands of people from around the world and the country. The state of Delaware, a few hours drive from D.C., saw participants in the parade, with CAMP Rehoboth, an LGBTQ community center in Rehoboth Beach, hosting a bus day trip.
Hope Vella sits on the board of directors and marched with CAMP Rehoboth. Vella said that although the parade took a long time to start and the temperature was hot, she was “on a cloud” from being there.
“It didn’t matter to me how long it took to start. With the current changes that are in place regarding diversity and inclusion, I wanted my face there,” Vella said. “My life is an intersection. I am a Black woman. I am a lesbian, and I have a disability. All of these things are trying to be erased … I didn’t care how long it took. I didn’t care how far it was going to be. I was going to finish that parade. I didn’t care how hot it was.”
The nearly two mile parade route didn’t feel as long because everyone was so happy interacting with the crowd, Vella said. The group gave out beads, buttons, and pins to parade watchers.
“The World Pride celebration gave me hope because so many people came out. And the joy and the love that was between us … That gave me hope,” Vella said.
Vella said that people with disabilities are often overlooked. More than one in four Americans have disabilities, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vella said it was important for her “to be out there and to be seen in my wholeness as a Black woman, as a lesbian, as a woman with a disability and to not be hiding. I want our society to understand that we exist in LGBTQ+ spaces also.”
Retired Maj. Gen. Tammy Smith is involved with CAMP Rehoboth and marched with a coalition of LGBTQ military members. Smith said they were walking to give transgender military members visibility and to remind people why they are serving.
“When we are not visible, what is allowed to take our place is stereotypes,” Smith said. “And so without visibility, people think all veterans are conservative and perhaps not open to full equality. Without visibility, they might think a small state with a farming background may be a place that’s unwelcoming, but when you actually meet the people who are from those places, it sets aside those stereotypes and the real authenticity is allowed to come forward.”
During the parade, Smith said she saw trans military members in the parade make eye contact or fist bump with transgender people in the crowd.
“They were seen. Both sides were seen during that parade and I just felt privileged to be able to witness that,” Smith said.
Smith said Delaware is a state that is about freedom and equality and is the first state for a reason. The LGBTQ community is engrained as part of life in the Rehoboth and Lewes areas.
“What pride means to me is that we must always be doing what is necessary to maintain our dignity as a community,” Smith said. “We can’t let what people with negative messaging might be tossing our way impact us and the celebration of Pride. I don’t see it as being self-promoting. I see it as an act of dignity and strength.”
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