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LGBT vote could be factor in D.C. Council race

Pannell wins key endorsements in Ward 8 school board campaign

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Phil Pannell, gay news, Washington Blade
Phillip Pannell, gay news, Washington Blade

Veteran gay activist and Ward 8 community leader Phil Pannell. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The LGBT vote could be an important factor in the hotly contested race for at least one of the two at-large seats on the D.C. City Council in the Nov. 6 city election, according to political observers.

Council member Michael Brown (I-At-Large) and independent challenger David Grosso, along with Democratic incumbent Vincent Orange (D-At-Large) are competing in a seven-candidate race for the two seats in which only one Democrat is eligible to win under the city’s election law.

Most political insiders say the at-large race is likely to be the only Council race this year in which the incumbent isn’t expected to breeze to re-election on Tuesday.

Similar to most recent D.C. elections, nearly all of the candidates running for seven seats on the Council, five seats on the D.C. school board, and the city’s non-voting seat in Congress – currently held by Democrat Eleanor Holmes Norton — are either supportive or highly supportive on LGBT issues.

Some LGBT activists say that because the city government’s long record of support on LGBT issues isn’t in jeopardy, LGBT voters are likely to select candidates based on non-LGBT issues.

“It’s a luxury to have to choose among friends,” gay activist Rick Rosendall told the Blade earlier this year. “We should remember how lucky we are.”

In other Council races, Acting Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) is considered the strong favorite to win election to the full Council Chair position. The seat became vacant following the resignation earlier this year of Council Chair Kwame Brown, who was indicted on corruption related charges. Mendelson is a strong supporter of LGBT rights.

Incumbent Council members Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) and Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), who are running unopposed, are also strong, longtime supporters on LGBT issues.

One city race considered highly competitive is the contest for the Ward 8 seat on the city’s State Board of Education in which longtime Ward 8 community leader and gay activist Phil Pannell is challenging incumbent Trayon “Tray” White.

Pannell lost to White in a special election last year by just over 200 votes in a five candidate race. This year, Pannell is running as White’s only challenger and the other three candidates for the seat last year have endorsed Pannell. Among them are longtime Ward 8 community leaders Eugene Kinlow, Sandra Williams, and Anthony Muhammad.

Muhammad, a leader in the local branch of the Nation of Islam religious organization, is backing Pannell because of Pannell’s long record of being a public schools advocate and community leader in the ward, according to Natalie Williams, Pannell’s campaign manager.

“That speaks volumes on how people in the community feel about Phil,” she said.

Pannell has also received endorsements from the Washington Post, D.C. Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, and the D.C. local for the American Federation of Municipal Employees union or AFME among other endorsements.

However, Barry, who is considered highly influential in Ward 8, has endorsed White, a 28-year-old political newcomer who has been praised for organizing efforts to persuade young people in the ward to finish school rather than drop out in a ward with the city’s highest school drop-out rate.

Pannell, who is one of three out gays running in the city election this year, is the only one in a competitive race.

Gay Dupont Circle Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Jack Jacobson is running unopposed for the Ward 2 school board seat. And gay Libertarian Party activist Bruce Majors is running against Norton for the city’s congressional delegate seat.

Majors, a real estate agent and longtime gay activist, says he’s running to provide voters with a choice on through his “individual rights” platform and to expand support for the Libertarian Party in D.C. Norton, considered one of the strongest allies of the LGBT community in Congress, is considered the odds-on favorite to win re-election.

As many as 30 LGBT candidates are said to be running for one of the 296 Advisory Neighborhood Commission seats located throughout the city. The Blade has identified 19 out gay incumbents or challengers running this year for an ANC post.

The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, a national organization that raises money for out LGBT candidates, has endorsed four ANC candidates this year: Marc Morgan, who’s running unopposed for ANC single member district 1B01 in Ward 1; Martin Espinoza, who’s running against two challengers for an open seat in district 2B04; Chris Linn, who’s running unopposed in district 2F03 in the Logan Circle area; and Matt Raymond, who’s also running unopposed in district 2F07, also in Logan Circle.

Rosendall, who serves as vice president of the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance, has joined other activists in noting that two incumbent Council members who have received support from the LGBT community in the past have lost that support to a large degree because of their 2009 vote against the city’s same-sex marriage law.

Council members Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) and Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) each received a -3.5 rating from GLAA on LGBT issues based on a rating scale of -10 to +10.

The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political group, voted last month against making an endorsement in the Ward 7 and Ward 8 Council races, breaking from its decision in the past to endorse Alexander and Barry.

Following is a list of local candidates on the D.C. ballot on Nov. 6 along with information about endorsements from the Stein Club, the D.C. Log Cabin Republicans, and the rating assigned to the candidates by GLAA. GLAA doesn’t rate candidate for the school board, the congressional delegate seat, or for the shadow House and Senate seats. Also below are known gay candidates running for ANC seats:

  • Council Chair: Phil Mendelson (D), GLAA +10, Stein Club endorsement; -Calvin Gurley (D), GLAA rating +1.
  • At-Large Council seat: Vincent Orange (D)-incumbent, GLAA +0.5, Stein Club endorsement; Michael A. Brown (I-At-Large)-incumbent, GLAA +7.5; David Grosso (I), GLAA +9; A.J. Cooper (I), GLAA +4; Leon Swain Jr. (I), GLAA +4; Ann Wilcox (Statehood Green Party), GLAA +0.5; Mary Brooks Beaty (R), GLAA ‘0’, Log Cabin endorsement.
  • Ward 2 Council seat: Jack Evans (D)-incumbent, GLAA +8.5, Stein Club endorsement.
  • Ward 4 Council seat: Muriel Bowser (D)-incumbent, GLAA +6.5, Stein Club endorsement.
  • Ward 7 Council seat: Yvette Alexander (D)-incumbent, GLAA -3.5; Ron Moten (R), GLAA +1.5, Log Cabin endorsement.
  • Ward 8 Council seat: Marion Barry (D)-incumbent, GLAA -3.5.
  • Delegate to U.S. House of Representatives: Eleanor Holmes Norton (D)-incumbent, Stein Club endorsement; Bruce Majors (Libertarian), GOProud endorsement; Natale Lino Stracuzzi (Statehood Green).
  • At-Large State Board of Education: Mary Lord, Stein Club endorsement; Marvin Tucker.
  • Ward 2 State Board of Education: Jack Jacobson, Stein Club endorsement.
  • Ward 4 State Board of Education: D. Kamili Anderson.
  • Ward 7 State Board of Education: Robert Matthews, Karen Williams, Stein Club endorsement; Villareal “VJ” Johnson; Dorothy Douglas.
  • Ward 8 State Board of Education: Trayon “Tray” White (incumbent); Philip Pannell, Stein Club endorsement.
  • U.S. (Shadow) Senator: Michael D. Brown (D), Stein Club endorsement; David Schwartzman (Statehood Green); Nelson Rimensnyder (R), Log Cabin endorsement.
  • U.S. (Shadow) Representative: Nate Bennett-Fleming (D), Stein Club endorsement; G. Lee Aikin (Statehood Green).

Following are openly gay ANC candidates the Blade has identified this year. The number that precedes the letter in the ANC district indicates the ward in which the district is located:

  • Marc Morgan—1B01 (unopposed)
  • Erling (Erl) Bailey—1B12
  • Jimmy R. Rock—1C08 (unopposed)
  • Mike Feldstein—2B01 (unopposed)
  • Martin Espinoza—2B04
  • Victor Wexler—2B05 (unopposed)
  • Mike Silverstein—2B06 (unopposed)
  • Walt Cain—2F02
  • Chris Linn—2F03 (unopposed)
  • John Fanning—2F04
  • Matt Raymond—2F07 (unopposed)
  • Lee Brian Reba—3C01 (unopposed)
  • Bob Summersgill—3F07 (unopposed)
  • Chad Hrdina—5E06
  • Andy Litsky—6D04 (unopposed)
  • Roger Moffatt—6D05
  • Alexander “Alex” Padro—6E01
  • Martin Moulton—6E02
  • Kevin Chapple—6E02
  • Anthony Lorenzo—8B04
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District of Columbia

Adams Morgan queer bar broken into and vandalized

Sinners and Saints targeted Thursday night

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Homophobic vandalism left in Sinners and Saints following the break in. (Photo courtesy of Sinners and Saints' Instagram page)

On Thursday night, Sinners and Saints, a popular queer bar in Adams Morgan and the only QTBIPOC (queer, trans, Black, Indigenous and people of color) bar in D.C., was broken into and vandalized with homophobic slurs, according to a recent Instagram post from the establishment.

The iron gate and glass door of Sinners and Saints smashed. (Photo from Sinners and Saints’s Instagram page)

“Last night, our bar — the only QTBIPOC bar in DC — was broken into and hate-crimed during DC Black Pride, a time meant for celebration, resilience, and joy — and on the eve of WorldPride 2025. We are heartbroken, but we are not broken,” the post read.

The statement was accompanied by a slideshow showing the damage: the front iron gate door and its glass counterpart shattered, glass strewn across the floor, and the word “FAGGOT” scrawled in black ink on the wall.

“This space exists to protect and celebrate queer and trans BIPOC communities, and this attack only strengthens our resolve,” the post continued. “We will NOT be silenced. We will NOT be intimidated. We will NOT back down.”

“To those who tried to harm us: hate fuels our defiance. To our community: we see you, we love you, and we will continue fighting for you. Sinners and Saints is resistance. We will rebuild. We will STAY OPEN. And we will keep our doors — and hearts — wide open for all who need refuge.”

They ended the message with a call to action: “Stand with us. Share this. Show up. We keep us safe.”

“What happened was truly disheartening, but we won’t be silenced,” co-owner Fazeel Ashraf told the Washington Blade. “QTBIPOC spaces are so important in this current political climate. I’d love to do a phone interview with one of my fellow partners.”

Despite the heartbreak surrounding the break-in and what Ashraf described as “a hate crime,” the LGBTQ community quickly rallied in the comments, offering support and assistance.

“Please let us know how we can help!” wrote Nik Battaglia. “I’m a handy queer with handy queer friends — I can fix shit, paint shit, and am happy to stand guard outside.”

Even national figures chimed in.

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Laganja Estranja commented, “Incredible response! I believe in you. Sending so much love and strength.”

The Blade reached out to the Metropolitan Police Department regarding the break-in but has not received a response.

To view the damage, and some of the LGBTQ community’s supportive statements, visit the Sinners and Saints’s Instagram page.

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Comings & Goings

Freedman-Gurspan takes role in Mass. governor’s administration

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Raffi Freedman-Gurspan

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected]

The Comings & Goings column also invites LGBTQ college students to share their successes with us. If you have been elected to a student government position, gotten an exciting internship, or are graduating and beginning your career with a great job, let us know so we can share your success. 

Congratulations to Raffi Freedman-Gurspan on being appointed Associate Director, Federal Funding & Infrastructure Office, at the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration & Finance. Freedman-Gurspan will be returning to her hometown of Boston and joining Gov. Maura Healey’s Administration. Freedman-Gurspan served in both the Obama and Biden administrations as well as worked in LGBTQ and redistricting advocacy during her 11 years in D.C. 

Freedman-Gurspan was the first openly transgender person on the White House staff when she worked for President Obama. She most recently served at the U.S. Department of Transportation in former Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s office, as Deputy Director of Public Engagement. Previously she worked with the National Redistricting Action Fund/The All On The Line Campaign, as Deputy States Director.  She worked for the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) as Director of External Relations. In the Obama White House, she worked in the Office of Public Engagement, as Senior Associate Director. She was the White House Liaison to the LGBTQ community responsible for management of all public inquiries on matters regarding LGBTQ people, including recommending public responses to senior leadership, assisting in drafting administration talking points, and coordinating stakeholder engagement with the White House offices.  She worked with the White House, Presidential Personnel Office (PPO), as Outreach and Recruitment Director.  

Prior to that she was on the staff of Commonwealth of Massachusetts, House of Representatives Office of State Rep. Carl Sciortino, as legislative director, and worked for the City of Somerville, Health Department, Office of Commissions, Somerville, Mass., as LGBTQ Liaison.  

Freedman-Gurspan served on the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, the Presidentially Appointed Council; and as a member, and Board Member, Boston University, College of Arts and Sciences, Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Norwegian, concentration in Nordic Studies, from St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minn.  

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District of Columbia

Murdered Israeli embassy officials were supporters of D.C.’s LGBTQ synagogue

Bet Mishpachah calls fatal shooting outside Capital Jewish Museum ‘devastating’

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Bet Mishpachah members march at the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, Oct. 11, 1987. (Photo courtesy of Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Bet Mishpachah with thanks to Joel Wind & Al Munzer)

The two Israeli embassy officials who were shot to death outside D.C.’s Capital Jewish Museum Wednesday evening, May 21, were strong supporters of Bet Mishpachah, D.C.’s LGBTQ supportive synagogue, according to a statement it released.

“We are especially devastated by the loss of our dear colleague and friend of Bet Mishpachah, Sarah Milgram, and her soon to be fiancé, Yaron Lischinsky,” the LGBTQ synagogue said in a May 22 statement.

“Sarah was the liaison between Bet Mishpachah  and the Israeli Embassy, working closely with our staff and clergy,” the statement says. “Her warmth, professionalism, and deep commitment to building bridges within the Jewish community made her not only a trusted partner but a beloved part of our extended congregational family,” according to the statement.

A statement also released on May 22 by the office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia says Chicago resident Elias Rodriguez, 30, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder along with other weapons related charges in connection with the shooting deaths of Milgram and Lischinsky. 

Officials with the D.C. police and the FBI, which has joined D.C. police in continuing to investigate the case, have said Rodriquez arrived in D.C. from Chicago one day prior to the shooting and appears to have targeted an event taking place at the Capital Jewish Museum for violence at the time it was hosting an event called “Young Diplomats Reception,” in which Israeli Embassy officials were in attendance.

Police and FBI officials have said Rodriguez allegedly shot Milgrim and Lischinsky after they left the Capital Jewish Museum at the conclusion of the event. The museum is located at 575 3rd Street, N.W.

“Surveillance footage reportedly shows Rodriquez walking past the victims before turning and firing multiple rounds,” the U.S. Attorney’s statement says. “After the victims fell, he allegedly continued firing at close range, including as one attempted to crawl away,” it says, adding, “Investigators recovered a 9 mm handgun and 21 spent shell casings at the scene.”

Police have said Rodriguez walked into the Capital Jewish Museum after the shooting and was detained by security guards until D.C. police arrived. Witnesses said he began to shout, “free, free Palestine” before police took him into custody. 

“Make no mistake, this attack was targeted, antisemitic violence,” said Steven Jenson, an FBI assistant director working on the investigation. “The FBI will continue to pursue all leads and use all available resources to investigate this heinous murder,” he said in the statement. 

The fatal shooting took place five days after the Capital Jewish Museum opened a special exhibition called “LGBT Jews in the Federal City” on May 16. “This landmark exhibition explores a turbulent century of celebrations, activism, and change in the nation’s capital by D.C.’s LGBTQ+ Jewish community,” the museum said in a statement announcing the exhibition.

Photos and documents related to Bet Mishpachah make up a prominent part of the exhibition.

During a May 22 press conference organized by the U.S. Attorney for D.C., Jeanine Pirro, to provide an update on the investigation into the two murders, Pirro and FBI official Jensen referred to the two murders as a hate crime and terrorist act. 

In response to a question from the Washington Blade asking if investigators were looking into whether the LGBTQ exhibition at the Capital Jewish Museum might have played some role in Gonzales’s motive for targeting the museum, Pirro responded to the question.

“So, we are looking into absolutely everything,” she said. “There is so much information we’re looking at. And I must tell you, coming from New York, I’ve never seen the cooperation and coordination that I’m seeing here. It was immediate. It was instant. It was coordinated. And my hat’s off to this area. We’re going to clean it up, thank you,” she said in ending the press conference.

Josh Maxey, Bet Mishpachah’s executive director, said he and Israeli Embassy official Milgram became friends during their two-and-a-half-year interaction working on joint events between the embassy and Bet Mishpachah.

“This became a wonderful two and a half years journey of putting events together, of hosting events together, doing different programs for the community,” Maxey told the Blade. Among the activities the two worked on, he said, was the embassy’s annual LGBTQ Pride event.

Maxie said his own grieving over the death of Milgram and her boyfriend Lischinsky was heightened by the fact that he spoke with her by phone on the day of the shooting shortly before she arrived at the Jewish Museum over plans about this year’s LGBTQ Pride events.

“Sarah really championed us to be included in Israeli events,” Maxey said. “And so, I am just devastated that this true embodiment of an ally was so viciously and violently taken away from us.”

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