Local
Gray, HIV/AIDS service providers mark World AIDS Day
More than 100 people attended candlelight vigil in Dupont Circle
Chayla Daniels speaks at the World AIDS Day candlelight vigil in Dupont Circle on Dec. 1. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
“I’m looking forward to the day when we come together on World AIDS Day and say it is the last World AIDS Day because we have licked this disease, we have overcome it, there will be no more infections, we have found a cure for those who have it and people are practicing prevention techniques so they don’t contract this disease again in the future,” said D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray.
First held in 1988, this year’s World AIDS Day took place less than five months after the nation’s capital hosted the International AIDS Conference.
Gray noted nearly 12,000 Washingtonians have died from AIDS since the city’s first known case in 1983. The Department of Health’s latest epidemiological report indicates 15,000 D.C. residents – or 2.7 percent of the city’s population – were living with HIV at the end of 2010.
Even though new HIV infections in D.C. have dropped 26 percent between 2006 and 2010, Gray acknowledged the fight against the virus in the nation’s capital is far from over.
“Of course the most important goal is to end the epidemic — end it in the District of Columbia,” he said. “We know that anything above one percent is exceeding what would be epidemic levels. We are at 2.7 percent and frankly in terms of prevalence we will probably be at 2.7 or around it for a while because we are now able to extend life. But in terms of incidents… we’re going to see that number come down because people are getting better educated, they’re practicing better prevention techniques and just doing more to recognize that the best way to treat this disease is not to have it in the first place.”
Dr. Gregory Pappas of the DOH’s HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, Sexually Transmitted Disease and Tuberculosis Administration joined DOH Interim Director Dr. Saul Levin; Deputy D.C. Mayor Bibi Otero; Andrew Barnett, executive director of Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL) and others at the vigil. Reverend Dwayne Johnson of Metropolitan Community Church of Washington was among those who also spoke.
“With my children growing up one day into a world that could be HIV free, that generation is now. That generation is here,” said Chayla Daniels, whose two young children served as grand marshals of the annual AIDS Walk Washington in October.
A peer educator since she was in high school, Daniels said her husband’s aunt passed away from AIDS. Several of his relative learned they were living with HIV while in the military.
“This disease does not discriminate, so don’t you fail to educate,” she said.
Don Blanchon, executive director of Whitman-Walker Health, urged those who attended the vigil to get tested if they don’t know their status. He reiterated the epidemic is far from over, but stressed the fight against HIV/AIDS has made tremendous strides over the last 25 years.
“On that first World AIDS Day a quarter of a century ago; there was still much fear, great sadness and little hope in the near-term and in the long-term,” said Blanchon. “With no effective treatments, AIDS was absolutely a death sentence for many who were infected. And many family and friends had to bury a loved one after long and painful struggles and restless nights. Now we mark World AIDS Day with much less fear and sadness and with a tremendous amount of hope.”
Dr. Gregory Pappas (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
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.).
District of Columbia
D.C. Council member honored by LGBTQ homeless youth group
Doni Crawford receives inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award
About 100 people turned out Tuesday evening, April 7, for a presentation by D.C.’s Wanda Alston Foundation of its inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award to D.C. Council member Doni Crawford (I-At-Large) for her support for the foundation’s mission to support homeless LGBTQ youth.
Among those who attended the event was Japer Bowles, director of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, who delivered an official proclamation issued by Bowser declaring April 7, 2026 “A Day of Remembrance for Wanda Alston.”
Alston, a beloved women’s and LGBTQ rights activist, served as the city’s first director of the then newly created Office of LGBTQ Affairs under then-Mayor Anthony Williams from 2004 until her death by murder on March 16, 2005.
To the shock and dismay of fellow LGBTQ rights advocates, police and court records reported Alston, 45, was stabbed to death inside her Northeast D.C. house by a man high on crack cocaine who lived nearby and who stole her credit cards and car. The perpetrator, William Martin Parrott, 38, was arrested by D.C. police the next day and later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. He was sentenced in July 2005 to 24 years in prison.
Crawford was among those attending the award event who reflected on Alston’s legacy and outspoken advocacy for LGBTQ and feminist causes.
“I am deeply humbled and honored to receive this inaugural award,” Crawford told the Washington Blade at the conclusion of the event. “I think the world of Wanda Alston. She has set such a great foundation for me and other Council members to build on,” she said.
“Her focus on inclusivity and intersectionality is really important as we approach this work,” Crawford added. “And it’s going to guide my work at the Council every day.”
Crawford was appointed to the D.C. Council in January of this year to replace then Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large), who resigned to run for D.C. mayor as a Democrat. She is being challenged by four other independent candidates in a June 16 special election for the Council seat.
Under the city’s Home Rule Charter written and approved by Congress, the seat is one of two D.C. Council at-large seats that cannot be held by a “majority party” candidate, meaning a Democrat.
A statement released by the Alston Foundation last month announcing Crawford’s selection for the Wanda Alston Legacy Award praised Crawford’s record of support for its work on behalf of LGBTQ youth.
“From behind the scenes to now serving as an At-Large Council member, she has fought fearlessly for affordable housing, LGBTQ+ funding priorities, and racial justice,” the statement says. “Council member Crawford’s leadership reflects the same courage and conviction that defined Wanda’s legacy.”
Organizers of the event noted that it was held on what would have been Wanda Alston’s 67th birthday.
“Today’s legacy reception was a smashing success,” said Cesar Toledo, the Alston Foundation’s executive director. “Not only did we come together to celebrate Wanda Alston on her birthday, but we also were able to raise over $10,000 for our homeless LGBTQ youth here in D.C.,” Toledo told the Blade.
“In addition to that, we celebrated and we acknowledged a rising star in our community,” he said. “And that is At-Large Council member Doni Crawford, who we named the inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award recipient.”
At the request of D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) the Council voted unanimously on Jan. 20, 2026, to appoint Crawford to the Council seat being vacated by McDuffie.
Council records show she joined McDuffie’s Council staff in 2022 as a policy adviser and later became his legislative director before McDuffie appointed her as staff director for the Council’s Committee on Business and Economic Development for which McDuffie served as chair.
Calendar: April 10-16
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