Local
NLGJA’s Michael Triplett dies at 48
President of LGBT journalist association made impact in the field, as well as in D.C.
The late NLGJA President Michael Triplett (Photo courtesy of NLGJA)
The president of the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association died Thursday at 48 after a two-year battle with oral cancer.
Missouri native and Washington, D.C.-based journalist Michael Triplett was elected president in August, and led the organization through its first inclusion in the Unity: Journalists for Diversity conference, a quadrennial gathering of journalists along with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the Asian American Journalists Association and the Native American Journalists Association. According to NLGJA, Triplett was the group’s first representative to the Unity board, working to incorporate sexual orientation and gender identity into the Unity group’s mission.
Once a lawyer, in 2000, Triplett began reporting on tax and labor policy for legal news publisher Bureau of National Affairs, now known as Bloomberg-BNA, where Triplett served as assistant managing editor. Triplett lived in Arlington, Va., where the organization is headquartered, with his partner, Jack Squier. According to Triplett’s Facebook page, until 2011, he’d also served as an adjunct instructor at the American University Washington College of Law, where Triplett received his Juris Doctorate in 1998.
Triplett became involved in the D.C. chapter of NLGJA in 2006, according to communications consultant Matthew Berger, who served with Triplett on the D.C. chapter board, and then later on the national board.
“Michael was incredibly smart and passionate and had a quiet determination that really got things done,” Berger told the Blade. “That is something that is often needed in a non-profit group of volunteers. Instead of people who say ‘this needs to be done,’ you need people like Michael who will roll up their sleeves and do it. that’s why he rose so fast in the organization: he was willing to take on so many different tasks. Really understood the role of the organization.”
“While Michael only served as president for a few short months, he has been a member of our leadership team for several years, first as a Washington, D.C. chapter board member and president and then as a national board member and vice president for print,” read a statement released by NLGJA on Thursday. “His quiet demeanor masked a steely resolve and an uncanny ability to push our organization forward. Michael quickly became someone who could be relied on both to provide sage advice as well as the time and energy to help us accomplish our goals.
Triplett also served as principle contributor to the organization’s blog RE:ACT, which addresses issues of fair and accurate coverage of LGBT issues in the media, and guided the blog’s contributors.
“That’s why he was such a great person, he was able to really connect with the organization’s mission and disseminate it to such a large group through the [react] blog. He was a joy to be around, he was fun, and he had a great spirit,” Berger said.
According to friends of Triplett, he died at his family’s home in Alabama. Triplett’s colleagues at NLGJA expect to announce plans soon to honor the long-time member in Washington, D.C.
“Even the last few years, when things were difficult he had an incredible optimism and was a sweet sweet person,” Berger told the Blade.
Photos
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Gay Men’s Chorus, local drag artists have featured performance at ceremony
The 41st Helen Hayes Awards were held at The Anthem on Monday, May 19. Felicia Curry and Mike Millan served as the hosts.
A performance featuring members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and local drag artists was held at the end of the first act of the program to celebrate WorldPride 2025.
The annual awards ceremony honors achievement in D.C.-area theater productions and is produced by Theatre Washington.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
District of Columbia
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade
WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.
The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.
Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.
Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.
Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”
“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”
“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.
The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.
2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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