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Gay senior commits suicide after eviction

Lifelong D.C. resident’s death prompts activists to assess city services

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Maurice “Twan” Coplin, obituary, Washington Blade, gay news
Maurice “Twan” Coplin, obituary, gay news, Washington Blade

Maurice “Twan” Coplin

D.C. Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), transgender activists Earline Budd and Toni Collins, and gay activist and acting program director Greg Mims of the local social services group RAP, Inc. each took steps to help him at a time of need.

But to their shock and dismay, Maurice “Twan” Coplin, a 62-year-old gay man, took his own life on April 7, 10 days after being evicted from the Columbia Heights apartment that had been his home for more than 10 years.

Graham, who knew Coplin as a Ward 1 constituent, said he and his office worked with Coplin in the spring and early summer of 2012 to resolve an issue that could have led to his eviction.

“We thought the matter had been resolved,” Graham told the Blade.

Budd and Collins, who were friends of Coplin’s, said in an email exchange after learning of Coplin’s death that they tried their best to help him. But they said Coplin didn’t reach out to them until after his March 28 eviction landed him and his belongings on the street outside the Columbia Uptown Apartments at 1375 Fairmont St., N.W.

“I have tried to search my heart and soul in trying to figure out is there anything else that could have been done to prevent this tragedy,” Budd, an official with the local group Transgender Health Empowerment, said in an email.

Collins stated in an email to Budd and other activists on April 9 that she took Coplin into her home after he called her and asked her to pick him up on the street following the eviction. She said he stayed with her until April 2, when he told her he was going to the city’s housing department to seek help in obtaining temporary housing.

“I lost contact with him after that until the call from the detective last night informing me of his suicide,” Collins wrote.

She was referring to a call from a Montgomery County police detective who informed her that Coplin’s body was found in a hotel room in Rockville and that the death was believed to be a suicide.

A spokesperson for the Maryland State Medical Examiner said the cause of death was determined to be an alcohol and drug overdose and the manner of death was ruled a suicide. The drug was identified as oxycodone, the spokesperson said.

“We need to do something about how seniors are treated in the eviction process and resources made available at the time of eviction so that they have a place to stay and also encompass any medical or mental health issues they may have,” Collins wrote.

In a series of interviews in the weeks following Coplin’s death, people who knew him and those who took steps to help him – including Graham – told the Blade that numerous programs at D.C. government agencies and from private community organizations existed that could have provided all of the help Coplin needed.

The fact that he didn’t call on people he knew to set in motion the help and resources he needed until after the eviction raises questions about his emotional state, friends said. They also have asked how friends and family members might recognize signs of distress, even if a loved one doesn’t choose to talk about it.

“We have all these questions lingering,” said Jackie Reyes, a constituent services staffer in Graham’s D.C. Council office who worked with Graham on Coplin’s case. “Something happened that he didn’t want to talk about this,” Reyes said.

Mims said he has known Coplin since the two went to high school in D.C. Both became involved in D.C.’s gay social circles in the late 1960s, when there were few bars and gay life centered on social groups, especially in the city’s black gay community.

Mims said he only learned recently that Coplin served in the U.S. Navy before beginning a career as a hairstylist. According to Mims, Coplin’s career was cut short after he was diagnosed with AIDS in the 1980s and illness prevented him from working and resulted in his going on disability.

Coplin continued to become involved in gay community activities over the years, Mims said, including participating in LGBT Pride-related events.

For at least the past 10 years, Mims said, Coplin received financial assistance for his rent through a federally funded program that provides rent subsidies through vouchers issued by the city.

Friends and others who knew him said problems with his apartment appear to have surfaced shortly after owners of the high-rise apartment building completed an extensive renovation project that some viewed as a “gentrification” effort to attract new tenants that could afford far higher rents.

In early 2012 Coplin fell behind in his rent and records from the D.C. Superior Court’s Landlord-Tenant Branch show that eviction proceedings were filed against Coplin. That’s when Graham’s office stepped in and helped Coplin navigate through the problem and catch up on his rent through city programs available to him, Graham said.

But just a few months later, according to court records, the landlord filed a new eviction proceeding against him that was unrelated to his rent payments. Instead, the eviction filing accused him of violating his lease by allegedly assaulting a woman on the premises who worked as a childcare provider for another tenant.

Court records show that the case went to trial in January of this year and a judge ruled in favor of the eviction after Coplin and witnesses for the landlord testified under oath. The records show that Coplin did not have a lawyer and represented himself.

Some who knew Coplin say they are suspicious of the motives of the landlord since the eviction proceedings took place at a time when Coplin was among the few if not the only longtime tenant remaining in the building from the days before the renovation project.

John Raftery, one of several attorneys representing Van Metre Columbia Uptown Apartments, LLC, the landlord, said Coplin admitted in court in his testimony that he committed the assault. Raftery told the Blade the building had no choice but to take steps to evict a tenant who commits an act of violence in the building.

“I think the issue in that particular building was several people had vouchers,” said Mims. “And they sort of moved them out of the building. I don’t know if gentrification was part of it or not.”

Regardless of the actual cause of the eviction, Mims and others who knew Coplin said the state of Coplin’s mental health appeared to play a role in some of Coplin’s actions near the end of his life.

“My concern was that we didn’t learn about everything until later,” Mims said. “Had he told us I would never have let him sit on the street…The thing that bothers me is I think he felt so hopeless.”

Courtney Williams, a gay official with the D.C. Office of Aging, said he didn’t know Coplin personally but learned about his case from activists. He said his office specializes in coordinating services for seniors facing problems similar to Coplin.

All people need to do is call us,” he said.

“We heard nothing about it until it actually happened,” Graham said in commenting on Coplin’s March 28 eviction. “That’s when he contacted me. And once an eviction happens it’s very hard to respond. But we did respond,” Graham said.

Graham said his office arranged for the building to put most if not all of Coplin’s possessions in storage.

“And then he vanished,” said Graham. “We couldn’t reach him anymore. And I contacted MPD and asked them if there had been a missing person’s report.

Days later Graham learned of Coplin’s suicide from Collins.

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Maryland

Annapolis Pride postponed due to weather

Parade and festival will not happen as scheduled, other events to take place

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Annapolis Pride postponed. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

The annual celebration of the Annapolis LGBTQ community has been put on hold due to forecasted severe weather.

The Annapolis Pride parade and festival, both of which were supposed to take place on May 31, have been postponed until a later date.

Annapolis Pride Board Chair Joe Toolan announced the decision this afternoon, citing information given to the Pride board from emergency management agencies and weather forecasting models.

“The safety of our community comes first,” Toolan said. “Based on guidance from the Annapolis Office of Emergency Management and the National Weather Service, we’ve made the difficult decision to postpone the 2025 Annapolis Pride Parade and Festival due to the very real threat of severe thunderstorms, lightning, and flooding.

“We are hoping to reschedule for some time this fall,” he added.

The National Weather Service has issued tornado and flood watches for large portions of the Mid-Atlantic area, more specifically in areas of Virginia, D.C., and Maryland — including Anne Arundel County where Annapolis is located.

The tornado watch only lasts until midnight, but the impacts of heavy downpours in the area can already be seen where the parade and festival were set to take place. The festival grounds at Bates Middle School are already experiencing flooding and over-saturation, and a flood watch remains in effect with more rain forecast for tonight and tomorrow.

“We are all sad and terribly disappointed that we cannot proceed with the parade and festival on Saturday,” Toolan said. “Hundreds of hours have been spent on planning and coordination, and we were expecting tens of thousands of attendees. But at the end of the day, safety concerns outweigh all other concerns.”

Toolan said the Pride board will announce a rescheduled date as soon as it is confirmed.

Even though the Annapolis Pride parade and festival have been postponed, there are a slew of other planned Pride events that will go on as scheduled:

May 30 – Ladies Night – SOLD OUT
6–10 p.m., Eastport Democratic Club, Annapolis

June 1 – Drag Brunch at Leo – SOLD OUT
10 a.m., Leo Annapolis Restaurant, 212 West St.

June 1 – Ecumenical Pride Worship Service
3 p.m., Eastport United Methodist Church, Annapolis

June 3 – Annapolis Pride Beer Launch
4–7 p.m., Forward Brewing, Annapolis

June 5 – Pride on the Pier
6–9 p.m., Bread and Butter Kitchen, Annapolis

June 6 – Big Gay Dance Party
10 p.m.–close, Tsunami Restaurant, 51 West St., Annapolis

June 7 – Pop-Up Market: Benefiting Annapolis Pride
10 a.m.–3 p.m., Annapolis Town Center
Special discounts @Kendra Scott 6/7–6/8

June 14 – Silent Disco
7–11 p.m., Eastport Democratic Club, Annapolis

June 21 – Teen Dance Party
6–9 p.m., Art Farm, Annapolis
For high school freshmen – juniors

*ticketed event

For more information on the postponement of Annapolis Pride, visit https://annapolispride.org/

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District of Columbia

Bowser raises Pride flag over Wilson Building

Council members joined mayor to welcome WorldPride to D.C.

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(Washington Blade photo by Robert Rapanut)

Close to 200 people turned out on Thursday, May 29, to watch D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, joined by members of the D.C. Council and officials with the Capital Pride Alliance, raise a large Pride flag on a tall flagpole in front of the John Wilson D.C. City Hall building.

The mayor, who joined others in speaking from a podium on the front steps of the Wilson Building, called the event the city’s official welcoming ceremony for hosting WordPride 2025 DC in the nation’s capital.

World Pride events, which began May 17, continue through June 8.

“Happy WorldPride in the gayest city in America,” Bowser told the crowd to loud cheers and applause.

(Washington Blade photo by Lou Chibbaro, Jr.)

Joining Bowser were five members of the D.C. Council, including gay Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), who was among the Council members who also spoke at the event.

Also speaking were Ryan Bos, executive director of Capital Pride Alliance, the local LGBTQ group serving as lead organizer of WorldPride 2025, and Capital Pride Alliance Deputy Director June Crenshaw.

“This flag tells a story of love without apology,” Crenshaw said in her remarks at the podium. “Our community has never backed down, and we will not at this time of challenge,” she said.

Japer Bowles, director of the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, told the gathering that the city and especially Bowser and all city officials were proud to host WorldPride at the time of the 50th anniversary of Pride celebrations in D.C.

Among those attending the event and sitting in a front row seat was longtime D.C. gay activist Deacon Maccubbin, who organized the city’s first Gay Pride Day celebration in 1975. He was joined by his husband, Jim Bennett.

During the ceremony Bowser also presented Capital Pride Alliance officials with a mayoral proclamation proclaiming Thursday, May 29, 2025, as “A Day of Remembrance For Bernie Delia in Washington, D.C.”  Delia, a longtime Capital Pride Alliance official and one of the lead organizers of WorldPride 2025, died unexpectedly of natural causes June 21, 2024

The other Council members participating in the event in addition to Parker were Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1), Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2), Matthew Ruman (D-Ward 3), and Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) 

The Council members, Capital Pride officials, and LGBTQ community members stood next to Bowser as she raised the large Pride flag on a pole located to the right of the front steps and main entrance of the Wilson Building.

(Washington Blade photo by Robert Rapanut)
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Arts & Entertainment

Shakira cancels WorldPride concert 

Welcome event was set for Saturday at Nats Park

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Shakira’s Saturday WorldPride concert has been canceled.

Internationally renowned singer Shakira’s WorldPride concert set for Saturday has been canceled, according to two knowledgeable sources who spoke to the Washington Blade.

LiveNation and the Washington Nationals made a formal announcement Friday afternoon.

Shakira’s concert at Boston’s Fenway Park was abruptly canceled on Thursday reportedly due to issues with the safety of the stage. 

“Due to circumstances beyond my control, I am sad and heartbroken that I will not be able to be in Washington, D.C., with you tomorrow,” said Shakira in a statement posted on social media. “I hope that I can come back to D.C. as soon as I am able. Meanwhile, please know that I am eternally thankful for your unconditional support.”

“Like Shakira’s fans and our friends and family who have traveled from around the world to join us in D.C. this weekend, we are deeply disappointed that unforeseen circumstances have forced the cancellation of both this week’s concert in Boston and tomorrow’s concert at Nationals Park,” said the Capital Pride Alliance in a statement.

It’s unclear whether the WorldPride Welcome Concert that she was headlining will continue.

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