Local
Mayoral candidates march in Pride Parade
Pro-LGBT rivals highlight tough choice for activists in race
D.C. Council members Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) (on left), and Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) all marched in Saturday’s Pride parade. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
D.C. Council members Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), and Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) – each of whom is running for mayor – waved to thousands of cheering onlookers on Saturday as they marched in D.C.’s Capital Pride Parade.
Mayor Vincent Gray, who has yet to announce whether he will run for a second term but who many believe will throw his hat in the ring, also marched in the parade, with LGBT supporters and city employees marching in his contingent.
The fact that four prominent politicians and long-time LGBT allies are either running or expected to run for mayor in the April 2014 Democratic mayoral primary highlights what many activists say is D.C.’s status as one of America’s most LGBT supportive cities.
But for many in the LGBT community, the fact that four longtime friends are running or likely to run against each other poses a dilemma. On what basis will they choose one over the other, some are asking.
In interviews with the Washington Blade during LGBT Pride month, several activists who discussed the upcoming mayoral election said it is far too early to make a decision on whom to back, even among those who supported Gray in his 2010 mayoral election campaign.
“We don’t know who else will get in the race,” said gay Democratic activist Peter Rosenstein, who supported Gray in 2010 and who has written several commentaries for the Blade praising Gray’s administration for making important improvements in the city, including the local economy.
“It’s much too early to make a decision,” Rosenstein said.
Veteran gay and AIDS activist Cornelius Baker, however, said he remains a strong Gray supporter and he and many others in the LGBT community he knows won’t line up behind anyone else until Gray makes his intentions known.
“We’re all waiting for him to give us the word that he’s running,” said Baker at a Black LGBT Pride event two weeks ago. “I’m ready to do all I can to support him because he’s done an excellent job on the issues that are important to me.”
Rick Rosendall, president of the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance, a non-partisan advocacy group that rates candidates based on their record and positions on LGBT-related issues, expressed caution about basing a decision on who to back solely on a candidate’s general statements of support.
“All friends are not created equal,” he said. “It behooves us to look inside the wrappers and compare the candidates’ records on translating their friendly words into results,” said Rosendall. “But that’s for another day – it’s Pride, and we have much to celebrate.”
Rosendall backed Gray in the 2010 election.
Christopher Dyer, who served as director of the city’s Office of GLBT Affairs under Mayor Adrian Fenty, said he’s supporting Bowser, who was a strong Fenty supporter in the 2010 election in which Gray beat Fenty in a hotly contested race.
Also backing Bowser is gay activist and businessman Everett Hamilton.
If Fenty’s LGBT backers transfer their support to Bowser, who was a strong political ally of Fenty’s, the Ward 4 Council woman could receive a considerable boost for her campaign among LGBT voters. Fenty won in most of the city’s election precincts with high concentrations of LGBT residents in his unsuccessful bid for a second term in 2010.
Gay Democratic activist John Fanning said he is among the Ward 2 LGBT residents supporting Evans in the mayoral election next year.
“Jack has the experience and has paid his dues,” said Fanning, noting that Evans has been on the D.C. Council since 1991.
Mark Lee, an advocate for nightlife businesses and a business columnist for the Blade, said the mayoral contenders’ strong record of support on LGBT issues opens the way for LGBT voters to look at other issues.
“The hard work by community leaders over many years has made LGBT issues non-controversial in District politics or governance,” Lee said. “As a result, we now have both the opportunity and obligation to participate as full citizens and evaluate candidates on a wide range of issues.”
In media interviews during the past few weeks, each of the three Council contenders in the mayor’s race as well as Gray have said they welcome voter scrutiny of their positions and records on all issues.
Meanwhile, at least two others have given hints that they were considering entering the race. Gay D.C. Council member David Catania (I-At-Large) reportedly is weighing a run, according to political insiders. Should he run and win, Catania would make history by becoming the first out gay person elected mayor of D.C.
Robert C. Bobb, who served as city administrator under former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and later as president of the D.C. school board, is also said to be considering a run for mayor next year. Bobb expressed support for LGBT rights during his campaign for the school board post in 2006 as well as during his tenure as city administrator.
Catania, a longtime vocal supporter of LGBT rights, was the author and lead advocate for the city’s same-sex marriage law, which the D.C. Council passed in 2009. He recently switched from serving as chair of the Council’s Committee on Health to being chair of the Committee on Education, where he has emerged as a vocal advocate for school reform.
Evans, Bowser and Wells each voted for the marriage equality law after advocating for such legislation since winning election to the Council.
“I intend to spend more time focused on that, and when and if I decide to do something else I’ll make that decision, but it’s hard to do two tracks,” Catania told the Blade while marching in the Capital Pride Parade on Saturday. “People often make calculations that are not thoughtful and I want to postpone that campaign mode as long as possible,” he said.
Michael K. Lavers contributed to this report.
District of Columbia
Over 2,000 turn out for Hands Around the Kennedy Center protest
Drag performer Tara Hoot serves as MC, Gay Men’s Chorus of DC performs, attendees shout for Trump to keep ‘hands off’ Kennedy Center
More than 2,000 supporters of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts turned out on Sept. 18, for a rally in support of the performing arts center and a vocal protest against President Donald Trump’s threats to permanently close the center and possibly demolish it.
The event was organized by a group called Hands Off the Arts, which initially called for participants to form a “human chain” around the Kennedy Center’s main building following a rally on the plaza in front of the building.
However, due to a decision by the Trump-controlled Kennedy Center’s board of trustees to close the center earlier in the week and install fencing around part of the building, participants could only form the chain around part of the building, according to organizers.
Drag performer Tara Hoot, who co-organized the event and served as master of ceremonies for the rally preceding the “human chain,” said the large turnout could have fully surrounded the building at least twice had the fencing not prevented a full encirclement.
Among the musicians and singing groups that performed at the rally was the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, which, like other rally performers, had performed at the Kennedy Center in past years. They drew loud applause after singing one of their favorite songs from the Broadway musical show Ragtime, which includes the lyrics, “Will justice be demanded by 10 million men? Make them hear you. When they hear you, I’ll be near you again.”
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Prior to their performance, Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington’s artistic director, Thea Kano, spoke at the rally, reminding participants that shortly after the Trump takeover of the center last year, Kennedy Center officials cancelled a concert the chorus was scheduled to perform there for World Pride 2025.
A Kennedy Center spokesperson said the cancellation was due to a scheduling conflict, but chorus members and LGBTQ activists believe it resulted from policies put in place by Trump and his leadership team at the Kennedy Center following Trump’s statements that he would end controversial “woke” performances that he claimed the majority of Americans disapprove of.
“Now this building sits empty in silence,” Kano told the crowd at the rally. “Let us raise our voices together and bring back the Kennedy Center as it was intended, a place where American culture could be celebrated and elevated, embracing the vibrancy with the spectrum of identify without censure and without politics,” she said.
Among the others who spoke at the rally were U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.), and D.C. Councilmember Robert White (D-At-Large).
Most speakers, along with LGBTQ participants in the hands-around-the-building event expressed strong opposition to Trump’s demand that the Kennedy Center name be changed from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to the Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
At Trump’s request, his appointed board initially made that name change and placed Trump’s name on the front wall of the building along with the Kennedy name. But following legal action taken by opponents who pointed out that Congress must approve such a name change, a judge ordered the removal of Trump’s name from the building. Trump has said he will take steps to reverse that order and has said he will stop plans to renovate the Kennedy Center building and possibly demolish it if his name is not restored in the Kennedy’s Center’s official name.
Throughout the Sept. 18 rally, LGBTQ participants repeatedly responded to the Trump threats by shouting, “Hands Off!”
Chris Raleigh, one of the founders of Hands Off the Arts and a lead organizer of the Sept. 18 event at the Kennedy Center who spoke at the event told the Washington Blade that more similar events are being planned and he welcomes the support the event has received from the LGBTQ community.
“The LGBTQ community was here first, and we’re following them,” he said. “They’ve been the spearhead; they’ve been the vanguard. And I’m so thankful for heroes like Tara Hoot,” he said, adding, “It’s because they know what it means and how this is a safe place – the theater – for many LGBTQ people.”
The DMV’s own furry group was on full display on the Metro on Sept. 12.
Shutterpaws is a volunteer-led 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in Maryland.
The furry group has been doing the FurRide event since 2024 and has blown up in popularity for furries around DMV. They showcased themselves on the Silver and Blue Lines near the Smithsonian on Sept. 12.
“A lot of careful planning goes into running these events, with the goal being a seamless and enjoyable experience for everyone who attends,” says Zayre, a Shutterpaws staff member. “There’s a lot that you learn just by trial and error, and as Shutterpaws hosts more and more events, our team of event organizers continues to learn and refine our approach to keep things running smoothly and finding new ways to engage with our community.”
With a larger growth of participation in the community comes many challenges with the group, especially when it comes to the Metro rides and organizing.
“The biggest challenge that we face as organizers is keeping things fresh and finding new and engaging venues to host events,” says Zayre. “Recently we saw a lot of success hosting a meet at On Target Battlezone, an indoor NERF gun battle arena where our crew was welcome to show up and play both with and without a fur suit.”
Nevertheless, Shutterpaws receive overwhelming support from the community and partners.
“Across the DMV there are so many amazing places to host a Shutterpaws event so we can pursue our mission of helping connect fur suiters and photographers, and we’re blown away with the amount of support we’ve received from our community partners,” says Zayre.
Shutterpaws plans to do more events for anyone in the DMV who is interested.
Their next event in collaboration with DC Fur Meet will take place at Pitchers (2317 18th St., N.W.) on Saturday. Visit Shutterpaws’ website for more information.
Delaware
Republican challenger misgenders McBride during forum, forced to leave
Jewish Federation of Delaware hosted event on Thursday
Republican “Dr. Joe” Arminio, the Republican nominee for the First State’s at-large U.S. House of Representatives seat, attempted to misgender the the country’s first and only transgender member of Congress while at a forum on Thursday.
This story was first broken by WDEL out of Wilmington, Del.
Arminio used the terms “his” and later “gentleman” when referring to U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) during his time on the mic before he was asked to leave the forum, hosted by the Jewish Federation of Delaware at the Siegel Jewish Community Center in Talleyville on Thursday night.
At that point, the crowd of about 100 people largely started booing Arminio, who then finished, “I would like to show respect to the speaker, that would be nice.”
The first time Republican US House candidate “Dr. Joe” Arminio referred to Rep. Sarah McBride (D) as a man during Thursday’s debate at the Siegel Jewish Community Center in Talleyville. He was warned for his comment. #netde https://t.co/j4EaMOL84W
— Sean Greene (@SeanGreeneWDEL) September 18, 2026
Moderator Ken Grant waited until Arminio was finished, then said, “this is your final warning, if you fail to show respect to anyone else on this stage, you’ll be asked to leave.”
During the answer to his next question at the forum, Arminio responded to what he called an “error.”
“I committed an error before, and I do acknowledge it,” Arminio said. “It’s not the first error I’ve made in this campaign, or at any point in my future life.”
Despite the apology and acknowledgement that he had committed what was, at the very least, a social taboo, he did it again 12 minutes later.
While talking about rising healthcare costs being a “catastrophe,” Arminio pointed to U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) and McBride.
“The reason it is is because gentlemen like the two up here with me in the Democratic Party, and the Republican Party … ” Arminio said.
Despite his direct attacks on McBride’s gender identity, she responded to the situation with grace, attempting to intervene to allow Arminio to still have a chance to speak despite not heeding the moderator’s warnings.
“I don’t want this gentleman to not have the ability … ,” McBride began.
However, Republican Senate candidate Michael Katz interrupted her shortly before Arminio was removed from the forum, which was meant to inform the Delaware electorate on the candidates’ issues.
Katz had his opening statement next and directly condemned Arminio’s comments.
“I would like to apologize to everybody here and everybody else on this stage. As a physician, I believe in our common humanity and respect for each other. I feel that pain over those comments, and my apologies.”
Following the forum, Katz called for Arminio to exit the race via social media.
“Those who seek to represent Delaware must demonstrate integrity, judgment, decency, and respect — even toward people with whom they profoundly disagree,” Katz’s post read on Facebook. “For these reasons, I am calling on Joseph Arminio to withdraw his candidacy for the United States House of Representatives.”
This is not the first time McBride has been the victim of misgendering.
In 2025, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Keith Self (R-Texas) introduced the sole representative from Delaware as “Mr. McBride” during a meeting.
This is also not the first time McBride has faced vitriol from the other side of the aisle — both in terms of personal and legislative attacks on her trans identity.
In 2025, the House voted to ban trans girls and women from playing school sports with other girls, while U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) pushed for legislation barring trans women from using women’s bathrooms.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) instituted a similar rule barring McBride — and all other trans women — from women’s restrooms on Capitol Hill.
McBride has also been a vocal opponent of Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office. The directive prohibits the federal government from recognizing the gender identity of trans people.
She has criticized Executive Order 14183, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” which would ban trans service members from serving in the Armed Forces. The directive is still being challenged in the courts to determine its constitutional legitimacy, but it has been allowed to remain in effect as the judicial system considers its legality.
The Washington Blade sat down with McBride in May to reflect on a tense year for LGBTQ politics, where she, in typical McBride fashion, answered questions about the hate she has received.
“Our politics are too often defined by hate,” McBride told the Blade. “I’m glad Delaware and Delawareans are showing that a different kind of politics is possible.”
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