Local
Same-sex marriage supporters rally in Freedom Plaza
D.C. gathering among 150 that took place across the country
D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray at Freedom Plaza. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
More than 200 same-sex marriage supporters gathered at Freedom Plaza in downtown D.C. on Wednesday to celebrate the U.S. Supreme Court rulings that struck down a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act and California’s Proposition 8.
“DOMA and Prop 8 are dead in the U.S. of A,” D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray said during a rally the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club hosted. “The deep injustices that they perpetrated on loving, committed couples and their families have gone and gone for good.”
The D.C. rally was one of nearly 150 events that took place across the country in celebration of the landmark Supreme Court rulings.
Edith Windsor, who challenged DOMA after she paid $363,000 in federal estate taxes upon the 2009 death of her partner of more than 40 years, Thea Spyer, whom she married in Canada in 2007, spoke at a rally outside the Stonewall Inn in New York City. Same-sex marriage advocates also celebrated the decisions in Boston; Seattle; San Francisco; Chicago; Miami Beach, Fla.; West Hollywood, Calif., and other cities.
Washington National Cathedral in Northwest D.C. hosted a prayer service for LGBT families.
“We are ringing our bells at the cathedral to celebrate the extension of federal marriage equality to all the same-sex couples modeling God’s love in lifelong covenants,” Washington National Cathedral Dean Gary Hall said in a statement after the justices announced their rulings on DOMA and Prop 8. “Our prayers for committed happiness are with them and with all couples who will be joined in matrimony in the years to come, whether at Washington National Cathedral or elsewhere.”
Back at Freedom Plaza, an emotional National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey said the rulings go far beyond same-sex couples and their families.
“It was a victory for the United States of America,” she said.
“Today millions of people who have been in the shadows have gotten the rights and recognition and respect that we should have had years and years and centuries and centuries ago,” American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten added.
D.C. Councilwoman Anita Bonds (D-At-Large) described the decisions to the Washington Blade as “wonderful.”
Christopher Schaffer, vice chair of LGBT Democrats of Virginia, agreed.
“The rulings today on DOMA and Prop 8 are a major step forward for equality in the United States,” he said. “DOMA has been nothing more than the federal government condoning discrimination against LGBT people. And it is our hope that wiping discriminatory laws from our books will set an example for all to follow.”
(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Even though same-sex marriage supporters celebrated the Supreme Court rulings, they acknowledged many LGBT Americans still lack even the most basic of legal protections in the states in which they live.
Schaffer said gay and lesbian Virginians’ relationships “will continue to be relegated to second class status” in the commonwealth because of the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Carey reiterated her support for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act; while she, Weingarten and National Center for Transgender Equality Executive Director Mara Keisling blasted the Supreme Court’s decision on Tuesday that struck down a portion of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“We do not have equality until every single person in these blessed United States has full equality,” Marty Rouse, national field director for the Human Rights Campaign, said.
Ikeita Cantu of McLean, Va., who married Carmen Guzmán in Canada in 2009, echoed this message.
“Today is about equality for all people and so as a woman, as a person of color, as an LGBT American, we’re used to freedom being a very long struggle in this country,” Cantu told the Blade at the end of the rally. “Today is not just about LGBT Americans; it’s about all Americans and we all became that much freer today.”
Maryland
‘Girlfriends’ wanted for murder in Silver Spring, Md.
Montgomery County police say two charged with killing mother of one of them
The Montgomery County, Md., Department of Police announced on June 4 that it is seeking the public’s help in locating two women, who they identify as a couple, who are charged with first-degree murder for allegedly killing the mother of one of them.
In a statement police identified the two women as Vanessa Tjongarero-Henderson of Clarksburg, Md., and her girlfriend Samantha Raebel of Phoenix, Ariz. The statement says the two are charged with the murder of Hilde Henderson, 67, the mother of Vanessa.
According to the statement, officers with the department’s 3rd District found Hilde Henderson deceased on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at her home at the Charter House apartments in the 1300 block of Fenwick Lane in Silver Spring after being called to check on the resident’s welfare.
“Henderson was transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, where an autopsy was conducted,” the statement says. “The cause of death was ruled a homicide.”
It adds, “Through the course of the investigation, detectives identified Henderson’s daughter, Vanessa Tjongarero-Henderson and Vanessa’s girlfriend, Raeble, as the suspects.” It says detectives obtained an arrest warrant against the two women, charging both with first-degree murder.
“Anyone with information regarding the location of these suspects or this crime is asked to call 911 or to visit the Crime Solvers of Montgomery County, Md. website at crimesolversmcmd.org,” the statement says, or to call the tip line at 1-866-411-8477.
“Tips with information leading to an arrest may be eligible for a reward from $250 up to $10,000,” it says, adding that tips may remain anonymous.
A spokesperson for Montgomery County police didn’t immediately respond to a request from the Washington Blade for information not disclosed in the police statement, including the physical-medical cause of death for Hilde Henderson and whether detectives have determined a motive for the murder.
District of Columbia
D.C. Latinx Pride celebrates culture and heritage
Your guide to events throughout June
Organizers with the Latinx History Project have planned a host of events this Pride season with parties, poetry, drag and more.
The festivities begin with the DC Latinx Pride 2026 Kickoff at Crush Dance Bar (2007 14th Street, N.W.) on Friday, June 12 from 6-10 p.m. The party will include a coronation ceremony for the 2026 Royal Court: Ms. DC Latinx Pride Vida Rangel and Mx. DC Latinx Pride Steph Niaupari. RSVP at latinxhistoryproject.org. The event is free, though donations are accepted.
An outdoor event is planned for Sunday, June 14 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Anacostia River Park (1500 Anacostia Dr., S.E.). Cultivating Queer Outdoor Joy is a “peaceful outdoor community event focused on grounding, connection, and queer joy in nature.” The event is free.
A panel discussion is planned for The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Rd., N.W., 2nd floor) on Monday, June 15 from 6-8 p.m. La Plática: The Future of 2 Spirits and Trans Natives will focus upon the “stories, leadership and vision of Two-Spirit, Indigiqueer and Trans Native people.” RSVP to the free event at latinxhistoryproject.org.
A sex-positive poetry workshop, “Hoetry: Writing Erotic Poetry,” is planned for Wednesday, June 17 from 6-8 p.m. at The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Road, N.W.). The event is free.
The workshop So You Wanna Do Drag? is planned for Thursday, June 18 from 5:30-8 p.m. at The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Road, N.W.). Featured guests Ricky Rose and Mari Con Carne will hold a style showcase to discuss the basics of developing a drag persona. RSVP to the free event at latinxhistoryproject.org.
The Latinx History Project is collaborating with Rumba Queer DC to produce an official Latinx Pride Party: Sin Vergüenza. The event is at the multi-level venue, Transmission (1353 H Street, N.E.) on Thursday, June 18 from 7 p.m.-1 a.m. There are dance lessons, vendors and three different music experiences in the sprawling venue. There will also be a drag showcase from 10-11 p.m. The event is 21+ and tickets are available at shotgun.live/en/events/sin-verguenza. Tickets are $15 for entry into the party. Tickets to participate in the dance lesson are $29.98. Participants may choose between a bachata lesson or a salsa lesson from 7-8 p.m.
La Fiesta: Official DC Latinx Pride Party is planned for Friday, June 19 from 10 p.m. – 2 a.m. at Bunker (2001 14th Street, N.W.). Serena Morena from “Drag Race México” and “Drag Race UK vs The World” is slated to headline the 21+ event. Early tickets are available for $15 (plus $0.38 service fee) until June 16. The door cover charge without early tickets is $20. Attendees can also purchase a meet and greet experience with Serena Morena for $30. Tickets are available at latinxhistoryproject.org.
The Latinx History Project plans to march in the Capital Pride Parade on Saturday, June 20 and to have a table at the Capital Pride Festival on Sunday, June 21. Visit latinxhistoryproject.org to register to march alongside LGP in the parade or to staff the table at the festival.
The DC Latinx Pride 2026 Closing Event is scheduled for Friday, June 26 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Mexican Cultural Institute (2829 16th Street, N.W.). The free event is a panel discussion “centering the experiences of immigrants who have lived in Latin America and now call the United States home.”
Visit latinxhistoryproject.org for more information.
District of Columbia
JR.’s hosts meet & greet for mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George
Event organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, Queers for Janeese
D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George spoke to a crowd of LGBTQ supporters on June 1 at a meet & greet event held at JR.’s on 17th Street in the Dupont Circle neighborhood.
The event, organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, which has endorsed Lewis George for mayor, with support from a group called Queers for Janeese, was followed by a “get out the vote” canvassing endeavor in which several of those attending the meet & greet visited the homes of nearby residents known to be Lewis George supporters.
The purpose of the canvassing was to remind Lewis George supporters to return their mail-in ballots or go to the polls on June 16 to elect Lewis George as the city’s next mayor, according to Matthew Kavanagh, one of the leaders of Queers for Janeese who attended the meet & greet event at JR.’s.
Local political observers consider Lewis George, a Ward 4 D.C. Council member, and former At-Large D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie, to be the two leading candidates in this year’s race for mayor. The two are among seven mayoral candidates competing in the city’s June 16 Democratic primary.
Lewis George told those attending the meet & greet, which was held on the JR.’s outdoor patio, that she has a long record of advocating for and initiating city polices and laws in support of the LGBTQ community. She said large corporate donors were backing her opponents and urged her LGBTQ supporters to help raise funds for her in the remaining days of the campaign.
Among those attending the meet & greet was gay longtime Dupont Circle civic activist Randy Downs who last November opened a nearby eatery called Protest Pizza. “I am queer and I am a Janeese supporter,” Downs told the Blade.
Stevie McCarty, president of Capital Stonewall Democrats, who also spoke at the meet & greet event, said his group would organize events in support of Lewis George in the remaining days of the campaign. Among them, he said, was an LGBTQ bar crawl in which supporters of Lewis George, including the candidate herself, would visit LGBTQ bars to promote her candidacy.
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