Local
Protest threat as Fillmore books anti-gay act
Mexican group Molotov’s lyrics include ‘kill the faggot’
The group Molotov has a large following among young people in Mexico and other Latin American countries. Activists are threatening to protest their show next month in Silver Spring, Md. (Promotional photo courtesy Molotov)
The scheduled appearance next month in Silver Spring, Md., of a controversial hip-hop act from Mexico that uses the phrase “kill the faggot” in one of its songs has prompted LGBT activists to consider holding a protest outside the theater where the band is set to perform on Aug. 26.
LGBT Latino activists familiar with the popular Mexico City band Molotov say the Spanish language lyrics in several of its songs include the words “puto” and “maricon,” which sometimes are used in different ways but are widely interpreted as a slur against gay men.
Gay Latino activist and blogger Andres Duque of New York City, who’s a native Spanish speaker from Colombia, told the Blade that one of Molotov’s most controversial and popular songs is entitled “Puto” and repeats that word more than a dozen times.
Duque said that while the word is sometimes used to describe a male prostitute and a coward it is most often interpreted as “fag” or “faggot.”
A spokesperson for the Fillmore Silver Spring Theater, where Molotov is scheduled to appear for a one-time performance on Aug. 26, did not return calls from the Blade seeking comment as of late Tuesday.
“We are considering a protest at the theater,” said Alex McNeill, a spokesperson for the statewide LGBT group Equality Maryland. “We want people to know that most Latino people don’t agree with the lyrics that use ‘puto.’ We want to make sure people know the word is hurtful.”
Anthony Varona, an associate dean and professor at American University’s Washington College of Law, and D.C. attorney Gabriel Rodriguez-Rico – both native Spanish speakers – joined Duque in rejecting the assertion by some fans and supporters of Molotov who say the lyrics in question are not meant to target gays.
Duque told the Blade Molotov’s four musician members, one of whom is American, have long insisted that their use of the words “puto” and “Maricon” are meant to target corrupt politicians in Mexico as part of the band’s advocacy for social justice.
“The band says that in no way whatsoever are they talking about someone who is gay,” Duque said. “They are only singing about [people] who go along with the corrupt government and never raise a voice against injustice.”
Rodriguez-Rico, who is a native of Mexico, said he’s especially concerned that Molotov has a large following among young people in Mexico and other Latin American countries. He said the song “Puto” is often played at soccer stadiums, with fans attending soccer games singing the song as if it were an “anthem.”
According to Rodriquez-Rico, he found at least six other songs by Molotov that include at least one homophobic slur.
“LGBTQ Hispanics face challenges and discrimination from within their own social circles and other groups, increasing the risks of homelessness, unemployment, suicide, among others,” he said in an email to activists weighing how to respond to Molotov’s upcoming appearance in Silver Spring.
“I believe the last thing the Hispanic culture needs is a music band that hurts it so badly by stereotyping us and turning the phrase ‘death to the faggot’ into a social anthem,” he said.
Varona, who has served on the boards of the Human Rights Campaign and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, said Molotov uses the Spanish words for “faggot” repeatedly in the song “Puto” without making a distinction that the word isn’t targeting gays.
“It’s part of the refrain and is used not in a way that suggests it’s meant to educate but in a way that’s meant to be cutting and to be very, very negative and a slur.”
It couldn’t immediately be determined at press time who arranged for the booking of Molotov at the Fillmore Silver Spring Theater. The theater’s website says the theater is owned by Live Nation Entertainment, Inc., a multi-national corporation based in Hollywood, Calif., that describes itself as the world’s largest producer of live entertainment concerts.
Janice Levi, general manager for the Fillmore Silver Spring, and Jacqueline Peterson, public relations spokesperson for Live Nation Entertainment in Hollywood didn’t immediately respond to calls from the Blade.
Following is a translation by gay Latino activist Andres Duque of excerpts of Molotov’s song “Puto,” which was first released in 1997 as part of the band’s album “Donde Jugarán Las Niñas,” in which the band sings in Spanish:
“So you are macho man, no? Ah, so macho, no?
Faggot, girly, you’re rather a little male-whore, no?”
Background chorus: “Fag, Fag, Fag, Fag, Fag. Fag, Fag, Fag FAG!!
He who doesn’t jump up and down FAG!! He who doesn’t shout and swear FAG!!
The guy who remained in conformity FAG!!
He who believed the official reports FAG!!
He who takes away our food FAG!! Also he who covers it up FAG!!
He who doesn’t do whatever he wants FAG!!
Born a fag, dies a fag Love the killer, Kill the faggot And what does that son of a bitch want? He wants to cry, he wants to cry.”
Rehoboth Beach
Auction of Rehoboth’s Blue Moon canceled
Details on sale of iconic bar, restaurant not disclosed
The Blue Moon in Rehoboth Beach, Del., has been an iconic presence in the local LGBTQ community for four decades but its status remains murky after a sheriff’s auction of the property was abruptly called off on Tuesday.
The property was listed for sale in December. At that time, owner Tim Ragan told the Blade that he is committed to preserving its legacy as a gay-friendly space.
“We had no idea the interest this would create,” Ragan said in December. “I guess I was a little naive about that.”
Ragan explained that he and longtime partner Randy Haney were separating the real estate from the business. The two buildings associated with the sale were listed by Carrie Lingo at 35 Baltimore Ave., and include an apartment, the front restaurant (6,600 square feet with three floors and a basement), and a secondary building (roughly 1,800 square feet on two floors). They were listed for $4.5 million.
The bar and restaurant business is being sold separately; the price was not publicly disclosed.
But then, earlier this year, the Blue Moon real estate listing turned up on the Sussex County Sheriff’s Office auction site. The auction was slated for Tuesday, April 21 but hours before the sale, the listing changed to “active under contract” indicating that a buyer has been found but the sale is not yet final. As of Wednesday morning, the listing has been removed from the sheriff’s auction site.
Ragan didn’t respond to Blade inquiries about the auction. Back in December, he told the Blade, “It’s time to look for the next people who can continue the history of the Moon and cultivate the next chapter,” noting that he turns 70 this year. “We’re not panicked; we separated the building from the business. Some buyers can’t afford both.”
The identity of the buyer was not disclosed, nor was the sale price.
Delaware
Delaware school district remains supportive after Trump attacks on trans students
Cape Henlopen has gender identity nondiscrimination policy
The Cape Henlopen School District in Delaware, one of five school districts in several states where the U.S. Department of Education earlier this month rescinded agreements protecting the rights of transgender students, says it will continue to provide a “safe and supportive learning environment” for all students.
In response to a request for comment, a spokesperson for the Cape Henlopen district sent the Washington Blade a short statement on its response to the federal Education Department’s action under orders from the Trump administration that ended what were called school district “resolution agreements” put in place under the administration of President Joe Biden.
Among other things, the federally initiated agreements required schools to train faculty on responding to a student’s preferred name and pronouns and to implement policies that allow transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity.
“The Cape Henlopen School District has received correspondence from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights regarding the resolution agreement entered in March 2024,” the Cape Henlopen School District’s statement says. “As always, we are committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment where all students can succeed,” it says.
“We will continue to work collaboratively to ensure our practices and programs support the well-being, growth, and achievement of every student in our District,” the statement concludes.
Although it did not respond specifically to the Trump-initiated action ending federal protections for trans students, a statement on the Cape Henlopen School District’s website says the district has a policy of non-discrimination based on a wide range of categories, including race, religion, creed, gender, and “sexual orientation or gender identity.”
The Trump administration’s latest action does not take away nondiscrimination policies put in place by school districts on their own.
The Cape Henlopen district is in Sussex County, a short distance from Rehoboth Beach, a Delaware resort town with many LGBTQ residents and summer visitors.
The other school districts for which the U.S. education department ended the trans nondiscrimination agreements include the Delaware Valley School District in Pennsylvania, Sacramento City Unified School District in California, Fife School District in Washington State, and La Mesa Spring Valley School District also in California.
Kimberly Richey, the Department of Education’s Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, said in a statement that the decision to terminate the school agreements highlighted the Trump administration’s efforts to prevent trans students from participating in girls’ and women’s sports teams and accessing shared locker rooms.
“Today, the Trump administration is removing the unnecessary and unlawful burdens that prior administrations imposed on schools in its relentless pursuit of a radical transgender agenda,” she said in her statement.
Shiwali Patel, an official with the National Women’s Law Center, said in a statement that the action removing protections for trans students would negatively impact all students.
“There is absolutely no basis for what the Department of Education is doing, and it is unimaginably cruel,” she said. “Parents, teachers, and students need the Department to focus on addressing real harms on campuses instead of rolling back policies that keep all students safe.”
Virginia
Va. voters approve HRC-backed redistricting plan
10 of state’s 11 congressional districts now favor Democrats
Virginia voters on Tuesday narrowly approved a congressional redistricting plan ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The referendum passed by a 51-48 vote margin.
Virginia’s last Census happened in 2020. The next time maps would have been redrawn was intended for 2030, but the referendum results allow for redistricting to happen this year, while allowing the standard district procedures to resume after the 2030 Census.
Many congressional maps have been redrawn since the Trump-Vance administration took office, adding seats for both Republicans and Democrats. Ten of 11 of Virginia’s congressional districts will now favor Democrats.
The Human Rights Campaign PAC supported the referendum.
“Virginians made their voices heard today, rebuking Republicans’ attempts to stack the deck in their favor in the 2026 midterm elections and beyond,” said Human Rights Campaign PAC President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “This year, we’re going to take Congress back from the fringe extremists who have bent the knee to President Trump’s historically unpopular agenda at every turn.”
“Virginians just put anti-equality, anti-democracy, and anti-freedom lawmakers on notice — together, we are fighting for a future where every single American’s vote matters and where every elected official must earn their constituents’ trust,” she added.
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