Local

Summertime happy hours scheduled

Anne Arundel County’s LGBT and straight ally social group and Equality Maryland to host

Published

13 years ago

July 10, 2013

Members of Equality Maryland marching at the Baltimore Pride parade last year (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Members of Equality Maryland marching at the Baltimore Pride parade last year. There will be a Baltimore Happy Hour fundraiser on July 18 for the organization. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

EQUAAC, Anne Arundel County’s LGBT and straight ally social group, will host its next happy hour on July 16. It will take place at 5:30 p.m. at the Wild Orchid Cafe, 200 Westgate Circle in Annapolis.

Equality Maryland will host a happy hour on July 18 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Mad River Bar and Grille, 110 S. Charles St. in Baltimore. The Federal Hill area event will feature the sale of raffle tickets for an upcoming “equality cruise.”

Equality Maryland was a critical player in the effort to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples in the Free State in 2012. Last November, Maryland voters allowed stand a law that allowed for gender neutral marriages, as did voters in Washington state. Washington, Maryland and Maine (whose voters extended marriage to same-sex couples by ballot) joined six states and the District of Columbia in performing gay nuptials.

Maryland, which recognized same-sex domestic partnerships since 2009, announced recently that the domestic partnerships law would be phased out in light of the marriage law.

Phil Reese contributed to this report.

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Virginia

VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade

Abigail Spanberger took office on Saturday

Published

7 hours ago

January 17, 2026

Michael Key

Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond march in the 2026 Inauguration Parade on the grounds of the state capitol in Richmond, Va. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The inaugural ceremonies for Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger were held in Richmond, Va. on Saturday. Among the groups marching in the parade were Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond.

View on Threads

*The LGBTQ contingent in the inaugural parade in Richmond, Va. pass by the review stand on Jan. 17, 2026. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)*

Virginia

Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment

Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin introduced SJ3

Published

15 hours ago

January 17, 2026

Staff reports

(Bigstock photo)

The Virginia Senate on Friday by a 26-13 vote margin approved a resolution that seeks to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) introduced SJ3. The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee on Wednesday approved it by a 10-4 vote margin.

Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.

A resolution that seeks to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2021. The resolution passed again in 2025.

Two successive legislatures must approve the resolution before it can go to the ballot. Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates have said the resolution’s passage is among their 2026 legislative priorities.

“It’s time for Virginia’s Constitution to reflect the law of the land and the values of today,” said Ebbin after Friday’s vote. “This amendment, if approved by voters, would affirm the dignity of all committed couples and protects marriage equality for future generations.”

Maryland

Layoffs and confusion at Pride Center of Maryland after federal grants cut, reinstated

Trump administration move panicked addiction and mental health programs

Published

2 days ago

January 16, 2026

Baltimore Banner

Merrick Moses, a violence prevention coordinator, works at the Pride Center of Maryland in Baltimore. (Photo by Ulysses Muñoz for the Baltimore Banner)

By ALISSA ZHU | After learning it had abruptly lost $2 million in federal funding, the Pride Center of Maryland moved to lay off a dozen employees, or about a third of its workforce, the Baltimore nonprofit’s leader said Thursday.

The group is one of thousands nationwide that reportedly received letters late Tuesday from the Trump administration. Their mental health and addiction grants had been terminated, effective immediately, the letters said.

By Wednesday night, federal officials moved to reverse the funding cuts by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, estimated to total $2 billion, according to national media reports. But the Pride Center of Maryland’s CEO Cleo Manago said as of Thursday morning he had not heard anything from the federal government confirming those reports.

The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.