News
U.S. opposes boycott of Sochi Olympics
Growing number of activists have urged athletes to skip games
New laws prohibiting the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ have been enacted in Russia. (Photo by YAB994 via Wikimedia Commons)
State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki on Friday said the U.S. does not support a boycott of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, over the country’s LGBT rights record.
“That’s certainly not what we’re calling for,” she told reporters during her daily press briefing.
Psaki’s comments come a day after reports emerged of Russian ultra-nationalists torturing gay teenagers whom they met through fake accounts they set up on a social media network.
A growing number of American LGBT rights advocates have urged the U.S. to boycott the Sochi games in response to laws banning so-called gay propaganda and same-sex couples from adopting Russian children that Vladimir Putin recently signed. Several gay bars in Seattle, Chicago, London and other cities have also stopped serving Russian vodka in response to growing anti-LGBT discrimination and violence in the country.
The State Department has repeatedly spoken out against LGBT-specific human rights abuses in Russia, but Psaki told the Washington Blade she didn’t have “any conversations to read out or predict” that may take place between Secretary of State John Kerry and Putin and his Russian colleagues.
“The U.S. of course places great importance on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people–including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people,” Psaki said in response to the Blade’s question on the issue. “Human rights in general is certainly an issue that comes up regularly and is a priority for the U.S. and our relationship with Russia and many other countries. He does bring up the issues broadly and I’m sure will moving forward.”
Psaki’s comments also come less than a week after authorities in the Russian city of Murmansk arrested four Dutch LGBT rights advocates under the country’s anti-gay propaganda law.
“We’d certainly call on Russia to uphold its international commitments regarding freedom of assembly and association and freedom of expression now and in the future,” Psaki said. “That’s a message I’m certain we will continue to convey.”
Maryland
White House threatens Anne Arundel schools over gender identity policy
District faces possible legal action or loss of federal funding
By JESSICA CALEFATI | The Trump-Vance administration on Monday threatened to punish Anne Arundel County’s school system with legal action or the loss of federal funding for allegedly withholding information about a student’s gender identity and transition from the child’s parents.
The U.S. Education and Justice Departments together determined that the suburban Maryland district treats students’ gender identities as confidential medical information that cannot be shared with parents, in violation of federal student privacy law, according to a news release. A federal lawsuit filed against the district earlier this month made similar claims.
“As a mother and a grandmother, it is unconscionable that any school district would hide the most sensitive information about children in their care from their own parents,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement. “This is not only an affront to basic moral principles, but also to parents’ rights under federal law.”
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Netherlands
Dutch queen opens World Pride in Amsterdam
Ceremony took place hours before Berlin Pride terrorist attack
Editor’s note: International News Editor Michael K. Lavers and Photo Editor Michael Key will be on assignment in Amsterdam from Aug. 5-10.
Queen Máxima on July 25 participated in this year’s World Pride opening ceremony in Amsterdam.
The Dutch monarch joined Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema at the ceremony that took place in Amsterdam’s Vondelpark. Several drag queens also participated in the event.
🌈 Koningin Máxima opent WoldPride 2026 in het Vondelpark in Amsterdam. Het evenement vraagt wereldwijdaandacht voor de zichtbaarheid, emancipatie en mensenrechten van de LGBTQIA+-gemeenschap. Koningin Máxima bezoekt de Sport Pride en de Youth Pride.⁰https://t.co/eXdHJYQX2R pic.twitter.com/wNkjvaTkHY
— Koninklijk Huis (@koninklijkhuis) July 25, 2026
World Pride will take place in Amsterdam through Aug. 10.
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten, who is openly gay, is scheduled to open the World Pride Human Rights Conference on Aug. 5.
Halsema on Sunday told reporters that authorities will bolster security measures “where necessary” in response to the terrorist attack at Berlin’s annual Pride march the day before that left one person dead and 29 others injured.
Obituary
Gary Sutton, known for ‘warmth and laughter,’ dies at 62
College Park resident had passion for gardening, watercolor painting
Gary A. Sutton, a longtime resident of College Park, Md., who was an active member of several D.C. area LGBTQ social organizations before and after his retirement as a federal government worker, died on July 17. He was 62.
His partner of 35 years, Edward Leddy, said the cause of death was a heart attack.
A write-up on Sutton’s life that Leddy helped prepare for the funeral home where a celebration of life for Sutton will be held on Aug. 15 says Sutton’s life “was filled with warmth and laughter” and he was a “cherished son” of the community in Prince George’s County, Md., where he lived for nearly all of his life.
He graduated from the county’s Crossland High School in Camp Springs, Md., shortly before he “dedicated his career to the Environmental Protection Agency, serving with commitment and integrity,” the write-up says. Leddy said Sutton worked at the EPA’s D.C. headquarters for about 20 years before his retirement.
“Outside of work, Gary was known for his passion for gardening, often found tending to flowers and crafting beautiful landscapes,” the write-up says. “His creative soul shone through his watercolor paintings and intricate ink prints, leaving behind a legacy of artistry,” it says.
“Gary’s life was enriched by his love for sharing meals with friends, where his stories and laughter would light up the room,” the write-up that Leddy helped prepare continues. “He was an active member of several clubs, including Prime Timers, the Four Seasons Garden Club, the Montgomery County Men’s Club, and Ushers, where his presence was always full and appreciated.”
According to Leddy, all those groups, based in the D.C. metro area, had mostly gay/LGBTQ members. He said he and Sutton first met in 1991 at a meeting of the Four Seasons Garden Club. He said the two began dating and soon became a couple before Sutton moved into Leddy’s College Park house in 1994, where the couple lived until Sutton’s passing.
“It’s going to be very different for me now,” Leddy said. “He was very outgoing, loved his stories, loved laughter,” Leddy said, adding that he will miss their eating out with friends and sharing time together at home. He pointed to his and Sutton’s time traveling both across the U.S. and to Europe in past years.
“Gary’s life was a testament to the beauty of laughter, friendship, and heartfelt connections,” the write-up concludes. “He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all who knew him.”
In addition to his partner, the write-up says Sutton is survived by his sister Margo Arnold and her husband Randy, nephews Michael and Brandon Arnold, Brandon’s wife Renee, and a grandniece, Emily Arnold, “all of whom will carry forward his memory and joy.” Also among the survivors are his many friends in the D.C. metro area.
The celebration of life is scheduled to take place Saturday, Aug. 15, from 2-4 p.m. at the Donald V. Borgwardt Funeral Home at 4400 Powder Mill Road in Beltsville, Md.
Further details of the event and the ability to sign and post messages to an online guestbook can be accessed here.
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