News
Gay U.S. journalist challenges Russia LGBT rights record
Kremlin-owned RT took Jamie Kirchick off air after segment


Protesters gathered outside of the Russian Embassy on Wednesday, July 31, 2013. (Washington Blade photo by Damien Salas)
Jamie Kirchick, a writer-at-large for Radio Free Europe who has worked at other publications that include The New Republic, wore rainbow suspenders as he appeared on RT, which is funded through the Kremlin, to discuss the sentencing of former U.S. Army private Bradley Manning whom a military judge at Fort Meade, Md., last month found guilty of leaking classified documents to Wikileaks.
āBeing here on a Kremlin-funded propaganda network Iām going to wear my gay pride suspenders and Iām going to speak out against the horrific anti-gay legislation that Vladimir Putin has signed into law, that passed unanimously by the Russian Duma that criminalizes homosexual propaganda,” Kirchick said. “It effectively makes it illegal to talk about homosexuality in public. Weāve seen a spate of violent attacks on gay people in Russia.ā
Anchor Yulia Shapovalova interrupted Kirchick and asked him about Manning.
āIām not really interested in talking about Bradley Manning,ā Kirchick said. āIām interested in talking about the horrific environment of homophobia in Russia right now. Iām interested in talking about the horrific environment of homophobia in Russia right now, and to let the Russian gay people know that they have friends and allies in solidarity from people all over the world, and that weāre not going to be silenced in the face horrific repression that is perpetrated by your paymaster, Vladimir Putin. Thatās what Iām here to talk about.ā
Kirchick further criticized Shapovalova and her network for not reporting on the country’s LGBT rights record, although RT did air a segment on calls to boycott the 2014 Winter Olympics that will take place in Sochi, Russia, in February on August 12.
āI donāt know how as a journalist that you can go to sleep at night seeing what happens to journalists in Russia who are routinely harassed, tortured and sometimes killed by the Russian government,ā Kirchick said. āI find that abominable. You should be ashamed of yourself. Everyone across this network should be ashamed of yourself.ā
Kirchickās comments come against the backdrop of growing outrage over the countryās LGBT rights record that threaten to overshadow the 2014 Winter Olympics that will take place in Sochi, Russia, in February.
Kirchick did not immediately respond to the Washington Bladeās request for comment, but RT took him off the air after the segment. He said on his Twitter account the network called the taxi company that had brought him to its studio in Stockholm, Sweden, from where he appeared on the segment and told it to drop him off on the side of a highway that leads to the Swedish capitalās airport.
RT posted a clip of the segment on its Google+ account under a headline that criticized Kirchick.
āJames Kirchick joined RTās live discussion panel on the Bradley Manning verdict,ā it reads. āInstead he went off on a self-promoting rant that was not even tangentially related to the matter at hand.ā
RT told the Blade late on Wednesday it invited Kirchick to appear on the segment after he wrote an op-ed in the New York Daily News that criticized Manning and his supporters after the judge found him guilty in the Wikileaks case. The network described the verdict the verdict and the former Army private’s sentencing as “obviously the major international news event.”
“Mr. Kirchick decided to instead use this time to express his opinion on LGBT rights, a matter which, while important, was entirely unrelated to the subject of the panel,” RT told the Blade. “Regretfully, RT had no other recourse but to continue the discussion without him.”
RT also disputed Kirchick’s claim the driver it had hired dropped him off along a highway outside the Stockholm airport.
“Logistics management by RT is often part of the agreement when required for a personās appearance in an RT broadcast,” the network told the Blade. “After Mr. Kirchick tried to sabotage RTās broadcast, itās rather surprising that he expected us to pay for his taxi ride.”
District of Columbia
Man accused of assaulting lesbian activist surrenders to D.C. police
Aiyi’nah Ford attacked at Congress Heights bar earlier this month

D.C. police on Aug. 11 charged a 46-year-old D.C. man with assault with a dangerous weapon in connection with incident earlier this month in which lesbian activist Aiyiānah Ford said she was hit in the head three times with the metal legs of a barstool wielded by a man yelling anti-gay names at her.
A police report says the incident took place at the Playerās Lounge, a restaurant and bar at 2737 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., S.E., in the cityās Congress Heights neighborhood shortly before and after midnight on Aug. 3 and Aug. 4.
Police identified the man charged in the case as Donnell Anthony Peterson, who police say is a resident of 1200 block of Southern Avenue in Southeast D.C.
Ford told the Washington Blade that Peterson, who is a regular customer at Playerās Lounge as is she, assaulted her after the two got into a verbal argument over, among other things, the cityās violence interruption program. Ford said she told Peterson and others who were having a discussion that she considered the program to be ineffective and a ājoke.ā
It was around that time, Ford said, that Peterson began repeatedly calling her a ādyke bitchā and threatened to shoot her.
The arrest affidavit says witnesses reported seeing Ford covered in blood from a serious head injury before an ambulance arrived on the scene and took her to George Washington University Hospital, where she was treated for a head and scalp wound that required multiple stitches.
The affidavit, which was filed in D.C. Superior Court, says Peterson on Aug. 11 āturned himself into the Seventh District Police Station,ā saying he did so after someone told him police issued a Twitter posting announcing he was wanted on an assault allegation.
Court records show that at the time of his arrest, D.C. police also charged Peterson with Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance (Cocaine) based on an unrelated Aug. 26, 2021, outstanding warrant for his arrest on the drug charge obtained by U.S. Park Police.
The affidavit for his arrest on the assault charge says police learned about the outstanding U.S. Park Police arrest warrant when they conducted a criminal record background check after learning through a tip that Peterson was the person who allegedly assaulted Ford at Playerās Lounge.
Court records also show that Peterson appeared before Superior Court Judge Renee Raymond on Aug. 12, one day after his arrest, for a presentment hearing in which Raymond ordered him held in the D.C. Jail until a scheduled preliminary hearing on Monday.
At the Monday hearing, through his attorney, Peterson waived his right to a full preliminary hearing and agreed that Judge Neal E. Kravitz, who presided over the hearing, would rule that prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneyās office established probable cause that Peterson committed the assault. The probable cause finding means that the case can proceed to a trial.
While ruling in favor of probable cause, Kravitz denied a request by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alec Levy that Peterson continue to be held in jail pending trial. Levy argued that Peterson āviciouslyā hit Ford over the head with a barstool at least two times as shown on a video recording of the incident obtained from a camera from Playerās Lounge video security system.
Levy also said that at the time Peterson assaulted Ford he used āderogatoryā language referring to her sexual orientation.
But court records show that as of the time of the Monday hearing, the U.S. Attorneyās office did not list the assault against Ford as a bias related crime.
In response to an inquiry by the Blade, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorneyās office said he would look into whether prosecutors were considering adding a bias or hate related enhancement to the assault charge.
As part of his argument for Peterson to be held while awaiting trial, Levy requested and received permission from the judge to show a segment of the video on a large projection screen in the courtroom. Peterson, who is seen in the video wearing a red shirt, is shown knocking Ford to the floor, and picking up a bar stool and twice hitting her in the head with the metal legs of the stool.
Levy concluded his argument by noting that Peterson has three prior convictions on drug related charges. The prosecutor said Peterson fled the scene when he was stopped in his car by U.S. Park Police who found cocaine in the vehicle in August 2021, which resulted in the warrant for his arrest being issued and which Levy called a fourth prior criminal offense.
Combined with the Assault with a Dangerous Weapon charge, Levy argued that Peterson should be held pending trial on grounds that he is a danger to the community.
Brandon Burrell, Petersonās court appointed attorney, argued that the current assault case was the only case in which Peterson is accused of a crime of violence. Burrell said that Peterson has never failed to appear at a court hearing in any of his prior arrest cases and is gainfully employed at a facility providing services to senior citizens in Ward 8.
Burrell also said he plans to point to evidence shown in the video of the assault at Playerās Lounge that Ford acted in an aggressive and hostile way toward Peterson and that Peterson has grounds for making a case of self-defense. Levy disputed Burrellās claim that there may be grounds for self-defense. Levy said that, among other things, the video footage shows Peterson acting as the aggressor by violently wielding a bar stool as a weapon.
After listening to the arguments by the defense and prosecutor and after reading the arrest affidavit, which describes in detail the segments of the video that were not shown in the courtroom, Kravitz ruled that Peterson was eligible to be released into the courtās high intensity supervision program. Kravitz ordered Peterson into āhome confinementā at his residence in Southeast D.C. except for the time during the week when he goes to work at his job. The judge also ordered that Peterson must wear a GPS device that keeps track of his whereabouts.
Kravitz scheduled a felony status conference for which Peterson must return to court on Sept. 16.
The four-page arrest affidavit prepared by a D.C. police detective describes in detail the video obtained from the security camera at Playerās Lounge that captured the incident as it occurred and in which Peterson is seen striking Ford in the head at least two times with what it describes as a chair.
āThe suspect grabs one of the chairs thatās at the bar (red with black frame) at 23: 11:06,ā the affidavit says. āThe suspect then slams the chair into the complainantās head,ā it says.
āThe suspect then pushes the complainant into the bar at 23:11:09. The suspect pulls a chair from underneath the complainant and slams it into the complainantās upper body again at 23:11:15,ā the affidavit states.
According to the affidavit, āThe suspect attempts to grab a chair for the third time, but patrons are able to separate the suspect and push him into another room.ā
Europe
Pope Francis meets with transgender people at Vatican
Meeting took place during weekly audience at St. Peter’s Basilica on Aug. 10.

The Vatican’s newspaper LāOsservatore Romano reported that during the weekly papal audience in St. Peter’s Basilica on Aug. 10, Pope Francis met with a fourth group of transgender people who are staying in a church on the outskirts of Rome.
Sister Genevieve Jeanningros and the Rev. Andrea Conocchia told LāOsservatore Romano that this was the fourth papal audience since the Blessed Immaculate Virgin Church in the Torvaianica neighborhood of Rome’s suburbs opened its doors to trans people during the coronavirus pandemic.
LāOsservatore Romano noted that the pope previously met with some of the trans residents sheltering in the church on April 27, June 22 and Aug. 3.
āNo one should encounter injustice or be thrown away, everyone has dignity of being a child of God,ā the paper quoted Jeanningros as saying.
Francis has earned praise from some members of the LGBTQ and intersex community for his outreach.
When asked in 2013 about a purportedly gay priest, he replied,Ā āWho am I to judge?āĀ He has met individually and in groups with trans people over the course of his pontificate the Associated Press reported.
But he has strongly opposed āgender theoryā and has not changed church teaching that holds that same-sex sexual acts are āintrinsically disordered.ā In 2021, he allowed publication of a Vatican document asserting that the Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex unions sinceĀ āGod cannot bless sin,ā the AP noted.
Pennsylvania
Pride Franklin County welcomes rural LGBTQ community
Pennsylvania organization planning October celebration

When Pride Franklin County held its first Pride celebration in 2018, it sought to address a lack of LGBTQ programming in rural southern Pennsylvania. Greeted by more than 1,000 attendees at its inaugural event, Pride Franklin Countyās leadership was reassured the event was something the area not only wanted, but needed. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the local organization has once again sought to address community needs ā in new and broadened ways.
Pride Franklin County operates under the Franklin County Coalition for Progress, a local social justice nonprofit that formed in the wake of the 2016 presidential election. āWe live in a very rural, conservative area, but that election was a turning point all across the country,ā explained Noel Purdy, a founder of Pride Franklin County and founder and president of FCCP.
āPeople came out of the woodwork who were worried about the LGBTQ community ⦠and other populations that had experienced different forms of oppression in our community,ā Purdy explained. This interest in supporting the local LGBTQ community led to a group of LGBTQ community members and allies leading the 2018 Pride celebration.
āWe just really wanted to create a space where people know that they’re accepted, no matter who they are,ā said Nathan Strayer, vice president of FCCP and a founder of Pride Franklin County. āWe want people to know that you fit in. There are a lot of people here that are going to love you.ā
But in 2020, at the peak of the eventās popularity ā Strayer noted that upwards of 3,000 people attended Pride the year prior ā Pride Franklin County had to cancel its programming in light of public health concerns.
With the āmomentumā it has going, Strayer explained that the organization did not want the pandemic to limit its ability to serve the Franklin County community: ā Thatās when we really decided to make the entire initiative something bigger,ā he said. āWeāre not just here to throw a party.ā
In 2021, the organization began advocating for a local non-discrimination ordinance codifying inclusivity for all community members, regardless of their identity. The Borough of Chambersburg Council, which represents the largest borough in the county, adopted the ordinance that fall ā a major win for LGBTQ activists and allies in a rural Pennsylvania county that leans conservative socially and politically.
Yet, just months after the organization celebrated its achievement, new council members were elected in the borough in January 2022, and soon thereafter a majority of the council decided to repeal the non-discrimination ordinance.
While the ordinanceās revocation greatly disappointed Pride Franklin County, it also reminded its leaders and activists how much work was left to be done.
āFrom the growth of Pride to the pushback we’ve gotten from some of our elected officials here locally, itās definitely lit a fire in us to continue pushing ahead so that we can truly make Franklin County an inclusive place for everyone,ā Strayer emphasized.
This year, the organization launched its Franklin County Welcoming Project, which spearheads public displays of support to the LGBTQ community. In June, the organization received a media grant to create billboard and radio advertisements throughout the county advocating for inclusivity within the Franklin County community.
The organization also reached out to local businesses, providing them with custom decals to put in their windows after signing a pledge stating that they are a ādiverse, inclusive, accepting, welcoming, safe space for all,ā Strayer said, adding that, despite some initial hesitation, more than 100 local businesses signed the pledge and displayed the logo in their storefronts.
Pride Franklin County has also looked to meet the local demand for LGBTQ programming throughout the year while maintaining public health precautions. More recent projects have included mental health LGBTQ programming, community picnics, drag shows and a Taste of Pride food event. Strayer added that there has been significant demand from the community for more programming centering LGBTQ youth.
Purdy added that voting rights advocacy has become a center point of current efforts from the organization, as it hopes to educate the local community on the importance of their political involvement. āHopefully, weāre inspiring more people to learn to pay attention more to whatās going on, and trying to understand the connection between policy and voting,ā Purdy explained
While the process of founding a grassroots organization has come with obstacles, Purdy and Strayer both noted that the community response has been rewarding.
āOne thing that Iāve been surprised about is how you have this cultural context of being in a conservative area, thinking that thatās going to be a barrier to doing an event that supports the LGBTQ community, and that itās going to be super controversial,ā but ultimately receiving a positive reception from many community members and resources needed to keep the organization running, Purdy explained.
Getting Pride Franklin County up and running has ādefinitely been very emotional,ā Strayer noted. When Strayer decided to come out in 1999, he turned to leaders in his school ā a guidance counselor and principal ā for advice, but he recalled them āboth sitting down and looking at (him) like, āWe donāt really know what to do,āā making him feel alone in a particularly important part of his life. But with Pride Franklin County, Strayer is āseeing how things are growing and changing.ā
āThereās help out there for youth that are struggling with the same things I was struggling with,ā Strayer said. āWhen I look back at when I was coming out, I thought, āThis is never going to happen here.ā Seeing now that it is happening here, itās just such an amazing feeling and it just gives me so much pride in my community.ā
Pride Franklin County will host its Pride Festival 2022 on Oct. 9 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. More information can be found on the organizationās website at pridefranklincounty.org.Ā
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