Local
Ralph Northam: Equality is the ‘sensible way to go’
Lieutenant gubernatorial candidate described E.W. Jackson’s comments as “divisive” and “offensive”
Ralph Northam (Photo courtesy of the Ralph Northam campaign)
“We need to look at Virginia as a business model,” Northam said before a campaign stop in Danville as he discussed efforts that would ban discrimination against LGBT state employees. “If you run a business… you need to be all inclusive. You can’t sit there and say well we’ll take you, but we don’t want to take others. When it comes to that type of model, you certainly want to welcome women, you want to welcome the LGBT community. You want to welcome all people to the commonwealth. That’s the attitude and the philosophy that we need if we’re going to continue to be successful here in Virginia.”
Northam, a pediatric neurologist who grew up on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, has represented the Sixth Senate District that includes portions of Norfolk and Virginia Beach since 2008.
He referenced his marriage to his wife of 27 years as he discussed his support of marriage rights for same-sex couples.
Northam told this Blade his work as a physician has also shaped his views on the issue. He used the example of a gay or lesbian who is unable to visit their partner of 25 years in the hospital or make medical decisions on their behalf to highlight what he described the need to extend marriage rights for same-sex couples
“That’s just downright wrong,” Northam said.
Northam also discussed an ex-military servicemember whom he said he met during his 2011 re-election campaign.
He told the Blade the man asked him about his position on marriage rights for same-sex couples. Northam said the man began to cry after he began to explain his support of the issue because his son had come out to him as gay the week before and he did not know how to react.
“Marriage equality and equality’s for all people,” Northam said. “It’s just the sensible way to go in my view.”
Northam: Jackson’s comments are ‘divisive’ and ‘very offensive’
A poll that Roanoke College released on Oct. 30 showed Northam ahead of his Republican opponent, E.W. Jackson, by a 48-32 percent margin. A Washington Post/Abt SRBI survey unveiled earlier this week indicated he was ahead of Jackson by a 52-39 percent margin.
LGBT rights advocates and Democrats have repeatedly criticized Jackson, who is a minister from Chesapeake, for comparing gay men to pedophiles and describing them as “very sick people.” The Richmond Times-Dispatch in September reported that Jackson said during a speech at a Shenandoah County church that he disagrees with Pope Francis’ suggestion the Roman Catholic Church has grown “obsessed” with marriage rights for same-sex couples, abortion and contraception.
Jackson sought to distance himself from his anti-gay comments during interviews with Bruce DePuyt of News Channel 8 and other D.C. and Virginia television stations.
“Those types of comments are what I find and I think a lot of Virginians find ery offensive,” Northam told the Blade. “They’re divisive and there’s no place for them in the Senate of Virginia. And I don’t think there’s any place for them in Virginia.”
He also criticized Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who continues to trail former Democratic National Committee Chair Terry McAuliffe in the Virginia gubernatorial race, over his opposition to same-sex marriage and other LGBT-specific issues.
Northam further pointed out state Sen. Mark Obenshain (R-Harrisonburg), who is running against state Sen. Mark Herring (D-Loudoun) to succeed Cuccinelli as attorney general, left the Senate floor when he and his colleagues earlier this year voted to approve gay Richmond Circuit Court Judge Tracy Thorne-Begland’s judgeship.
The Virginia House of Delegates in May 2012 blocked Thorne-Begland’s nomination after state Del. Bob Marshall (R-Prince William) claimed the then-Richmond prosecutor misrepresented himself when he failed to disclose his sexual orientation when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy in the late 1980s.
“People of Virginia need to know… that [lawmakers] need to be more open-minded when it comes to taking care of all Virginians,” Northam said.
Virginia
Black transgender woman murdered in Va.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray killed in Petersburg on March 13
A Black transgender woman was murdered in Petersburg, Va., on March 13.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray, who was also known as Mable, was a drag queen who won the Miss Mayflower EOY pageant in 2015. Reports also indicate she was a well-known community activist in Virginia and in North Carolina.
Local media reports indicate police officers found Sanchez-McCray, 42, shot to death inside a home in Petersburg. These initial media reports also misgendered her.
“My heart is shattered and heavy with grief at the news of Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray’s murder — the first trans life stolen from us this year,” said Victoria Kirby York, director of public policy and programs for the National Black Justice Coalition, in a statement.
Kirby York in her statement also criticized the media coverage of Sanchez-McCray’s murder.
“The early reports of Shyyell’s death stripped her of her identity by misgendering her, a deeply damaging and persistent failure by law enforcement and media that haunts these cases again and again,” she said. “Misgendering doesn’t just erase a person’s truth — it can derail justice entirely, or worse, bury a case in silence as investigators chase the wrong identity, the wrong face, the wrong name.”
Authorities have not made any arrests.
The Petersburg Bureau of Police has asked anyone with information about Sanchez-McCray’s murder to call Petersburg-Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at 804-861-1212.
District of Columbia
Trans Day of Visibility events planned
Rally on the National Mall scheduled for Saturday
The Christopher Street Project has a number of events planned for the 2026 Trans Day of Visibility, including a rally on the Mall and an “Empowerment Ball” at the Eaton Hotel. Plenaries, panel discussions and meetings with members of Congress are scheduled in the three days of programming.
Announced speakers include N.H. state Rep. Alice Wade; Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Precious Brady-Davis; activist and performer Miss Peppermint (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”); Lexington, Ky. Councilwoman Emma Curtis; Rabbi Abby Stein; D.C. activist and host Rayceen Pendarvis; Air Force Master Sgt. Logan Ireland; among other leaders, advocates and performers.
Conference programming on Thursday and Friday includes an educational forum and a Capitol Hill policy education day. Registration for the two-day conference has closed.
The “Trans Day of Visibility PAC Reception” is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 from 7:30-9 p.m. at As You Are (500 8th St., S.E.). Special guests include Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada) and Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Tickets are available at christopherstreetproject.org starting at $25.
The National Council of Jewish Women and the Christopher Street Project host a “Trans Day of Visibility Shabbat” on Friday, March 27 from 7-8 p.m. at Sixth & I (600 I St., N.W.). The service is to be led by Rabbi Jenna Shaw and Rabbi Abby Stein.
The “Now You See Me: Trans Empowerment Social & Ball” is scheduled for Friday, March 27 from 6-11 p.m. at the Eaton Hotel (1201 K. St., N.W.). The trans-themed drag ball is hosted by the Marsha P. Johnson Institute with support from the D.C. Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs, the Capital Ballroom Council, the Christopher Street Project, the Center for Black Equity, Generation for Common Good, and Parenting is Political. RSVP online at christopherstreetproject.org.
The National Transgender Day of Visibility Rally is scheduled for Saturday, March 28 on the National Mall at 11 a.m. The rally will include speakers and performances. Following the rally, attendees are encouraged to participate in the “No Kings” rally being held at Anacostia Park.
Virginia
Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ends
Voters in November will consider repealing marriage amendment
The Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ended on March 14.
Lawmakers have yet to approve a budget, but they did pass a resolution that paves the way for a referendum on whether to repeal the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Lawmakers also advanced House Bill 60, which would protect PrEP users from insurance discrimination.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger has until April 13 to decide to pass, amend, or veto legislation before it goes back to the House of Delegates on April 22.
Spanberger on Feb. 6 signed the bill that sets the stage for the marriage amendment referendum. Voters will consider whether to “remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law?”
Equality Virginia has been working during this legislative cycle to urge lawmakers to allocate funding towards LGBTQ rights. The budget would expand funding for schools, competency training for the 988 suicide hotline, and funding to provide gender affirming care to LGBTQ youth.
“As the budget moves through conference and the Reconvene Session approaches on April 22, Equality Virginia remains focused on ensuring our victories this session translate into durable protections,” Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Progress on marriage equality, nondiscrimination protections, and HIV care funding was essential, but Virginia must do more.”
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