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.
Rehoboth Beach
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Attendees encouraged to wear appropriate gear
Diego’s in Rehoboth Beach hosts a monthly leather happy hour. April’s edition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear appropriate gear. The event is billed as an official event of BLUF, the free community group for men interested in leather. After happy hour, the attendees are encouraged to reconvene at Local Bootlegging Company for dinner, which allows cigar smoking. There’s no cover charge for either event.
District of Columbia
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
Two memorial events scheduled in D.C.
Two celebrations of life are planned for Sean Christopher Bartel, 48, who was found deceased on a hiking trail in Argentina on or around March 15. Bartel began his career as a television news reporter and news anchor at stations in Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., before serving as Senior Video Producer for the D.C.-based International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union from 2013 to 2024.
A memorial gathering is planned for Friday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the IBEW International Office (900 7th St., N.W.), according to a statement by the DC Gay Flag Football League, where Bartel was a longtime member. A celebration of life is planned that same evening, 6-8 p.m. at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.).
District of Columbia
D.C. Council member honored by LGBTQ homeless youth group
Doni Crawford receives inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award
About 100 people turned out Tuesday evening, April 7, for a presentation by D.C.’s Wanda Alston Foundation of its inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award to D.C. Council member Doni Crawford (I-At-Large) for her support for the foundation’s mission to support homeless LGBTQ youth.
Among those who attended the event was Japer Bowles, director of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, who delivered an official proclamation issued by Bowser declaring April 7, 2026 “A Day of Remembrance for Wanda Alston.”
Alston, a beloved women’s and LGBTQ rights activist, served as the city’s first director of the then newly created Office of LGBTQ Affairs under then-Mayor Anthony Williams from 2004 until her death by murder on March 16, 2005.
To the shock and dismay of fellow LGBTQ rights advocates, police and court records reported Alston, 45, was stabbed to death inside her Northeast D.C. house by a man high on crack cocaine who lived nearby and who stole her credit cards and car. The perpetrator, William Martin Parrott, 38, was arrested by D.C. police the next day and later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. He was sentenced in July 2005 to 24 years in prison.
Crawford was among those attending the award event who reflected on Alston’s legacy and outspoken advocacy for LGBTQ and feminist causes.
“I am deeply humbled and honored to receive this inaugural award,” Crawford told the Washington Blade at the conclusion of the event. “I think the world of Wanda Alston. She has set such a great foundation for me and other Council members to build on,” she said.
“Her focus on inclusivity and intersectionality is really important as we approach this work,” Crawford added. “And it’s going to guide my work at the Council every day.”
Crawford was appointed to the D.C. Council in January of this year to replace then Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large), who resigned to run for D.C. mayor as a Democrat. She is being challenged by four other independent candidates in a June 16 special election for the Council seat.
Under the city’s Home Rule Charter written and approved by Congress, the seat is one of two D.C. Council at-large seats that cannot be held by a “majority party” candidate, meaning a Democrat.
A statement released by the Alston Foundation last month announcing Crawford’s selection for the Wanda Alston Legacy Award praised Crawford’s record of support for its work on behalf of LGBTQ youth.
“From behind the scenes to now serving as an At-Large Council member, she has fought fearlessly for affordable housing, LGBTQ+ funding priorities, and racial justice,” the statement says. “Council member Crawford’s leadership reflects the same courage and conviction that defined Wanda’s legacy.”
Organizers of the event noted that it was held on what would have been Wanda Alston’s 67th birthday.
“Today’s legacy reception was a smashing success,” said Cesar Toledo, the Alston Foundation’s executive director. “Not only did we come together to celebrate Wanda Alston on her birthday, but we also were able to raise over $10,000 for our homeless LGBTQ youth here in D.C.,” Toledo told the Blade.
“In addition to that, we celebrated and we acknowledged a rising star in our community,” he said. “And that is At-Large Council member Doni Crawford, who we named the inaugural Wanda Alston Legacy Award recipient.”
At the request of D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) the Council voted unanimously on Jan. 20, 2026, to appoint Crawford to the Council seat being vacated by McDuffie.
Council records show she joined McDuffie’s Council staff in 2022 as a policy adviser and later became his legislative director before McDuffie appointed her as staff director for the Council’s Committee on Business and Economic Development for which McDuffie served as chair.
An effort to increase the number of psychiatrists of color
Calendar: April 10-16
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
The ‘X’ returns to court
Trump budget would codify expanded global gag rule
Man faces first S.C. ‘hate intimidation’ charge
Police mental health struggles gain growing attention
Cuba under pressure and without answers
