National
LGBT Asian Americans lobby Congress for immigration reform
2,700 postcards presented to House members during Hill visits
Activists met with at least five House members, including gay Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.). (Washington Blade file photo by Damien Salas).
The National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance delivered more than 2,700 postcards to members of the U.S. House of Representatives last month as part of a stepped up lobbying campaign to push for immigration reform legislation.
In meetings with at least five House members, including gay Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), a contingent of activists affiliated with the NQAPIA urged the lawmakers to push for a compromise immigration reform bill passed by the Senate in July.
“As the congressional session is nearing its close, NQAPIA is bringing voices of Asian American, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Pacific Islander lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities and our allies from across the country to keep the Congress’ attention focused on the need to fix the broken immigration system,” the group said in a statement.
“As Asian Americans, we know that the ability to keep our families together from an overly aggressive deportation system and a path to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants, over 10 percent of which are from our communities, is at stake,” said Ben de Guzman, NQAPIA’s co-director.
Ben de Guzman, co-director of NQAPIA, speaking at the NQAPIA Awards Gala last July. (Washington Blade file photo by Blake Bergen)
“We also know as LGBT people that what constitutes a family is also at stake, and the overly narrow definition of family is something we are all too familiar with,” de Guzman said. “We also fight for a humane immigration system that allows real opportunities for asylum seekers and reform that keeps people, especially transgender immigrants, out of harm’s way in the detention system.”
The bipartisan bill passed by the Senate by a vote of 68 to 32, among other things, calls for a path to citizenship over a 13-year period for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.
While optimistic over the Senate approval of the measure, immigration reform advocates encountered a setback in the House when Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) announced that the GOP-controlled House would not take up the bill. Instead, he said Republicans would introduce their own far more limited bill that would not include a provision to provide citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
Most national LGBT advocacy groups have expressed support for the Senate bill and have joined immigration rights organizations, including NQAPIA, in calling on the House to pass the Senate measure.
However, some LGBT activists have expressed concern that the U.S. Supreme Court decision in June overturning the main provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) might result in a decline in interest in immigration reform within the gay community. The Supreme Court ruling immediately ended the provision in DOMA that prohibited the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in states that have legalized such marriages.
With the federal government now fully recognizing same-sex marriage, immigrant partners among bi-national gay and lesbian couples who for years were unable gain access to U.S. immigration rights now have the ability to become U.S. citizens just as their heterosexual counterparts can.
The discrimination against bi-national gay and lesbian couples brought about by DOMA had long been a rallying cry for the LGBT community to join the fight for overall immigration reform.
“We have seen a little loss of steam in the movement from the collective LGBT community,” de Guzman told the Blade as a result of the DOMA decision.
But he said NQAPIA was optimistic that strong allies like Rep. Polis would “keep the momentum” of LGBT community support for immigration reform moving forward.
“We’re also learning that new parts of the community used the [Supreme Court] decision not as an excuse to let up, but as an introduction to learning about other aspects of how immigration affects the LGBT community,” he said.
NQAPIA official Pabitra Benjamin said the group plans to organize more lobbying visits to Capitol Hill within the next few months to continue its push for immigration reform legislation.
De Guzman said members and supporters of NQAPIA and representatives of allied LGBT groups would be taking part on Friday, Dec. 6, in national “Fast for Families” organized by immigration rights groups to draw attention to what they believe is the urgent need for immigration reform legislation.
National
Lou Chibbaro Jr. documentary wins award from NLGJA
‘Lou’s Legacy’ produced by D.C.’s Mattachine Society
“Lou’s Legacy: a Reporter’s Life at the Washington Blade,” a documentary produced by The Mattachine Society of Washington, D.C., will receive an Excellence in Journalism Award from NLGJA, the Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists.
The film premiered on WETA PBS in D.C. and Maryland Public Television (MPT) in June of 2025. The documentary’s Emmy-nominated director and producer Patrick Sammon will accept the award for Excellence in Local Television on Sept. 11 at NLGJA’s National Convention in San Francisco.
“Lou’s Legacy” was produced in association with the Mattachine Society of Washington, D.C., a non-profit LGBTQ history society dedicated to conducting original archival research. Aside from Sammon, the NLGJA is recognizing other members of the film’s production team including Producer Julianne Donofrio, Editor Amir Jaffer, Executive Producer Charles Francis, and Executive Producer Pate Felts.
“Lou’s Legacy” tells the story of two D.C. icons — legendary Washington Blade reporter Lou Chibbaro Jr. and beloved drag performer Donnell Robinson, known to generations of Washington audiences as “Ella Fitzgerald.” Through Lou’s nearly five-decade career at the Blade and Ella’s return to the stage after a three-year hiatus following COVID, the 29-minute documentary explores the history of Washington’s LGBTQ community and today’s rising backlash against LGBTQ rights, including laws targeting drag performers.
“All students of journalism can learn a lot from the story of Lou Chibbaro, Jr. Lou has chronicled nearly five decades of LGBTQ+ life and the community’s struggle for equality in Washington, D.C. Lou’s work and the role of the queer press has been essential in covering stories the mainstream media would often ignore or erase,” said Ryan Levi, president of the D.C. chapter of the NLGJA.
“We are thrilled to receive this award from the NLGJA,” said the film’s director Patrick Sammon. “Lou Chibbaro’s nearly five decade career at the Washington Blade demonstrates the essential role LGBTQ journalism plays in telling our community’s stories and documenting its history. This recognition from journalists who follow in Lou’s footsteps is particularly meaningful to me and the rest of our production team.”
Arizona
Shooting outside gay bar in Ariz. leaves three dead
Tucson police investigating double murder-suicide as a hate crime
Three people were fatally shot outside a gay bar in Tucson, Ariz., early Monday morning, about a mile from the city’s nightlife district.
Police have said the shooting, which took place in the parking lot of Venture-N bar at 1239 N. 6th Ave., was likely a hate crime and a double murder-suicide following a verbal altercation.
The suspect, Ousman Ceesay, allegedly shot Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and Cameron Davis Capara while they were outside the club around 12:30 a.m. Monday.
Reports show Capara and Siqueiros were pronounced dead at the scene. Ceesay died after being taken to a local hospital with gunshot wounds.
Police have also said that Ceesay was carrying a list of LGBTQ businesses at the time of the shooting.
Arizona Public Media has said police are investigating the case as a hate crime because the suspect was carrying a note containing the names of multiple LGBTQ-associated businesses.
“I am deeply saddened that another senseless loss of life has happened in our community,” Tucson Police Chief Monica Prieto said in a statement. “Bias-based crimes are especially heinous and have no place in our community.”
According to Prieto, there is no imminent threat to the community, and the Tucson Police Department is working to provide extra protection to various LGBTQ businesses across town.
Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva, who represents the area, issued a statement condemning the act of violence, which appears to have been at least in part motivated by homophobia.
“I am disgusted and deeply saddened to learn of a targeted act of hate and the cold-blooded murder of two members of our LGBTQIA+ community, Vincent Siqueiros and Cameron Capara, at the Venture-N bar in Tucson last night. This horrific attack is a painful reminder that even in welcoming communities like Tucson, hate and violence against the LGBTQIA+ community still exist.”
“When that hate is combined with easy access to firearms, the consequences can be deadly. I am sick and tired of Congress refusing to lift a finger to protect our communities while, every day, dozens of people are shot and killed across the country. It does not have to be this way. The House of Representatives is returning to session this week, and our first action should be passing common-sense gun safety reforms that we know can save lives.”
Other federal lawmakers also condemned the shooting.
The Congressional Equality Caucus, which is made up of federal legislators advancing LGBTQ interests, issued a statement after news broke.
“Our hearts are with the friends and loved ones of the victims of this devastating attack outside a Tucson gay bar and with the Tucson LGBTQI+ community,” it said on X. “No one should fear violence because of who they are — and we’re going to continue fighting to build a world where no one does.”
The Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ organization in the country, released a statement following the shooting.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and Cameron Davis Capara and our hearts are with their families, loved ones, and the entire Tucson LGBTQ+ community. Once again, we are reminded that gun violence robs people of their lives, destroys families, and devastates communities.”
A candlelight vigil honoring the victims is planned for Sept. 2 at 6:30 p.m. at Catalina Park in North Tucson.
Congress
HRC president campaigns for Chris Pappas in NH
Gay congressman running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson on Sunday campaigned for U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in New Hampshire.
Robinson traveled to Manchester, the state’s largest city, nine days before the Sept. 8 primary that will determine who will vie for retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)’s seat.
We’re hitting the pavement across New Hampshire to fight for a freer, fairer future for everyone.
Glad to have Human Rights Campaign President @KelleyJRobinson join us for a canvass launch in Manchester today. pic.twitter.com/XWCEaQxy4o
— Chris Pappas (@ChrisPappasNH) August 30, 2026
Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate from 2003-2009, will face off against former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 2010-2013, in the Republican primary.
Karishma Manzur is among the Democrats challenging Pappas.
A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 shows Sununu is ahead of Brown. The same survey shows Pappas ahead of Manzur and his other Democratic challengers.
The UNH Survey Center poll shows Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.
Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.
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