Local
Activists protest sodomy ruling at Indian embassy
Say ruling will lead to arrests, oppression of gays
Demonstrators descended on the Indian embassy Wednesday to protest a court ruling that reinstates a sodomy ban in the country. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
LGBT Indian nationals and about 20 supporters gathered outside the Indian embassy in Washington on Wednesday to protest a decision by India’s Supreme Court to reinstate a British colonial era law that criminalizes sodomy between consenting adults.
The ruling Wednesday overturned a 2009 decision by a lower court that declared the sodomy law violated India’s constitution. The ruling this week by the Supreme Court said it would be up to India’s Parliament to decide whether to repeal or retain the sodomy statute.
“The Indian Supreme Court just plunged its LGBT citizens – 15 million by conservative estimates – into being criminals yet again,” said Tushar Malik, an Indian citizen and gay activist working temporarily in Washington as a Global Engagement Fellow with the Human Rights Campaign.
“Four years of freedom I enjoyed back home, and today in a foreign country I am sad to see that me and my friends and my brothers and sisters – everyone in India who might not identity as straight – can get imprisoned, can go to jail for 10 years up to a life sentence,” he told participants in the protest.
The protesters gathered around a statue in front of the embassy on Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., of Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian freedom fighter and leader of the country’s non-violent movement to gain independence from Great Britain.
While facing the embassy, some of the protesters held signs saying, “I don’t want to leave my country to be free and equal,” and “Criminals in Our Own Country.”
Malik, who organized the protest, called on President Obama and the U.S. State Department to put pressure on India to repeal the sodomy law or take steps to petition the high court to reverse its decision.
Sapna Pandya, president of Khush D.C., a group representing LGBT people from South Asia, said Khush is inviting the LGBT community to attend a candlelight vigil outside the Indian embassy on Friday night to continue to the protest of the Supreme Court ruling.
She said the vigil was expected to begin at 6 p.m. at the site of the Gandhi statue, which is located in a small triangular park where Massachusetts Avenue, 21st Street, and Q Street intersect.
“The idea is to use the symbol of the candlelight to suggest that the Indian Supreme Court needs to be illuminated and needs to be re-enlightened,” she said. “We were all so joyous when the Delhi High Court read down [Article] 377 [the sodomy statute] in 2009. To see us go backwards into the darkness and going backwards in history is so upsetting,” she said.
She said another objective of the vigil is to suggest to the Indian government that the state of democracy in the country “is not well” in the wake of a Supreme Court decision that takes away freedoms from LGBT people.
Malik, who is from New Delhi, said that although the sodomy law for the most part was not enforced against consenting adults engaging in sexual acts in private, the law was used to discriminate against gay people by labeling them as law-breakers. He said the law was also used by police to harass LGBT people and by blackmailers to extort money from gay people.
“I am gay and I’m a criminal in the eyes of the law,” Malik told the gathering on Wednesday. “I’m not going to give up and I’m going to fight.”
A group of protesters gathered at the base of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Maryland
Evan Glass is leaning on his record. Is that enough for Montgomery County’s top job?
Gay county executive candidate pushing for equitable pay, safer streets, and cleaner environment
By TALIA RICHMAN | During a meet-and-greet at Poolesville Memorial United Methodist Church, Evan Glass got his loudest applause of the night with a plan he acknowledged was decidedly unsexy.
“Day one, I’ll hire a director of permitting services,” the county executive candidate said.
Doing so, he added, is a step toward easing the regulatory burdens that can stifle small businesses in Montgomery County.
The only problem? At least one of his fiercest competitors is making a similar pledge.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
D.C. bar, LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark Lesbian Visibility Week
‘Ahead of the Curve’ documentary screening, ‘Queeroke’ among events
2026 Lesbian Visibility Week North America will take place from April 20-26.
This year marks the third annual Lesbian Visibility Week, run by the Curve Foundation. A host of events take place from April 20-26.
This year’s theme is Health and Wellness. For the Curve Foundation, the term “lesbian” serves as an umbrella term for a host of identities, including lesbians, bisexual and transgender women, and anyone else connected to the lesbian community.
The week kicks off with a flag-raising ceremony on April 19. It will take place in New York, but will be livestreamed for the public.
“Queeroke” is one of the events being held around the country. It will take place at various participating bars on April 23.
As You Are, an LGBTQ bar in Capitol Hill, is one of eight locations across the U.S. participating. Their event is free and 21+.
On April 24, the D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center will hold a screening of “Ahead of the Curve,” a documentary about the founder of Curve, Franco Stevens. The event is free with an RSVP.
April 25, is Queer Women in Sports Day. And on April 26, several monuments in New York will be illuminated.
Virtual events ranging from health to sports will be made available to the public. Details will be released closer to the start of Lesbian Visibility Week. Featured events can be found on the official website.
Some ways for individuals to get involved are to use #LVW26 and tag the official Lesbian Visibility Week account on social media posts. People are encouraged to display their lesbian flags, and businesses can hand out pins and decorate. They can also reach out to local lawmakers to encourage them to issue an official Lesbian Visibility Week.
District of Columbia
Whitman-Walker Health to present ‘Pro Bono Excellence’ award to law firm
Health center set to celebrate 40th anniversary of legal services program
Whitman-Walker Health, the D.C.-based community healthcare center that specializes in HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ-related health services, announced it will present its annual Dale Edwin Sanders Award for Pro Bono Excellence to the international law firm McDermott Will & Schulte at a May 6 ceremony.
“This year’s award is especially significant as it coincides with the 40th anniversary of Whitman-Walker Health’s Legal Services Program, marking it as the nation’s longest running medical-legal partnership,” a statement released by Whitman-Walker says.
“As a national leader in public health, Whitman-Walker celebrates our partnership with McDermott to strengthen the health center and to enable Whitman-Walker to reach more medical and legal clients,” the statement adds.
“McDermott’s firm-wide commitment to Whitman-Walker’s medical-legal partnership demonstrates a shared vision to serve those most in need,” Amy Nelson, Whitman-Walker’s director of Legal Services, says in the statement. “Our work protects individuals and families who face discrimination and hostility as they navigate increasingly complex administrative systems,” Nelson said.
“Pro bono legal services – like that of McDermott Will & Schulte – find solutions for people who have no place else to turn in the face of financial and health threats,” she added.
“Our partnership with Whitman-Walker Health is a treasured commitment to serving our neighbors and communities,” Steven Schnelle, one of the law firm’s partners said in the statement. “We are deeply moved by Whitman-Walker’s unwavering dedication to inclusion, respect, and equitable access to health care and social services,” he said.
The statement notes that the award for Pro Bono Excellence honors the legacy of the late gay attorney Dale Edwin Sanders. It says Sanders’s pro bono legal work for Whitman-Walker clients “shaped HIV/AIDS law for more than four decades by securing key victories on behalf of individuals whose employment and patient rights were violated.”
It says the Whitman-Walker Legal Services program began during the early years of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s at a time when people with AIDS faced widespread discrimination and often needed legal assistance. According to the statement, the program evolved over the years and expanded to advocate for transgender people and immigrants.
Whitman-Walker spokesperson Lisa Amore said the presentation of the Dale Edwin Sanders Pro Bono Excellency Award will be held at the May 6 fundraising benefit for Whitman-Walker’s Legal Services Program. She said the event will take place at the offices of the DC law firm Baker McKenzie and ticket availability can be accessed here: https://www.whitman-walker.org/gtem-2026/
Demonstrators disrupt OMB director hearing over PEPFAR
HIV/AIDS group NMAC is ‘destabilized’ and in financial crisis: sources
Madonna announces release date for new album
Senegalese court issues first conviction under new anti-LGBTQ law
Evan Glass is leaning on his record. Is that enough for Montgomery County’s top job?
An effort to increase the number of psychiatrists of color
Comings & Goings
Trump budget targets ‘gender extremism’
Minimal version of ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ heading to Dupont Underground
