Early voting is underway in Delaware and one race that has captivated the LGBTQ community is the 14th District House seat being vacated by longtime ally Pete Schwartzkopf. Claire Snyder-Hall, a lesbian, won the Democratic primary and faces Republican Mike Simpler. But Simpler says the LGBTQ community shouldn’t discount him simply because he’s a Republican.

“I was kind of upset that they would even think of me being a Republican, that I would discriminate against the LGBTQ community in general,” Simpler told the Blade. “It’s kind of upsetting knowing that I’m born and raised here, and I’ve had family members that way. I mean the treasurer of my campaign is a lesbian. It’s just upsetting that people feel that way about the gay community in general.” 

Simpler, a lifelong resident of Sussex County and the current president of the Rehoboth Beach Volunteer Fire Company said that his experience in the role has allowed him to work alongside many different types of people, including members of the LGBTQ community. 

“We probably have the most diverse fire company in the state of Delaware, when it comes to the LGBTQ group,” he said. “People need to realize that the LGBTQ [community] is no different than the rest of the people in the world.”

Simpler also shared with the Blade that he has had firsthand experience with a unique aspect of LGBTQ culture — drag. He dressed up in drag at a fundraiser held at The Pines, a popular gay venue in Rehoboth Beach.

“I was asked to volunteer for a fundraiser, and next thing you know, I find out I’m going to be in drag at The Pines,” Simpler said. “We had a ball! I mean, I had so much fun.”   

Not only did Simpler definitively say he supports the LGBTQ community in Delaware, but he added he supports legislative protections for these communities. He pointed out that providing a safe space for marginalized communities is ingrained in American history.  

“Protect them,” he said when asked about the potential of supporting pro-transgender legislation amid a wave of anti-LGBTQ state legislation being passed nationwide. “You’ve got to. They’re trying to escape. For example, they’re trying to escape the process like the Jews did, like the Chinese when they came here. They’re trying to move away from an issue where they’re being prosecuted against to somewhere where they can be free and enjoy their life that they want to live.” 

In addition to promising LGBTQ support, Simpler says he backs smarter growth in the region by prioritizing better development and efforts to alleviate traffic. He also pledges to attract high-quality jobs to the region.

Simpler faces Synder-Hall in the Nov. 5 general election. Read the Blade’s profile of her, here: https://www.washingtonblade.com/2024/09/24/claire-snyder-hall-interview/

Early voting is already underway. 

Diversity Richmond has designed a license plate that allows Virginia drivers to celebrate and raise the visibility of LGBTQ diversity. The Virginia-based LGBTQ nonprofit needs 450 applications by January for the plate to become an official state option. 

The license plate design features a group of hands stacked on top of each other in the far left corner, and the Progress Pride flag runs horizontally across the bottom of the plate. The words “Celebrate Diversity” are prominently displayed over the flag. 

Rev. Dr. Lacette Cross, executive director of Diversity Richmond, said the design celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ community.

“[The design] reflects the diversity of the intersecting identities of our community,” she said.  

Applications are available on Diversity Richmond’s website, and the license plate costs $25. Once completed, applicants should email the form to Diversity Richmond, not to the Virginia DMV, as Diversity Richmond will submit both the applications and fees to the DMV on their behalf.

If the organization gathers 450 applications and payments by the start of the 2025 Virginia General Assembly session in January, Del. Betsy B. Carr (D-Richmond) will sponsor the plate through the approval process to make it an official option. 

The initiative also serves as a fundraiser for Diversity Richmond, which will receive a portion of the proceeds from the license plate registration fees. 

“The ultimate benefit,” Cross said, “is the continual visibility of LGBTQ persons, our allies, and our supporters that are driving around the Commonwealth of Virginia, spreading the message of acceptance and of allyship.”

She described Diversity Richmond as the hub of the LGBTQ community in Greater Richmond, noting the organization’s “really dynamic” work within the community. The nonprofit runs the popular thrift store Diversity Thrift, hosts the annual Virginia Pridefest in September, and exhibits the work of LGBTQ artists in its art gallery.

Diversity Richmond is planning to celebrate its 25th anniversary with a public party at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on Wednesday, Nov. 13. 

The LGBTQ student group called OutLaw at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School in Arlington, Va., is inviting LGBTQ students at other law schools across the D.C. metropolitan area and the LGBTQ community and its allies to an Oct. 25 event on the school’s campus called Pride on the Plaza.

A statement released by OutLaw says the event will be held from 6-10 p.m. on Mason Square Plaza, which serves as a campus-like plaza in front of the law school building at 3301 Fairfax Dr. in Arlington.

“Coinciding with LGBT Pride Month, Pride on the Plaza is a gathering of the D.C. Metro area’s LGBTQIA+ law student organizations and the community at large,” the statement says. “It’s more than just a party; it’s a chance to stand together, to celebrate who we are, and to show our pride.”

The statement says organizers have invited lawyers and legal professionals as well as undergraduate and graduate students at the university to participate in the event. It says there will be food and beverages and live entertainment, including a “first ever” drag show at the Scalia Law School.

Mackenzie Freilich, the OutLaw president, said the event will also include a raffle for items such as concert tickets and autographed sports memorabilia, a free sexual health screening clinic, and information stations provided by several LGBTQ organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign.

According to the group’s statement, the event will be limited to people 18 years of age and older and there will be an admission fee of $8 to help support the cost of putting on the event and the work of OutLaw. It says tickets can be purchased online in advance of the event or at the event itself

“We are rewriting the narrative from hateful rhetoric to impactful, long-lasting change for good,” Freilich told the Washington Blade. “We must not let hate win, we must rise up and unite the community, not divide.”

Morgan Menzies, another student at the Scalia Law School who is organizing the Pride on the Plaza event, said Freilich was referring to the anti-LGBTQ laws that several states have passed recently or are considering passing. 

She said organizers are also concerned about the anti-LGBTQ proposals in a document called Project 2025 that conservative advocates want Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to put in place if elected president.

Menzies said another concern organizers of the event have is the statement made by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas at the time the high court overturned Roe v. Wade. She noted that Thomas said the court should reconsider its ruling legalizing same-sex marriage. 

The Scalia Law School is named after another conservative former Supreme Court justice, the late Antonin Scalia, who served on the court from 1986 to the time of his death in 2016.

Menzies said school officials approved the LGBTQ group’s plans to hold the event on the school’s campus plaza and some of the school’s law professors have expressed support for the event.

“We wanted to host this event to create visibility on our campus because we are a minority at our school and also provide a networking opportunity with the other progressive law students in the region so that we can strengthen those bonds,” Menzies told the Blade.

Additional information and ticket availability for Pride on the Plaza can be accessed here.