Local
Blade welcomes Rosendall as new columnist
Longtime advocate, writer to tackle array of LGBT issues in biweekly column
Richard J. Rosendall returns to the Blade starting this week. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
The Blade is thrilled to announce that longtime LGBT advocate and D.C.-based writer Richard J. Rosendall rejoins our team this week as a regular columnist.
Rosendall has written for a number of publications, including previously for the Blade, on a range of local, national and international topics. He serves as president of the Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance, a local non-profit political organization that works on behalf of the LGBT community.
His first Blade piece, published today, focuses on American intervention in the Middle East, a column made especially timely after last night’s U.S. bombing campaign in Syria.
We strive to bring our readers an array of smart, provocative voices from the LGBT community and I’m excited and honored that Rick is coming home to the Blade. He joins a growing list of Blade contributors who help inform our community and hold our elected officials accountable. I look forward to his biweekly column and am pleased to add his unique and powerful voice to our lineup.
“I got my first break as a professional writer from [former Blade editor] Lisa Keen in the early 1990s,” Rick told me. “It’s good to be back.”
Rick’s writing has appeared on Salon.com, Independent Gay Forum, and Liberty Education Forum. He co-founded the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C. in 1981, and received its Circle of Excellence Award in 1992. He became a founding member of the NAACP-DC Police Task Force in 1997. He was named a Community Pioneer by the Rainbow History Project in 2009 and received an award for Outstanding Service from The DC Center for the LGBT Community in 2011.
Welcome back, Rick!
Virginia
VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade
Abigail Spanberger took office on Saturday
The inaugural ceremonies for Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger were held in Richmond, Va. on Saturday. Among the groups marching in the parade were Diversity Richmond and the Virginia Pride project of Diversity Richmond.
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Virginia
Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin introduced SJ3
The Virginia Senate on Friday by a 26-13 vote margin approved a resolution that seeks to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Outgoing state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) introduced SJ3. The Senate Privileges and Elections Committee on Wednesday approved it by a 10-4 vote margin.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
A resolution that seeks to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2021. The resolution passed again in 2025.
Two successive legislatures must approve the resolution before it can go to the ballot. Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates have said the resolution’s passage is among their 2026 legislative priorities.
“It’s time for Virginia’s Constitution to reflect the law of the land and the values of today,” said Ebbin after Friday’s vote. “This amendment, if approved by voters, would affirm the dignity of all committed couples and protects marriage equality for future generations.”
Maryland
Layoffs and confusion at Pride Center of Maryland after federal grants cut, reinstated
Trump administration move panicked addiction and mental health programs
By ALISSA ZHU | After learning it had abruptly lost $2 million in federal funding, the Pride Center of Maryland moved to lay off a dozen employees, or about a third of its workforce, the Baltimore nonprofit’s leader said Thursday.
The group is one of thousands nationwide that reportedly received letters late Tuesday from the Trump administration. Their mental health and addiction grants had been terminated, effective immediately, the letters said.
By Wednesday night, federal officials moved to reverse the funding cuts by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, estimated to total $2 billion, according to national media reports. But the Pride Center of Maryland’s CEO Cleo Manago said as of Thursday morning he had not heard anything from the federal government confirming those reports.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Voiceless ‘Antony & Cleopatra’ a spectacle of operatic proportions
VIDEO: LGBTQ groups march in Va. inaugural parade
Va. Senate approves referendum to repeal marriage amendment
DNC slams White House for slashing Fla. AIDS funding
Do not forget that Renee Good was queer
Supreme Court hears arguments in two critical cases on trans sports bans
Woman arrested for anti-gay assault at Alexandria supermarket
Honoring 50 queer, trans women with inaugural ‘Carrying Change’ awards
Ruby Corado sentenced to 33 months in prison
Visible and unapologetic: MAL brings the kink this weekend
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U.S. Supreme Court4 days agoSupreme Court hears arguments in two critical cases on trans sports bans
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Virginia5 days ago
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Commentary5 days ago
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District of Columbia4 days ago
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