Opinions
Black women’s lives matter, too
Where is the outrage for female victims of police brutality?
Members of Metropolitan Community Church of Washington joined in the National March against Police Brutality on Dec. 13, 2014. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
As we prepare to start celebrating Black History Month, it is important that we continue to push for equality. While some diminish the obstacles that marginalized groups face by pretending that societal ills such as racism and homophobia no longer exist, it’s vital to listen to residents who have first-hand experience. It is of particular importance to include voices that are marginalized within minority communities.
The Black Lives Matter movement was spurred by recent high-profile killings of African Americans by law enforcement. The movement has been a rallying cry to get people around the nation to notice that blacks are being unjustly targeted and killed by law enforcement officers. However, as the movement progressed, something became painstakingly clear. The all-inclusive Black Lives Matter somehow became Black Men’s Lives Matter.
Initially, the sole focus on high-profile cases in which black men were killed seemed justified. While I was disappointed that the black community never seems to rally around black women who are unjustly killed, be it by police brutality or domestic violence, I believed it was not the time or place to express those sentiments. After all, I too have participated in rallies and marches for Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Garner. In the late 1990s, I was devastated by and protested the murder of Amadou Diallo and the unspeakable brutality against Abner Louima.
For me, the turning point in deciding that it’s necessary to speak up specifically for the lives of black women came when watching the National March against Police Brutality convened by Al Sharpton last month here in Washington, D.C. Relatives of high-profile black male victims spoke. Then, relatives of lesser-known or unknown black male victims spoke. While I was happy to see some of these lesser-known cases get attention, it was stunning that in an event for a movement called Black Lives Matter, where rally participants were educated about several unknown cases, none of the cases where black women were unjustly killed by law enforcement were highlighted. This is of particular importance to lesbian and bisexual black women, as many gender non-conforming women in our community are profiled similarly to black men, but do not receive the community support afterwards.
Lakisha Watson-Moore, creator of the popular blog, Bougie Black Girl, has been on the forefront of speaking about the erasure of black women in the police brutality narrative. Watson-Moore penned the blog posting, “Black women and girls killed by the police. Speak their names, see their faces and know their stories,” which highlights black women and girls killed by law enforcement. Similar to the high-profile cases of black men, these women were unjustly killed by law enforcement officers and were often targeted because of their race or marginalized because of their race and gender. Where is the outrage?
Watson-Moore believes that the black community ignores police brutality against black women and girls because “the media, social justice organizations and we, the public, have inherently racist, sexist and limited views of blackness.”
My frustration at the exclusion of black women does not mean that I’m not deeply concerned about the unjustified killing of black men. Because I am. They are our brothers, sons, partners, fathers, cousins, uncles and friends. But, we, as black women, are always the first ones willing to organize rallies and march for them, but no one galvanizes to march for us.
When I mention some of the black women killed by law enforcement, such as Miriam Carey, an unarmed mother and dental hygienist, with no criminal history who was killed here in D.C. by Secret Service and Capitol Police, I get justification about how she did not behave perfectly, even though supervisors, colleagues and friends speak glowingly about her. Yet, with black men, perfect behavior is never the criteria and it shouldn’t be. Watson-Moore opined that “negative antebellum racist stereotypes,” such as “the angry, loud, and sassy Sapphire Black woman justifies in some people’s mind the use of police violence” against black women.
Regardless of the reasoning for ignoring violence against black women, our lives matter and it is imperative that law enforcement makes every effort to deescalate a situation before using deadly force. Black Lives Matter means ALL Black Lives Matter. For those who are thinking, “Why not All Lives Matter,” while I believe with all my heart that all lives matter equally, to use All Lives Matter as a slogan diminishes the focus of highlighting and preventing the unjustified and disproportionate police brutality against black people, as well as the resulting indifference from most of society.
The world ignoring the terrorist attack that resulted in the deaths of more than 2,000 Nigerians during the same week that it collectively mourned 17 people killed by terrorists in Paris illustrates why the Black Lives Matter movement is important. Simply put, the world does not see us, so we must highlight our own struggle. Let’s ensure that we are not engaging in the same behavior against black women that much of society does against the black community as a whole.
Letter-to-the-Editor
Candidates should pledge to nominate LGBTQ judge to Supreme Court
Presidential, Senate hopefuls need to go on the record
As soon as the final votes are cast and counted and verified after the November 2026 elections are over, the 2028 presidential cycle will begin in earnest. Polls, financial aid requests, and volunteer opportunities ad infinitum will flood the public and personal media. There will be more issues than candidates in both parties. The rending of garments and mudslinging will be both interesting and maybe even amusing as citizens will watch how candidates react to each and every issue of the day.
There is one particular item that I am hoping each candidate will be asked whether in private or in public. If a Supreme Court vacancy occurs in your potential administration, will you nominate an open and qualified LGBTQ to join the remaining eight?
Other interest groups on both sides have made similar demands over the years and have had them honored. Is it not time that our voices are raised as well? There are several already sitting judges on both state and federal benches that have either been elected statewide or approved by the U.S. Senate.
Our communities are being utilized and abused on judicial menus. Enough already! Challenge each and every candidate, regardless of their party with our honest question and see if honest answers are given. By the way … no harm in asking the one-third of the U.S. Senate candidates too who will be on ballots. Looking forward to any candidate tap dancing!
Opinions
2026 elections will bring major changes to D.C. government
Mayor’s office, multiple Council seats up for grabs
Next year will be a banner year for elections in D.C. The mayor announced she will not run. Two Council members, Anita Bonds, At-large, and Brianne Nadeau, Ward 1, have announced they will not run. Waiting for Del. Norton to do the same, but even if she doesn’t, there will be a real race for that office.
So far, Robert White, Council member at-large, and Brooke Pinto, Council member Ward 2, are among a host of others, who have announced. If one of these Council members should win, there would be a special election for their seat. If Kenyon McDuffie, Council member at-large, announces for mayor as a Democrat, which he is expected to do, he will have to resign his seat on the Council as he fills one of the non-Democratic seats there. Janeese George, Ward 4 Council member, announced she is running for mayor. Should she win, there would be a special election for her seat. Another special election could happen if Trayon White, Ward 8, is convicted of his alleged crimes, when he is brought to trial in January. Both the Council chair, and attorney general, have announced they are seeking reelection, along with a host of other offices that will be on the ballot.
Many of the races could look like the one in Ward 1 where at least six people have already announced. They include three members of the LGBTQ community. It seems the current leader in that race is Jackie Reyes Yanes, a Latina activist, not a member of the LGBTQ community, who worked for Mayor Fenty as head of the Latino Affairs Office, and for Mayor Bowser as head of the Office of Community Affairs. About eight, including the two Council members, have already announced they are running for the delegate seat.
I am often asked by candidates for an endorsement. The reason being my years as a community, LGBTQ, and Democratic, activist; and my ability to endorse in my column in the Washington Blade. The only candidate I endorsed so far is Phil Mendelson, for Council chair. While he and I don’t always agree on everything, he’s a staunch supporter of the LGBTQ community, a rational person, and we need someone with a steady hand if there really are six new Council members, out of the 13.
When candidates call, they realize I am a policy wonk. My unsolicited advice to all candidates is: Do more than talk in generalities, be specific and honest as to what you think you can do, if elected. Candidates running for a legislative office, should talk about what bills they will support, and then what new ones they will introduce. What are the first three things you will focus on for your constituents, if elected. If you are running against an incumbent, what do you think you can do differently than the person you hope to replace? For any new policies and programs you propose, if there is a cost, let constituents know how you intend to pay for them. Take the time to learn the city budget, and how money is currently being spent. The more information you have at your fingertips, the smarter you sound, and voters respect that, at least many do. If you are running for mayor, you need to develop a full platform, covering all the issues the city will face, something I have helped a number of previous mayors do. The next mayor will continue to have to deal with the felon in the White House. He/she/they will have to ensure he doesn’t try to eliminate home rule. The next mayor will have to understand how to walk a similar tightrope Mayor Bowser has balanced so effectively.
Currently, the District provides lots of public money to candidates. If you decide to take it, know the details. The city makes it too easy to get. But while it is available, take advantage of it. One new variable in this election is the implementation of rank-choice voting. It will impact how you campaign. If you attack another candidate, you may not be the second, or even third, choice, of their strongest supporters.
Each candidate needs a website. Aside from asking for donations and volunteers, it should have a robust issues section, biography, endorsements, and news. One example I share with candidates is my friend Zach Wahls’s website. He is running for United States Senate from Iowa. It is a comprehensive site, easy to navigate, with concise language, and great pictures. One thing to remember is that D.C. is overwhelmingly Democratic. Chances are the winner of the Democratic primary will win the general election.
Potential candidates should read the DCBOE calendar. Petitions will be available at the Board of Elections on Jan. 23, with the primary on June 16th, and general election on Nov. 3. So, ready, set, go!
Peter Rosenstein is a longtime LGBTQ rights and Democratic Party activist.
Opinions
Lighting candles in a time of exhaustion
Gunmen killed 15 people at Sydney Hanukkah celebration
In the wake of the shooting at Bondi Beach that targeted Jews, many of us are sitting with a familiar feeling: exhaustion. Not shock or surprise, but the deep weariness that comes from knowing this violence continues. It is yet another reminder that antisemitism remains persistent.
Bondi Beach is far from Washington, D.C., but antisemitism does not respect geography. When Jews are attacked anywhere, Jews everywhere feel it. We check on family and friends, absorb the headlines, and brace ourselves for the quiet, numbing normalization that has followed acts of mass violence.
Many of us live at an intersection where threats can come from multiple directions. As a community, we have embraced the concept of intersectional identity, and yet in queer spaces, many LGBTQ+ Jews are being implicitly or explicitly asked to play down our Jewishness. Jews hesitate before wearing a Magen David or a kippah. Some of us have learned to compartmentalize our identities, deciding which part of ourselves feels safest to lead with. Are we welcome as queer people only if we mute our Jewishness? Are those around us able to acknowledge that our fear is not abstract, but rooted in a lived reality, one in which our friends and family are directly affected by the rise in antisemitic violence, globally and here at home?
As a result of these experiences, many LGBTQ+ Jews feel a growing fatigue. We are told, implicitly or explicitly, that our fear is inconvenient; that Jewish trauma must be contextualized, minimized, or deferred in favor of other injustices. Certainly, the world is full of horror. And yet, we long for a world in which all lives are cherished and safe, where solidarity is not conditional on political purity or on which parts of ourselves are deemed acceptable to love.
We are now in the season of Chanuka. The story of this holiday is not one of darkness vanishing overnight. It is the story of a fragile light that should not have lasted. Chanuka teaches us that hope does not require certainty; it requires persistence and the courage to kindle a flame even when the darkness feels overwhelming.
For LGBTQ+ Jews, this lesson resonates deeply. We have survived by refusing to disappear across multiple dimensions of our identities. We have built communities, created rituals, and embraced chosen families that affirm the fullness of who we are.
To our LGBTQ+ siblings who are not Jewish: this is a moment to listen, to stand with us, and to make space for our grief. Solidarity means showing up not only when it is easy or popular, but especially when it is uncomfortable.
To our fellow Jews: your exhaustion is valid. Your fear is understandable, and so is your hope. Every candle lit this Chanuka is an act of resilience. Every refusal to hide, every moment of joy, is a declaration that hatred will not have the final word.
Light does not deny darkness. It confronts it.
As we light our candles this Chanuka season, may we protect one another and bring light to one another, even as the world too often responds to difference with violence and hate.
Joshua Maxey is the executive director of Bet Mishpachah, D.C.’s LGBTQ synagogue.
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