Local
DOJ investigators hear from community
Trans man claims he was ‘misgendered’ by police
‘Our goal is to work with the community, public officials and law enforcement alike to create a stronger, better Baltimore,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch. (Photo by ibtimes.com; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Ken Jiretsu, a transgender man who has three special needs children, was in need of assistance from the Baltimore Police Department. One of his children, a 15-year-old son, had to be escorted to a hospital by police because of mental health issues. When police arrived at his Baltimore home last February, the contingent included one female officer and eight male officers.
The female officer “misgendered” Jiretsu, repeatedly calling him “ma’am.” He kept correcting her, explaining that he is a transgender man and should be referred to accordingly. The officer replied, “How am I supposed to know,” according to Jiretsu, while the other officers laughed.
He asked the first set of officers to leave since they could not help and called 911 again to request different officers. Some of the same officers returned with a few new ones and the same situation occurred. “Every time he would correct them they would continue to misgender him out of blatant disrespect,” said Jiretsu.
This is one of the experiences that members of the LGBT community shared with attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which is in the midst of a civil investigation of the Baltimore Police Department “to see if there are broad systematic practices causing constitutional rights to be violated.” The investigators are looking into police stops, searches arrests, uses of force and discriminatory policies that may have violated the civil rights of citizens.
The DOJ investigation, which was launched on May 8 shortly after the unrest following the death of Freddie Gray who died from injuries sustained while in police custody in Baltimore, will include riding with the police, reviewing documents and files and speaking with citizens who have had encounters with police.
“Our goal is to work with the community, public officials and law enforcement alike to create a stronger, better Baltimore,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch when announcing the investigation.
Lynch indicated that if violations are found, the investigation will result in a “court-enforceable agreement” to change the practices of the Baltimore Police Department.
More than 25 community members attended a meeting at the Chase Brexton Health Services Community Room on Aug. 6. There were introductory remarks given by the DOJ representatives, which included the distribution of an “Incident Information Form” that requests details pertaining to a negative encounter with the police—in the past or should an incident occur in the future—to be submitted to the DOJ.
The four DOJ attorneys present held separate one-on-one meetings with LGBT individuals who related their personal stories. The attorneys listened to these accounts and recorded notes. A report will be issued, but one of the attorneys, Mike Songer, cautioned that it could take up to a year and a half for the report to be released.
The meeting with DOJ was arranged by Bryanna A. Jenkins, founder of Baltimore Transgender United. “We’re creating a new narrative getting community members to tell their own stories so they can save themselves and the community,” Jenkins told the Blade.
Anyone with relevant information regarding the conduct of Baltimore Police Department officers is urged to contact DOJ by email at [email protected] or calling toll-free at 1-844-401-3733.
In addition, you may submit forms, which are being made available by community members on Facebook to: U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Special Litigation Section, 601 D Street NW, Rm. 5907A, Washington, D.C. 20004 Attn: DJ# 207-35
Virginia
McPike wins special election for Va. House of Delegates
Gay Alexandria City Council member becomes 8th LGBTQ member of legislature
Gay Alexandria City Council member Kirk McPike emerged as the decisive winner in a Feb. 10 special election for a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates representing Alexandria.
McPike, a Democrat, received 81.5 percent of the vote in his race against Republican Mason Butler, according to the local publication ALX Now.
He first won election to the Alexandria Council in 2021. He will be filling the House of Delegates seat being vacated by Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D-Alexandria), who won in another Feb. 10 special election for the Virginia State Senate seat being vacated by gay Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria).
Ebbin is resigning from his Senate next week to take a position with Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s administration.
Upon taking his 5th District seat in the House of Delegate, McPike will become the eighth out LGBTQ member of the Virginia General Assembly. Among those he will be joining is Sen. Danica Roem (D-Manassas), who became the Virginia Legislature’s first transgender member when she won election to the House of Delegates in 2017 before being elected to the Senate in 2023.
“I look forward to continuing to work to address our housing crisis, the challenge of climate change, and the damaging impacts of the Trump administration on the immigrant families, LGBTQ+ Virginians, and federal employees who call Alexandria home,” McPike said in a statement after winning the Democratic nomination for the seat in a special primary held on Jan. 20.
McPike, a longtime LGBTQ rights advocate, has served for the past 13 years as chief of staff for gay U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and has remained in that position during his tenure on the Alexandria Council. He said he will resign from that position before taking office in the House of Delegates.
Local
Local LGBTQ groups, activists to commemorate Black History Month
Rayceen Pendarvis to moderate Dupont Underground panel on Sunday
LGBTQ groups in D.C. and elsewhere plan to use Black History Month as an opportunity to commemorate and celebrate Black lives and experiences.
Team Rayceen Productions has no specific events planned, but co-founder Rayceen Pendarvis will attend many functions around D.C. this month.
Pendarvis, a longtime voice in the LGBTQ community in D.C. moderated a panel at Dupont Underground on Feb. 8. The event, “Every (Body) Wants to Be a Showgirl,” will feature art from Black burlesque artists from around the country. Pendarvis on Feb. 23 will attend the showing of multimedia play at the Lincoln Theatre that commemorates the life of James Baldwin.
Equality Virginia plans to prioritize Black voices through a weekly online series, and community-based story telling. The online digital series will center Black LGBTQ voices, specifically trailblazers and activists, and contemporary Black queer and transgender people.
Narissa Rahaman, Equality Virginia’s executive director, stressed the importance of the Black queer community to the overall Pride movement, and said “Equality Virginia is proud to center those voices in our work this month and beyond.”
The Capital Pride Alliance, which hosts Pride events in D.C., has an alliance with the Center for Black Equity, which brings Black Pride to D.C. over Memorial Day weekend. The National LGBTQ Task Force has no specific Black History Month events planned, but plans to participate in online collaborations.
Cathy Renna, the Task Force’s director of communications, told the Washington Blade the organization remains committed to uplifting Black voices. “Our priority is keeping this at the forefront everyday,” she said.
The D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center is also hosting a series of Black History Month events.
The D.C. Public Library earlier this year launched “Freedom and Resistance,” an exhibition that celebrates Black History Month and Martin Luther King Jr. It will remain on display until the middle of March at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library at 901 G St., N.W.
District of Columbia
U.S. Attorney’s Office drops hate crime charge in anti-gay assault
Case remains under investigation and ‘further charges’ could come
D.C. police announced on Feb. 9 that they had arrested two days earlier on Feb. 7 a Germantown, Md., man on a charge of simple assault with a hate crime designation after the man allegedly assaulted a gay man at 14th and Q Streets, N.W., while using “homophobic slurs.”
But D.C. Superior Court records show that prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C., which prosecutes D.C. violent crime cases, charged the arrested man only with simple assault without a hate crime designation.
In response to a request by the Washington Blade for the reason why the hate crime designation was dropped, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office provided this response: “We continue to investigate this matter and make no mistake: should the evidence call for further charges, we will not hesitate to charge them.”
In a statement announcing the arrest in this case, D.C. police stated, “On Saturday, February 7, 2026, at approximately 7:45 p.m. the victim and suspect were in the 1500 block of 14th Street, Northwest. The suspect requested a ‘high five’ from the victim. The victim declined and continued walking,” the statement says.
“The suspect assaulted the victim and used homophobic slurs,” the police statement continues. “The suspect was apprehended by responding officers.”
It adds that 26-year-old Dean Edmundson of Germantown, Md. “was arrested and charged with Simple Assault (Hate/Bias).” The statement also adds, “A designation as a hate crime by MPD does not mean that prosecutors will prosecute it as a hate crime.”
Under D.C.’s Bias Related Crime Act of 1989, penalties for crimes motivated by prejudice against individuals based on race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, and homelessness can be enhanced by a court upon conviction by one and a half times greater than the penalty of the underlying crime.
Prosecutors in the past both in D.C. and other states have said they sometimes decide not to include a hate crime designation in assault cases if they don’t think the evidence is sufficient to obtain a conviction by a jury. In some instances, prosecutors have said they were concerned that a skeptical jury might decide to find a defendant not guilty of the underlying assault charge if they did not believe a motive of hate was involved.
A more detailed arrest affidavit filed by D.C. police in Superior Court appears to support the charge of a hate crime designation.
“The victim stated that they refused to High-Five Defendant Edmondson, which, upon that happening, Defendant Edmondson started walking behind both the victim and witness, calling the victim, “bald, ugly, and gay,” the arrest affidavit states.
“The victim stated that upon being called that, Defendant Edmundson pushed the victim with both hands, shoving them, causing the victim to feel the force of the push,” the affidavit continues. “The victim stated that they felt offended and that they were also gay,” it says.
Unconventional love: Or, fuck it, let’s choose each other again
Pride flag raised at Stonewall after National Park Service took it down
Trans students not included in new India University Grants Commission equity rules
Calendar: February 13-19
FOIA lawsuit filed against State Department for PEPFAR records
Pride flag removed from Stonewall Monument as Trump targets LGBTQ landmarks
I keep getting rejected on the apps
Gay man details secret struggle with bulimia
Olympics Pride House ‘really important for the community’
