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Comings & Goings
Equality Calif. names policy director; Smith moves to G’town
The ‘Comings & Goings’ column chronicles important life changes of Blade readers.
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].
Congratulations to Valerie Ploumpis, who was named National Policy Director for Equality California. In making the announcement it said, “The reason for hiring their first national policy director is because of the unprecedented threat to LGBT civil rights represented by the incoming Donald Trump Administration and 115th Congress.”
Valerie Ploumpis
Ploumpis will handle their legislative and administrative programs in Washington, D.C., including their fight to protect LGBT civil rights’ gains at the federal level, monitoring executive orders and directives that protect LGBT people from workplace discrimination, expand Title IX to include discrimination based on gender identity, protect transgender students, shield many of California’s 250,000 LGBT undocumented immigrants from deportation, and more.
The position is also focused on Equality California’s efforts to defend the Affordable Care Act, which for the first time brought healthcare coverage to millions of LGBT people who had previously been shut out because of HIV status or preexisting conditions. Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California, said, “We’re thrilled that Valerie will move into this new role leading our federal advocacy efforts. Now more than ever, California is positioned as a bastion of LGBT civil rights and as a beacon of hope in Donald Trump’s America. Valerie will play an instrumental role as we fight attacks on the Affordable Care Act that so many LGBT people rely on, on undocumented immigrants and on the LGBT community in general.”
On accepting the position, Ploumpis said, “As a native Californian and long-time D.C. resident, I am thrilled to be joining Equality California at this critical juncture. With the incoming Trump Administration and the 115th Congress, Equality California will be on the ground to defend the programs on which every LGBT Californian, our families, and our communities rely. The stakes are high but so is our resolve and passion.”
Ploumpis has more than two decades of experience in issue-advocacy campaigns, grassroots education and mobilization, coalition building, lobbying and media outreach. She is a past co-chair of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund. Recently, she was a principal at Burnside & Associates, where she managed political and mobilization campaigns.
A mother of two in their early 20s (both of whom are members of Equality California), Ploumpis considers herself to be a native Californian, though she grew up in Greece, Nigeria and Italy. Ploumpis holds a bachelor’s in international relations from Mills College and a master’s in international relations from Johns Hopkins University.
Congratulations also to Paul M. Smith who is starting his next career as a professor at the Georgetown Law School. He will also be working part-time as a vice president at the Campaign Legal Center, which focuses on voting rights and campaign finance reform.
Smith was a partner in Jenner & Block’s D.C. office for 22 years. For the last 16 years, he has chaired the firm’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice. He has argued 19 Supreme Court cases, including Lawrence v. Texas, the landmark gay rights case, and Brown v. EMA, involving the First Amendment as applied to video games. Smith was a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. He is in the ABA House of Delegates, a member of, and former chair of, the board of the American Constitution Society, and a former co-chair of Lambda Legal. In 2010, the National Law Journal named him one of the 40 Most Influential Lawyers of the Past Decade. That same year, he received the Thurgood Marshall Award from the ABA Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice for his work promoting civil rights and civil liberties. More notable that same year he married his longtime partner Michael. Smith attended Amherst College and Yale Law School.
Paul M. Smith
I end this column on a sad note. My good friend Alan B. Teitzman, DDS, passed away on New Year’s Day of pancreatic and liver cancer. According to Rich Fennell, his life partner and husband, he was in much pain and the end came fast. Alan and Rich were a team for many years living in both D.C. and Rehoboth Beach. Some knew Alan as their dentist, others as a friend, and many as both. My condolences to Rich and to all of Alan’s family and friends. He will be missed.
District of Columbia
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.
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].
Congratulations to Vida Rangel, JD/MPP on her promotion to Deputy Director of the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Appointments. Rangel is now the highest-ranking transgender official in the history of District government. On accepting the position Rangel said, “I am proud to step into this leadership role and to continue serving my communities. Our District is full of passionate and knowledgeable people who are committed to public service, and it is an honor to help them explore opportunities to serve their neighbors.”
Rangel has previously served in this office as Director of Operations. Prior to this as Bargaining Committee Chair, Organizing Committee, NCTE United, Nonprofit Professional Employees Union IFTPE Local 70. As Policy Counsel, National Center for Transgender Equality; and Elizabeth Warren for President, lead organizer, Illinois 4th Congressional District. She has worked with, and served on boards of, The Black & Pink National, Federal City Performing Arts Assoc., and LAGBAC.
Rangel earned her bachelor’s in sociology from Sam Houston State University; master’s of Public Policy from Loyola University, Chicago; and Juris Doctor, Loyola University, Chicago.
Congratulations also to James Conlon new PFLAG vice president of Development & Philanthropic Partnerships. Upon his appointment Conlon said, “It is an absolute privilege to join PFLAG National and lead their Development & Philanthropic Partner team into a new era. Right now, LGBTQ+ people and their families are terrified of what the future might bring, and PFLAG must continue to be there. My job is to ensure PFLAG strongly endures and thrives, because never has there been a clearer time for our community to unite in fighting for the dignity and well-being of every LGBTQ+ person.”
Brian Bond, CEO, PFLAG National, said, “At a time when PFLAG National programs and participation in them have grown significantly, even as corporate giving has left a $1.3M gap in our funding, James is a critical new addition to the team. With his vast expertise, James will drive our growth and ensure that PFLAG continues meeting the needs of families and communities across the country.”
Conlon is a seasoned fundraiser who has spent extensive time working with advocates, supporters, and leaders, of the LGBTQ+ movement to understand how to effectively support the community. He began his career as an intern in the Massachusetts State House. He has helped raise more than $60 million for critical causes and candidates. Prior to joining PFLAG James oversaw LGBTQ+ investments and fundraising, with the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Prior to that he served in the same role for Harris-Walz 2024, and additionally served in senior fundraising positions for the Senate Majority PAC, as well as for Representatives Josh Gottheimer, and Conor Lamb.
Conlon earned his bachelor’s degree in political science and government from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
District of Columbia
D.C.’s annual MLK Peace Walk and Parade set for Jan. 19
LGBTQ participants expected to join mayor’s contingent
Similar to past years, members of the LGBTQ community were expected to participate in D.C.’s 21st annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Peace Walk and Parade scheduled to take place Monday, Jan. 19.
Organizers announced this year’s Peace Walk, which takes place ahead of the parade, was scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. at the site of a Peace Rally set to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the intersection of Firth Sterling Avenue and Sumner Road, S.E., a short distance from Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue.
The Peace Walk and the parade, which is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. at the same location, will each travel along Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue a little over a half mile to Marion Barry Avenue near the 11th Street Bridge where they will end.
Japer Bowles, director of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, said he and members of his staff would be marching in the parade as part of the mayor’s parade contingent. In past years, LGBTQ community members have also joined the mayor’s parade contingent.
Stuart Anderson, one of the MLK Day parade organizers, said he was not aware of any specific LGBTQ organizations that had signed up as a parade contingent for this year’s parade. LGBTQ group contingents have joined the parade in past years.
Denise Rolark Barnes, one of the lead D.C. MLK Day event organizers, said LGBTQ participants often join parade contingents associated with other organizations.
Barnes said a Health and Wellness Fair was scheduled to take place on the day of the parade along the parade route in a PNC Bank parking lot at 2031 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., S.E.
A statement on the D.C. MLK Day website describes the parade’s history and impact on the community.
“Established to honor the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the parade united residents of Ward 8, the District, and the entire region in the national movement to make Dr. King’s birthday a federal holiday,” the statement says. “Today, the parade not only celebrates its historic roots but also promotes peace and non-violence, spotlights organizations that serve the community, and showcases the talent and pride of school-aged children performing for family, friends, and community members.”
Layoffs and confusion at Pride Center of Maryland after federal grants cut, reinstated
Comings & Goings
D.C.’s annual MLK Peace Walk and Parade set for Jan. 19
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