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Longtime Creating Change conference organizer looks back
Boston’s Sue Hyde says diversity was always key component of annual event
Sue Hyde speaks at the Creating Change Conference. The long-time Boston resident is stepping down after decades overseeing the annual event. (Photo courtesy the Task Force)
Even in big U.S. cities with diverse residents, activist groups sometimes default into overabundances of white, gay, cis men. Organizers of Creating Change, the annual conference of the National LGBTQ Task Force, knew from the start they wanted diversity, but it didn’t just happen. Not by a long shot.
One of the founding principles behind the conference was to “build a stronger, more confident, more skilled, more connected and more representative LGBTQ political movement,” says longtime organizer Sue Hyde.
“People say Creating Change is one of the most diverse LGBTQ political events they attend and we worked hard to make that happen,” Hyde says. “We wanted a conference that would bring people together across age, across race, across income and across geography in the sense that we were very interested in attracting people from not just urban or suburban but also small towns and rural areas.”
She doesn’t know the median age of attendees but at the 2017 conference in Philadelphia, 47 percent of attendees were 30 or younger. About 49 percent identified as something other than European/Caucasian and 30 percent reported incomes of $35,000 or less. Another 22 percent identified as either gender non-conforming or transgender. Seventeen percent were from small towns and rural areas.
“From the get go, we were very conscious of wanting the attendee base of Creating Change to be reflective of who we believed the LGBT communities were comprised,” Hyde says.
The 30th annual Creating Change Conference is Jan. 24-28 at the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington. About 3,500 are expected; 1,500 have signed up for a Capitol Hill lobby day that’s part of the event. The theme is “Learn. Connect. Resist.” The Task Force bills its event as the “foremost political, leadership and skills-building conference for the LGBTQ social justice movement.” The primary goal each year is for the conference to “build the LGBTQ movement’s political power from the ground up to secure our overarching goal of full freedom, justice and equality for (LGBTQ) people in the United States.”
Registration is still open and several tiers are available including daily rates ($180), conference passes for students/limited income ($210), regular ($475), senior and youth rates, sponsoring rates and more. Full details at creatingchange.org.
Moving on
It will also be Hyde’s last. One of the conference founders, Hyde has been its director every year except 1990-1993 when she left the Task Force for a few years to work on some other community organizing projects in the Boston area where she lives to this day despite the Task Force’s Washington headquarters. Hyde, 65, will continue to work on queer and social justice issues in a new role with the Wild Geese Foundation, an organization that works to make grants more accessible. She will continue to live in Massachusetts with her partner/wife of 35 years, with whom she has two adult children.
Her resignation inspired a spate of glowing comments. Task Force director Rea Carey said in a statement that Hyde’s impact on the movement of three decades is “immeasurable and unmatched.” Former director Urvashi Vaid called her “one of the most effective organizers with whom I have ever worked.”
Beth Zremsky, a longtime activist and with “28 or 29” Creating Change conferences notched (she doesn’t recall for sure but knows she missed a couple years), probably the record holder, says she feels Hyde’s supreme strength has been her ability to give the conference what it needed along the way to grow and evolve.
“She’s been able to adapt Creating Change both to respond to the issues of the day but also to really be inclusive of the people who are there,” Zremsky says by phone from her home in Minneapolis. “It’s never perfect, but she’s figured out a way to embody the values we say we care about. We say it’s about everybody bringing their full self but to be able to offer a space for 4,000 people to be their full selves, that takes a ton of intentionality. Everything from gender-neutral bathrooms, interpreters, food for all the low-income people so they can come and not worry about getting fed, I could go on and on. I often use Creating Change as an example of what it would really look like to create an intentional community just for five days that’s completely seen and completely held so they can do the work we need to do as a movement.”
Growing pains
And, as one would imagine, 30 years of conferences don’t happen without some snags along the way. Some are logistical. Hyde remembers one year the conference was at a fully unionized hotel but organizers failed to realize members of the audio-visual team also needed a union salary, significantly higher than what had been budgeted. Planning the conference is a year-round effort for Hyde and her team of four who work only on the conference (other Task Force staff members work on the conference and other duties).
Hyde mostly shrugs off any suggestions of rancor along the way and says, having worked under 10 Task Force directors over the years, each of whom “had their own idea about what they thought the programming should look like,” a few hiccups were to be expected.
“Yeah, I’ve taken a lump or two but it comes with the territory,” she says. “But along with the lumps have been a great deal of very satisfying and really gratifying experiences of bringing together now thousands of people who are committed equally to securing freedom and justice and equality and liberation so the lump is not really what I want to remember or think about. I tend to think much more about the incredibly beautiful metabolism of Creating Change and our movement coming together every year. It’s a political organization but also a family reunion.”
Zremsky sees it slightly differently.
“One of the things Sue is a master at, as is Urvashi, is the idea that for something to be a movement, it needs to move,” Zremsky says. “They’ve kept Creating Change moving with the movement and Sue is one of the most graceful people I know when it comes to dealing with conflict and allowing conflict to be a growth opportunity. She leans into it as a way to sort of say, ‘Hey, this is our growth point.’”
The conference started as an outgrowth of the second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in 1987. Then Task Force director Jeff Levi “looked at us like we’d lost our minds,” Hyde recalls when she and others pitched the idea.
“He thought we were crazy but he agreed to go forward, which was a good thing, and pretty much left it in the hands of me and Urvashi to deal with the logistics,” Hyde says.
Making it work
A group of attendees at the 2017 Creating Change Conference. (Photo courtesy the Task Force)
The conference is held in a different city each year. This is the second time it’s been in Washington. The first was in 1988 for its inaugural event though it was held in Bethesda, Md., in 1989; Arlington, Va., in 1991 and Alexandria, Va., in 1996. Several cities have hosted twice including Detroit (’95 and ’08), Minnesota (’91 and ’11), Denver (’09 and ’15) and Dallas (’94 and ’10) among others. Hyde says she can’t name a favorite host city but has enjoyed seeing integration among activist circles increase upon returning to areas years later. It was especially pronounced in Detroit, she says.
About 300 folks attended the first conference in 1988. Peak attendance was in 2016 in Chicago with about 4,600. It’s been between 3,000-4,000 for the past few years.
Hyde guesses the first conference budget was around $65,000. She can’t say what it is for 2018.
And although the Task Force does not view the conference as a moneymaker, its goal, Hyde says, is “to do better than break even. Exact figures, she says, are impossible to fully extricate from the overall Task Force operations because of the carryover of staff, supplies and overhead that aren’t designated fully to either the conference or other Task Force areas. There have been times the conference has not broken even, but it’s been rare.
Calamities have been few. A 1996 tornado made it impossible for the keynote speaker to fly into Alexandria from California. A substitute who could arrive by train from New Jersey was quickly found. Hyde says that was the biggest logistical snafu she recalls.
One of the most tedious aspects to pulling it off each year is going through the more than 600 proposals submitted for session topics each year only about half of which can be approved. Hyde says it’s important that each is given careful consideration.
On the conference floor itself, Hyde says she has her game face on.
“I’m the trouble-shooter in chief, so when things are going a little bit awry, I am often involved in pulling people together so it’s not like going to your own dinner party. You have 3,000 people in a building. I believe in customer service and I try to treat every conversation as though it’s the first conversation of the day even if it’s the 100th. I try to give people my full attention, my best problem-solving skills and my best conflict mediation skills.”
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Mr. Henry’s celebrates 60 years of proud inclusivity
Capitol Hill staple remains ‘a caring community’
America’s 250th isn’t the only milestone birthday D.C. is celebrating this year.
Beloved D.C. restaurant Mr. Henry’s, that Capitol Hill staple, celebrates its Diamond Jubilee all year long. Named for its original owner Henry Yaffe, the restaurant opened on a warm day 60 years ago in the summer of 1966 and has never looked back.
Yaffe took over what was then a country western restaurant, renovated the interior to his liking, and created an institution. Yet Yaffe had another goal. As a gay man, “he created Mr. Henry’s to be a place where everyone felt welcome — not easy in 1966 — and he succeeded,” says current owner Mary Quillian.
“Mr. Henry’s has long been a place the LGBTQ community has supported because they felt and still feel welcomed,” says Quillian. Even in the current administration, “the gay community and the diversity-minded community continue to come.”
Since then, Mr. Henry’s has changed hands, opened and closed its second floor, welcomed famed musical acts, and played host to politicians, date nights, breakups, and birthdays. But it still feels like home (and has a note in the National Trust for Historic Preservation) at 601 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E.
Its wood-paneled, Victorian-inspired art-filled décor in the downstairs dining room and bar serves American pub fare for lunch and dinner daily, with brunch on weekends (and a dog-friendly patio). Upstairs, Mr. Henry’s hosts live jazz performances and special events most nights, continuing a musical tradition that has defined the venue for decades. That upstairs bar has played host to names like Roberta Flack and Woody Allen.
Musician Kevin Cordt said that, “Mr. Henry’s has been a part of my life for more than 30 years. I started as a customer, then became a bartender and server, and now I have the good fortune to play trumpet at one of the best live music venues in Washington, D.C.”
Aaron Myers, executive director of the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, is also a supporter. “Not many cities can sport venues that have consistently served the community in the space of culture for more than 50 years, let alone can brag as the birthplace of culture defining talent.”
From the start, Yaffe promoted a rare yet celebrated combination of locals’ bar and soulful nightlife venue. Mr. Henry’s has attracted a diverse crowd at a time when such spaces were – and perhaps still are – uncommon, a diversity that is credited with helping protect the pub during the 1968 D.C. riots.
Longtime customer Evelyn Branic said, “Mr. Henry’s has been my ‘Cheers’ hangout since my wife and I moved to the Hill in 1987. I’ve experienced many iconic moments meeting politicians, reporters, civic activists, and neighbors engaging in spirited conversations. Whether political, LGBTQ, historians, neighbors, or out-of-towners, everyone could find a special place to be greeted as a friend.”
Its welcoming tables come dabbed with a bit of tea: In 1971, in a moment that has since become part of Capitol Hill lore, Yaffe lost the pub in a poker game to Larry Quillian. The Quillian family, recognizing the special role Mr. Henry’s played in the neighborhood, took over ownership, and committed to preserving its spirit. Today, Larry’s daughter Mary owns the bar, having given it a bit of a facelift for the bar’s 50th birthday, bringing in new tables and some fresh menu items.
For example, the menu has some of those dishes that regulars would riot if they disappeared. The Reuben and the hamburgers, the chili and in-house roasted turkey have never departed the menu. Dishes do evolve, says Quillen: they added wings about two decades ago.
In 2026, the restaurant is hosting monthly ticketed “decades” parties, celebrating each of the 10-year periods the restaurant’s been open, plus there were specials in June for Pride. The official 60th anniversary gala takes place Aug. 29, featuring performers, beverages, timeless favorite foods, swag – and the unveiling of a new cocktail.
Inclusive, eccentric, eclectic, Mr. Henry’s is looking forward to maintaining its centrality to diverse crowds in Capitol Hill. Battling inflation, rising menu prices, changing tastes, and thin margins, Quillian says that Mr. Henry’s has — and will always be — “a caring community for so many different folks. And THAT is why I am committed to keeping us going. Society needs places like Mr. Henry’s, now more than ever.”
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Television loses a legend, longtime ‘Will & Grace’ director James Burrows
Iconic hitmaker leaves behind a legacy of telling LGBTQ stories
You don’t have to be a pretentious film major to name 10 movie directors. But naming television directors is not that simple. They’re the unsung heroes of your favorite shows, and the late James Burrows was the television director. He passed on June 19, but his DNA runs through television history.
He directed over 1200 episodes of television and over 50 pilots. He co-created “Cheers” and directed many episodes of long-running series like “Friends,” “Taxi,” “Frasier,” “The Big Bang Theory,” and “Two and a Half Men.” You also may remember him from playing a heightened version of himself on the Lisa Kudrow comedy “The Comeback.”
He has left an indelible mark on the LGBTQ community. As recently as last year, he directed the series run of “Mid-Century Modern” starring Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, and Linda Lavin. He was also a longtime director of “Will & Grace” and directed every episode of the series revival. He even directed the unaired “Absolutely Fabulous” pilot with Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Johnston, and Zosia Mamet.
Not to mention he’s worked with queer icons throughout history, including Betty White and Stockard Channing on their single-season series, and Jennifer Coolidge in “2 Broke Girls.”
He started his career on shows like “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “Rhoda,” “Laverne & Shirley,” and the first four seasons of “Taxi.”
He continued to work steadily and directed successful pilots that went to series for “Roc,” “3rd Rock From the Sun,” “Dharma & Greg,” and “Wings.” He directed multiple episodes of “Friends,” “Caroline in the City,” and “Frasier.”
This magic continued into the 2000s with him directing the pilots for “Two and a Half Men,” “The Big Bang Theory,” and multiple episodes of “Mike & Molly,” and the entire return series of “Will & Grace.”
What was the secret to his success? He’d enact the “fun clause” in his contract. In his words, “Life is too short to deal with obnoxious leads,” he shared. “So as long as the writing is good and the cast is fun, I’m going to enjoy the experience.”
He had the magic touch, having multiple pilots turned into long-running series. He was nominated for an Emmy 24 times in 26 years and worked consistently until a year before his death.
The secret was the way he brought the cast together. He describes, “it was my job to mold them into an ensemble, and they did round into a group of people who loved each other.”
This earned him 11 Emmy Awards and five Directors Guild of America Awards, including being awarded the inaugural DGA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Television Direction.
In a 2003 interview by the Television Academy, he was asked how he wants to be remembered, and he said, “That every night forever you can tune in somewhere, and there’ll be a show I did.”
He’s survived by his wife, Debbie, four daughters, seven grandchildren, and the countless people whose careers he launched and the countless viewers he inspired with his television legacy.
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D.C. prepares to party as Pride celebrations kick off Saturday
Bars, clubs have busy lineups; Pride on the Pier returns
Capital Pride’s date change isn’t slowing down the festivities. Back in December, the Capital Pride Alliance shifted the calendar for Pride celebrations in the nation’s capital from the second weekend of June to two weeks later to the weekend of June 20-21 to not conflict with President Trump’s birthday and 250th anniversary of America celebrations, with the aim that “our community can gather safely and without unnecessary barriers… We are protecting our space and preserving Pride as a powerful act of visibility, solidarity, and resistance.”
On the heels of WorldPride last year, the city shows no sign of slowing down. Instead, restaurants, bars, clubs, and neighborhoods are taking the opportunity to be even more visible. The Blade has put together a (non-comprehensive) list of parties, activations, and activities across town:
Pride on the Pier returns on Saturday, June 13 to the Wharf on the Southwest waterfront. The event, sponsored and hosted by the Washington Blade, is free and runs from 4-9 p.m. There will be vendors, DJs, and drag performances all day. VIP tickets are $25 and come with air conditioned party room, private bathrooms, and free cocktail. More details at prideonthepierdc.com.
Capital Pride Official Opening Party: RIOT! is the official opening dance party of Capital Pride, taking place Friday June 19, 9 PM-3AM. The 2026 edition headlining performer is Myki Meeks, a finalist of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” season 18; Bob The Drag Queen will perform a special set. DMV-area DJs and performers include: Bambi, Baphomette, Bumper, Cake Pop!, Connor, DJ Ed Bailey, DJ Diyanna Monet, Evry Pleasure, Jakknife Complex, Mari Con Carne, Pussy Noir, WessTheDJ. Trade owner Ed Bailey is producing the event.
Kinetic Presents brings the heat across the entirety of Pride weekend as well. It again is partnering with Capital Pride Alliance to produce four events over four days this Pride, including the Official Main Event on Saturday (the Friday official event is at Echostage). Kinetic’s parties are splayed across various D.C. venues, with special performances, massive productions, shirtless dancers, play zones, dance-forward audio and visuals, and international DJ talent. Thursday, June 18 at 10 PM at District Eagle is Lust, with music by Dan Slater and TOMI. Friday, June 19 at 10 PM is UNCUT XXL Heavy Load, at A.i. Warehouse in Union Market District, with music by Alex Acosta, Felipe Lira & Mitch Ferrino; the party is a “high-octane night of muscular house and tribal rhythms.” Saturday, June 20 at 10 PM brings that official main event, Kinetic Toy Land, at Echostage, with music by GSP & Matt Suave. Alaska Thunderfuck headlines. Sunday evening June 21 at 10 PM closes with discoVERS at SAX. A portion of tickets supports the DC LGBTQ+ community through Capital Pride Alliance.
9:30 Club always comes in clutch for the LGBTQ community. Already in June, it produced Kitty Kat Ball on June 7, and Kiesza performed on June 8. On June 20 at 10 PM, the famed Mixtape party hits the stage, care of gay DJs Shea van Horn and Matt Bailer, who have spun together for coming up on two decades. Mixtape has been held at several venues across the city over those years, and now settled on 9:30 Club for Pride. On June 25 at 7 PM, Big Freedia – the bounce artist from New Orleans – hits the 9:30 Club scene for the eighth time, as part of the Big Freedom Tour.
Crush: New this year from the 14th Street bar is the Pride Pop-Up, sitting pretty in the parking lot at 1820 14th St., N.W., at the corner of Swann Street by the start of the Pride Parade route. Hours are Friday from 2-10 PM and Saturday from 12-10 PM. Friday evening features Grizzly Bear Happy Hour, a DJ will set up shop on Saturday, and for those needing another layer, there’s a Crush merch store. Co-owner Mark Rutstein “has always wanted to throw a party in that parking lot, so he did,” said co-owner Stephen Rutgers. Note that Crush (the bar) will have a cover on Friday and Saturday.
Kiki: Over at Kiki, there’s a full slate of Pride-themed programming all week. Tuesday, June 16 at 9 PM brings karaoke; Wednesday, June 17 at 7:30 PM is trivia; Thursday June 18 at 9PM is “Night of 1000 Tatianna’s Drag Show”, and Friday June 19 at 9 PM brings the Juneteenth Serve Drag Show. Saturday, June 20 at 10 PM, post-parade, is a Pride Dance Party with DJ Lemz. Sunday daytime at 5 PM is the Father Figures Daddy Issues Special Drag Show; and after the festival at 8 PM, DJ Tezrah hits the tapes.
Jane Jane: Right along the parade route, gay-owned Jane Jane has transformed its space into a “No Kings, Yas Queens” activation in a direct response to the America 250th commemorations happening downtown, from the colorful window installation, to merch (including a custom bandana and tank) to disco wig installations. Events include industry night on Mondays, donations to LGBTQ charities, and to-go cocktails during the Pride Parade.
Shaw’s Tavern: Gay-owned Shaw’s Tavern on Florida Avenue celebrates Pride week with a full lineup of themed events, entertainment, and specials, including Pride trivia on Monday, June 15 at 7:30 PM, bingo on Tuesday, June 16 at 8 PM, a cabaret on Thursday, June 18 at 9 PM, Juneteenth Drag Brunch on Friday, June 19 at 12:30 PM, and both a pre-parade brunch (10 AM-4 PM) and post-parade party (5-9 PM) on Saturday, June 20. Sunday, June 21 at 7 PM brings Mama’s Sunday Supper & Drag Pride Show in the evening for anyone who is still awake.
Trade: This classic has a weekend of events, starting on Thursday, with Tiburon Pride Edition, a Latin Dance party in the Shark Tank. On Friday, the bar opens early (at 2 PM), with all-day happy hour and the Jx&Evry Show. On Saturday, the bar opens at noon, offering a prime parade viewing spot from its windows. There will be the CLASH drag show hosted by Tatianna and Crimsyn, and Sweet Spot party that night. On Sunday, the bar opens for normal hours at 2 PM, with DJs Adam K, Alex Love, and WESSTHEDJ.
Pitchers: The multi-level bar in Adams Morgan is hosting a Pride-themed show on Thursday, June 18 at 10 PM, with drawstring bag giveaways – the only kind of bag that will be allowed into the bar during Pride weekend. The show features drag queen Kyle Sonique Love.
Barrel House Cafe and Bar: Also by the parade route on 14th Street, Barrel House Cafe takes advantage of its large patio to have a slate of events during Pride week, including Schism, a drag and burlesque show on June 18 at 10 PM, as well as an all-day Pride party coinciding on parade day.
Bunker: Bunker again plays host to a series of afters. Friday night (Saturday 3:30 AM) is Unhinged, and Saturday night (Sunday 3:30AM) is Unholy. The regular Saturday night party (10 PM) brings in Venetian and Tiara Missou. All parties have cover charges.
District Eagle: Beyond the Kinetic party on Friday, June 19 brings Gear Night at 10 PM; Saturday, June 20 at 10 PM is LOBO presents PRISM, and Sunday, June 21 is Sundaze wit Papi at 6 PM.
African Art Museum: On Thursday, June 18 at 5 PM, this Smithsonian museum is hosting a free event with artists and curators celebrating its exhibit, “Here: Pride and Belonging in African Art,” “based on years of close collaboration and dialogue with African visual art practitioners who claim belonging in the LGBTQ+ community, however they define those terms,” according to the museum.
KNEAD Hospitality & Design: The gay-owned KNEAD restaurant group (including spots like Gatsby, Mi Vida, Succotash The Grill) is featuring the GLITTERATI cocktail, made with Tito’s, St-Germain Elderflower, Butterfly Flower, ginger, and yes, glitter. A portion of proceeds from every Glitterati cocktail sold will benefit The Trevor Project. The cocktail will be sold throughout June.
The Fountain Inn is partnering with Rhodium spirits (Rhode Island’s first LGBTQ+ owned distillery) all month, making cocktails like gimlets and espresso martinis featuring Rhodium’s liquors. Proceeds benefit SMYAL, an organization dedicated to empowering LGBTQ+ youth.
Hard Rock Cafe: Hard Rock DC is taking part in the chain’s annual “LOVE OUT LOUD” campaign, with Pride merch, specials on June 20, and a donation to The Trevor Project.
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