National
Tom Gallagher, U.S. Foreign Service officer, dies at 77
Longtime LGBT rights advocate came out publicly in 1975
Tom Gallagher
Tom Gallagher, who became the first known U.S. Foreign Service officer to come out as gay in 1975 and who switched careers to become a social worker before returning to the Foreign Service in 1994, died July 8 in his hometown of Tinton Falls, N.J. from complications associated with a bacterial infection. He was 77.
In a write-up of his life and career that he prepared shortly before his passing and in an earlier interview published in the online publication Slate, he said he decided to disclose his sexual orientation at a 1975 conference in Washington, D.C., organized by the then Gay Activists Alliance called Gays and the Federal Government.
Knowing the disclosure would jeopardize his then 10-year career at the State Department and Foreign Service, he decided to come out because he became tired of having to conceal the truth of who he was, he recounted in the interview.
One year later, in 1976, after he determined longstanding policies making it difficult if not impossible for gays working in the Foreign Service to retain their required security clearances, he resigned and moved to California, where he began a new career as a social worker
His biographical write-up says he was born Sept. 11, 1940 in Manhattan before his family moved to New Jersey. He graduated from Holy Spirit School and Red Bank Catholic High School in Asbury Park, N.J. before entering New Jersey’s Monmouth University, where he received a bachelor’s degree in 1962.
Five days after graduating from Monmouth he signed up as a Peace Corps volunteer and entered the first Peace Corps group to go to Ethiopia, his biographical write-up says. After completing a Peace Corps training program at Georgetown University he and his group of volunteers were invited to the White House, where President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy hosted a send-off tea party.
According to his write-up, upon their arrival in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Peace Corps group was welcomed by Emperor Haile Selassie, the country’s monarch and leader. A month after arriving in the city of Agordot for his assignment to teach a seventh grade history class, Gallagher recounted he heard the “first shot” of what became the province of Eritrea’s protracted war of independence.
His write-up says he “remained devoted to Eritrea and its people for the rest of his life” and “sixty years after leaving the Peace Corps Tom was still in touch with 13 of the 80 boys he taught in Agordot.”
Upon returning to the U.S. he began his first full salaried job at the White House where he worked for President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty program. It was at that time that he met Carolyn Worrell, the bright young woman also interested in foreign affairs whom he married a short time later.
In his Slate interview with freelance journalist Jacqui Shine he said he believed he was in love with Worrell at a time when he was struggling within himself to fight what he always knew deep inside himself – that he liked men. He had “fooled around with boys” since he was a teenager growing up on the New Jersey shore, he said in the interview.
Gallagher began his first stint in the Foreign Service in 1965, with his first overseas assignment sending him to Jidda, Saudi Arabia.
Subsequent assignments took him to Nigeria and Ecuador, where he served as acting U.S. Consul General in the city of Guayaquil, becoming, at age 34, the youngest ever chief of a major U.S. diplomatic mission. He later returned to Washington where he served in various positions at the State Department headquarters before coming out at the gay conference.
In 1970, shortly after completing his tour in Nigeria, he told his wife he wanted a divorce and arranged for the couple to stay together until Worrell found a job with a federal agency and got “settled,” he said in the Slate interview. It wasn’t until years later that he told his then ex-wife that the marriage breakup was due to his struggle with his sexual orientation, he said in the interview.
Meanwhile, after resigning from the Foreign Service in 1976 he moved to California and underwent training to become a social worker. A short time later he began work in the first of a number of positions, including a post as an emergency room social worker at UCLA Hospital in Los Angeles. He also volunteered as director of counseling programs at the Gay Community Services Center in LA.
Other positions he held included supervisor for the Travelers Aid Society in San Francisco; director of a Napa County, Calif., psychiatric emergency program; and as a volunteer for AIDS programs in the state.
In 1994, when President Bill Clinton removed policies preventing gays from working in the Foreign Service, Gallagher returned to his earlier career as a Foreign Service officer, his write up says. His first assignment was that of the position of American Consul at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain. While holding that post Gallagher helped raise $3 million for the Spanish AIDS Foundation.
Following his post in Spain he was appointed as Country Officer for Eritrea and Sudan in the State Department’s Office of East African Affairs. In 1999, he became head of the visa section at the U.S. Embassy in Brussels, where he was credited with refusing a visa for a radical Moroccan who was linked to a terrorist organization considering a plot to spray poison on a U.S. city, according to his biographical write-up.
The write-up says he next returned to Washington and worked at the State Department’s Office of Central African Affairs where he served as Country Officer for the Republic of the Congo. His final tour at the State Department was with the Office of International Health, where he served as Regional Advisor for Europe and worked on an international AIDS program.
After retiring in 2005, Gallagher continued to take on short tours for the State Department including assignments at 17 embassies and consulates on five continents, the write-up says. He also taught a course on the Middle East as an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at Monmouth University.
In 2012, during an event at the State Department celebrating the 20th anniversary of the State Department’s LGBT employee group, to which Gallagher was invited, then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton talked about Gallagher’s role in advocating for LGBT equality when he came out as a Foreign Service officer in 1975.
“I don’t want any of you who are a lot younger ever to take for granted what it took for people like Tom Gallagher to pave the way for all of you,” Clinton told the gathering. “It’s not a moment to be nostalgic,” she said. “It’s a moment for us to remember and to know that all of the employees who sacrificed their right to be who they are were really defending your rights and the rights and freedoms of others at home and abroad.”
Shine, who conducted the Slate interview, said she got to know Gallagher when she interviewed him for another story about three years ago.
“I was very fond of Tom, who was very funny, sweet, and a hell of a storyteller,” she told the Washington Blade. “He was as astonished as anyone by the extraordinary turns his life took, and humbled by and grateful for all he experienced.”
Gallagher is survived by his former wife, Carolyn Worrell, who is now a judge in Nevada; and his husband, Amin Dulgumoni, a senior software engineer at Goldman Sachs.
Plans for a memorial were expected to be announced soon.
Florida
Intersex teacher alleges Fla. school fired him over perceived trans identity
Shepard Scalf filed a complaint with Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
An intersex teacher in Florida who was fired is alleging in a new Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filing that he was terminated based on assumptions that he was transgender.
Shepard Scalf in the filing says he was assigned female at birth but identifies as male.
According to Monday’s filing with the EEOC, submitted on Scalf’s behalf by the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, and the law firm of Chanfrau & Chanfrau P.L., the school district fired Scalf on the basis of his sex and the presumption that he is trans.
Scalf was hired for the 2025-2026 school year at Patriot Oaks Academy in the St. Johns County School District to teach language arts to 6th- and 7th-graders, after previously working in another Florida school district.
During the hiring process, Scalf submitted paperwork that disclosed he had been assigned female at birth. He was born with an intersex variation with XY chromosomes, and he lives as and presents as a man.
On Aug. 28, 2025, Patriot Oaks Academy Principal Drew Chiodo scheduled an emergency meeting with Scalf. The principal was directed to read a letter from the school district superintendent informing Scalf that he must either submit his resignation or be fired.
According to the ACLU, Scalf was provided with no legitimate reason for his termination and had not received any prior warnings or disciplinary actions. At the time of his termination, Chiodo told Scalf his work was “exemplary” and that Scalf had “met every expectation.”
“Receiving this ultimatum was confusing and overwhelming. Everything had been going so well — I couldn’t understand why this was happening,” Scalf said. “The start of a school year is always brimming with promise and excitement, and I was looking forward to continuing my teaching career at Patriot Oaks until I was cornered into resigning. It became clear to me that being fired had nothing to do with my qualifications or teaching — it was about who I am.”
According to the filing, Scalf received communications that the termination followed complaints from a parent about his gender identity. However, the filing also claims that his gender identity, sex assigned at birth, and intersex status were never mentioned in his classroom.
In a 2020 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court in Bostock v. Clayton County found employment discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The ACLU is claiming that under that ruling, Scalf’s rights under Title VII were violated.
“Six years ago, the Supreme Court held in Bostock v. Clayton County that employers cannot fire someone for being gay or transgender because doing so is discrimination because of sex,” said Shana Knizhnik, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, in a press release from the ACLU. “The same reasoning protects intersex people, who have long faced discrimination because their bodies and lives do not conform to narrow expectations about what a man or a woman is supposed to be. Mr. Scalf was an exemplary teacher, but despite his performance and qualifications, he was forced out of his job because he did not fit those expectations. As politicians and institutions increasingly seek to police sex and gender, intersex people are too often caught in the crossfire alongside transgender people — but federal civil rights law protects everyone from this kind of discrimination.”
Samantha Past, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Florida, stated in a press release that Florida’s public school system is increasingly hostile towards LGBTQ people.
“At a time when Florida’s public schools are increasingly targeted by disruptive state policies and in the midst of a teacher shortage crisis, St. Johns County School District chose to unlawfully oust a qualified and respected educator. Everyone deserves the opportunity to work and contribute to their community without fear of being targeted because of who they are. Mr. Scalf is no exception,” Past stated.
America 250
Washington Blade publishes ‘Queering America 250’
New magazine chronicles LGBTQ history and contributions to U.S. culture
The Washington Blade this week published a new glossy magazine, titled “Queering America 250,” a look back at the many contributions that LGBTQ people have made to the founding of the country through the present day.
From Colonial times to modern pop culture, the magazine aims to remind readers of some of the many ways queer people have influenced American life.
“As the country commemorates 250 years, we wanted to do our part to ensure LGBTQ contributions to America were not ignored or forgotten,” said Blade Editor Kevin Naff. “As this administration seeks to erase queer identities, it’s more important than ever that we speak up and remind the world that we have always been here and always will be.”
The magazine is divided into chapters addressing queer life in Colonial times, the early 20th century, the late 20th century, and the 21st century. There’s a story about D.C.’s role in LGBTQ visibility; a top 40 moments in queer pop culture piece; and a series of opinion pieces and photo pages from the Blade’s historic archive.
The magazine is free and available across the D.C. region during Pride. It’s also available online.
You can find the magazine here: Annie’s, As You Are, Bunker, Crush, DIK Bar, District Eagle, Green Lantern, Her Diner, Jane Jane, JR.’s, Icon, Kiki, Larry’s Lounge, Little Gay Pub, Nellie’s, Number Nine, Pitchers, Red Bear Brewing, Shakers, Sinners and Saints, Spark Social House, Fireplace, Thurst, Trade, Uproar, Whitman-Walker Health, Destination DC, Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, DC Center, SMYAL, HRC, Bite the Fruit, 350 Bakery, Logan 14 Aveda Salon Spa, Vida Fitness U Street and Logan Circle, Freddie’s Beach Bar, Destination Tomorrow. The magazine is also available at D.C. and Northern Virginia libraries.
America 250
As we celebrate 250 years of America, let’s remember our elders
It’s important to acknowledge history and honor pioneering community members
Editor’s note: This is part of the “Queering America 250” LGBTQ history magazine published by the Washington Blade. The glossy magazine is free and available across the D.C. region during Pride.
You can find it here: Annie’s, As You Are, Bunker, Crush, DIK Bar, District Eagle, Green Lantern, Her Diner, Jane Jane, JR.’s, Icon, Kiki, Larry’s Lounge, Little Gay Pub, Nellie’s, Number Nine, Pitchers, Red Bear Brewing, Shakers, Sinners and Saints, Spark Social House, Fireplace, Thurst, Trade, Uproar, Whitman-Walker Health, Destination DC, Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, DC Center, SMYAL, HRC, Bite the Fruit, 350 Bakery, Logan 14 Aveda Salon Spa, Vida Fitness U Street and Logan Circle, Freddie’s Beach Bar, Destination Tomorrow. The magazine is also available at D.C. and Northern Virginia libraries.
The United States does not have a monarchy. I do not mean to comment on whether or not we live under tyranny or despotism, or if people live under modern serfdom; I mention that to explain, likely to the chagrin of our current president, U.S. citizens are not rewarded for their accomplishments by becoming a Knight or a Dame.
We do, however, like our awards, including trophies from academies and medals from the executive or legislature. The aforementioned current president likes awards so very much that the U.S. Congress and an international sports association created new awards just to appease him, and the recent winner of the Nobel Peace Prize gifted hers. These incidents will likely be rendered as footnotes in history because of the sheer volume of lunacy we are enduring under this regime of idiocracy.
In entertainment, a coveted status is that of EGOT: the winning combination of receiving an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. I assert that not all EGOTs are equal. Some Emmys and Tonys are received merely by financing productions. Oscars and Grammys have been won because of sympathy for personal tragedy, the nominated veteran performer is considered overdue for a win, or a deceased nominee posthumously wins, as a final sendoff.
Not all awards are created equal. Some are considered prestigious, while others are less notable. As far as awards bestowed upon local entertainers, the Nation’s Capital has very few of the former. Given what I know about their processes, many are decided upon by small groups of often unremarkable people or flawed online procedures. It is not a meritocracy. Ultimately, receiving awards is about who knows you and who likes you. Even more unfortunate is that bias and bigotry play at least as much a part as loyalty or nepotism.
Winners of the Nobel and Pulitzer Prizes receive money, which is something some advocacy groups have done, and I wish more would do. As an outside observer, I find that the local awards for D.C. theater, television, and restaurants seem to have the most cachet. Some other awards that have a precise focus or have only a select few annual honorees are commendable, but many of the rest seem haphazard and disorganized, if not corrupt or simply irrelevant.
While most local awards fail to impress me, be it the categories, the trophies, the ceremonies, or the recipients themselves, I still want people to be recognized, so I nominate them. I point out who is often left out, such as DJs, who not only help to curate nightlife and culture but also enable these organizations to have successful events, including their award ceremonies and receptions.
Over the years, in many an awards nomination process, I have done my best to advocate for people, especially elders, whom I consider unsung heroes or under appreciated trailblazers. My focus is primarily Black LGBTQ people who are local or who hail from the region.
Consistently unacknowledged by local awards are people who are from here and have since gone on to achieve national or international acclaim. Merely from the perspective of production and promotion, and especially prestige, this seems like a missed opportunity.
There are the Black LGBTQ performers who are commonly known to be from this area: Grammy-winning musician and former Duke Ellington student Meshell Ndegeocello, comedian and former NSA employee Wanda Sykes, blues legend and former Fredericksburg science teacher Gaye Adegbalola, and recording artist and former D.C. nightclub performer Kevin Aviance.
There are several accomplished Black LGBTQ actors from this area, including Emmy winner and Duke Ellington graduate Samira Wiley, Helen Hayes Award winner and Howard University graduate Roz White, Emmy winner and graduate of Greenbelt’s Roosevelt High Tramell Tillman, “Noah’s Arc” cast member and Hyattsville native Doug Spearman, “Angel” cast member and former Bladensburg resident J. August Richards, and former “America’s Next Top Model” contestant-turned-actor and Prince George’s County native Isis King. Pioneering transgender actor and singer Sandra Caldwell was born and raised in Washington, D.C.
I also think of people who deserve posthumous recognition, including DJ and music producer Vjuan Allure, poet and D.C. government employee Venus Thrash, and Tony Washington, lead singer of the Motown vocal quintet Dynamic Superiors.
There are others in the performing arts, as well as authors, playwrights, journalists, and content creators, whose notable achievements seem to be unacknowledged locally. It appears one can be revered in certain D.C. circles, but once success is achieved beyond that, that person likely never receives a homecoming. It is reminiscent of U.S.-born showgirl and singer (and later war hero) Josephine Baker, who found success in France, and elsewhere around the world, but is less revered in the nation of her birth.
As some people celebrate 250 years of the United States, I hope we will all think about how we acknowledge history and honor our community members, especially our elders. In my opinion, we can do better. I think there are many people whose accomplishments, big or small, in various arenas, are overlooked. Furthermore, just as I find the flag-waving jingoism that purports itself as patriotism distasteful, I also think that lackluster ceremonies and overpriced trinkets are not the best ways to acknowledge community advocates and activists who particularly need financial support.
At least the aforementioned performers have received national acclaim. While I have not yet been successful in getting any of them honored by local organizations, I was able to acknowledge them here. I give you all your proverbial flowers. Congratulations on your success, and know that some of us see you and are proud of your success.
Zar is the mononynous community advocate, speechwriter, songwriter, and event organizer who founded Team Rayceen Productions in 2014.
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