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Nuevo programa de radio estadounidense enfoca en temas LGBT en Cuba

Joe Cardona es presentador de ‘Arcoíris’ en Radio Martí

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Joe Cardona es el presentador de “Arcoíris,” un nuevo programa en Radio Martí con un enfoque en los temas LGBT en Cuba. (Foto cortesía de Joe Cardona)

Una estación de radio del gobierno estadounidense que transmite a Cuba ha lanzado un programa con un enfoque en los temas LGBT en la isla comunista.

“Arcoíris” se transmitó por primera vez en Radio Martí el 28 de julio.

El programa se transmite cada sábado y domingo entre las 4-5 pm. Joe Cardona, un cineasta cubanoamericano y aliado que dirigió “The Day It Snowed in Miami,” un documental sobre la campaña de Anita Bryant en contra de la ordenanza de derechos gay del Condado Dade en 1977, presenta “Arcoíris.”

Nelson Gandulla Díaz, fundador de la Fundación Cubana por los Derechos LGBTI, un grupo LGBT independiente, apareció en “Arcoíris” el 25 de agosto. Gandulla, un fuerte crítico de Mariela Castro, la hija del expresidente cubano Raúl Castro que promueve los temas LGBT en Cuba como directora del Centro Nacional de Educación Sexual (CENESEX), habló con Cardona desde España donde ha pedido asilo.

“Arcoíris” el 1 de septiembre enfocó las experiencias de prisioneros gay en Cuba. Ignacio Estrada Cepero, fundador de la Liga Cubana contra la SIDA que ahora vive en Miami con su esposa, Wendy Iriepa Díaz, una mujer trans que una vez trabajó para CENESEX, también ha aparecido en el programa.

La familia de Cardona es originaria de La Habana y la Provincia de Matanzas. El dijo al Washington Blade el pasado mes durante una entrevista telefónica desde Miami que su programa “todo es de llevar los temas LGBT al público en Cuba.”

Activistas LGBT cubanoamericanos en el sur de Florida han aplaudido el programa.

“Arcoíris” es una ventaja importante al mundo alrededor para la comunidad LGBTQ cubana,” dijo Tony Lima, director ejecutivo de SAVE, en un comunicado de prensa de Radio Martí.

Presentador del programa ‘mira más allá’ de Mariela Castro

“Arcoíris” debutó casi tres meses después del presidente cubano Miguel Díaz-Canel tomó posesión del cargo. También empezó transmitirse contra el contexto del debate sobre la nueva constitución del país con una enmienda que extendería los derechos matrimoniales a parejas del mismo sexo.

Se están realizando ahora una serie de consultas públicas que permiten al público de comentar sobre la nueva constitución. Se espera que la Asamblea Nacional a finales de este año la finalice antes de un referéndum en febrero de 2019.

El debate, que incluye oposición pública de iglesias evangélicas, se está realizando menos de 60 años después del encarcelamiento de hombres gay en campos de trabajo — las UMAPs — después de la revolución cubana que llevó al poder Fidel Castro, el tío de Mariela Castro.

Partidarios de Mariela Castro, entre otras cosas, notan que Cuba ahora ofrece cirugías de reasignación de sexo gratuitas por su sistema nacional de salud. Gandulla y otros activistas LGBT independientes en Cuba dicen que confrontan el maltrato e incluso a la detención si critican públicamente a Mariela Castro, que es parlamentaria, o el gobierno cubano.

“Casi miro más allá de Mariela Castro,” Cardona dijo al Blade. “Miro a CENESEX como otro apparatchik del gobierno.”

El Mejunje es un centro cultural LGBT en Santa Clara, Cuba. Se realizó una marcha para conmemorar el Día Internacional contra la Homofobia, la Transfobia y la Bifobia en la ciudad el 15 de mayo de 2018. (Foto del Washington Blade por Michael K. Lavers)

Gobierno cubano es fuerte crítico de Radio Martí

Radio Martí empezo de transmitir a Cuba en 1985.

La Oficina de Transmisiones a Cuba en Miami, que es parte de la Agencia de Información Internacional de EEUU, funde Radio Martí y Televisión Martí. Los dos Martí tienen un presupuesto combinado de $28.1 millón.

El gobierno cubano ha criticado fuertemente Radio Martí y Televisión Martí.

El Miami New Times el pasado mes reportó que menos de 10 por ciento de cubanos escuchan a transmisiones de Radio Martí y menos de un por ciento de cubanos miran programas de Televisión Martí, en parte, porque el gobierno cubano ha podido bloquearlos para que no lleguen a la isla. Los críticos continúan instando al gobierno federal a que disminuya su financiamiento de Radio Martí y Televisión Martí.

Un acuerdo de 2014 entre el gobierno cubano y la administración de Obama para normalizar las relaciones diplomáticas entre La Habana y Washington incluyó acceso ampliado al internet en Cuba.

El presidente Trump el año pasado reimpuso restricciones de viaje y comercio con Cuba, aunque su empresa y varios de sus asociados han violado el bloqueo estadounidense contra la isla comunista. Acceso al internet en Cuba sigue limitado y costoso, aunque ahora hay más de 700 hotspots de WiFi públicos por todo el país y un programa piloto de la empresa estatal de telecomunicaciones de Cuba permite a los cubanos de tener conexiones de internet en sus hogares.

“No soy el tipo que prohíbe a nadie viajar allí,” Cardona dijo al Blade el viernes desde Miami. “Obviamente lo aliento, pero le digo a la gente, ve allí con los ojos abiertos.”

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India

India’s first transgender healthcare clinic reopens

Mitr Clinic closed after losing USAID funding

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(Photo by Rahul Sapra via Bigstock)

A U.S. Agency for International Development funding freeze in January forced the closure of India’s Mitr Clinic, the country’s first transgender healthcare facility, disrupting critical services for a vulnerable population. 

Six months later, the clinic has reopened as Sabrang Clinic, reviving access to essential care for the transgender community.

Major Indian corporations, including some of the nation’s largest multinationals, stepped up with substantial financial support. Their backing has enabled Sabrang Clinic to resume its mission of delivering specialized, stigma-free medical services.

The former Mitr Clinic on May 2 reopened as the Sabrang Clinic. YR Gaitonde Center for AIDS Research and Education, an HIV/AIDS service organization, manages the facility.

The Sabrang Clinic sparked controversy in the U.S. when U.S. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) in February denounced its USAID funding, arguing that American taxpayer dollars should not support trans healthcare initiatives abroad. President Donald Trump amplified the criticism, labeling the agency’s spending on such programs as “wasteful” and aligning with his administration’s broader push to curb federal support for gender-affirming care. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt further fueled the debate, citing the clinic’s funding as part of a pattern of USAID’s “radical” expenditures, while House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) echoed the sentiment, decrying similar international projects as misaligned with American priorities.

Elon Musk, who until May led the Department of Government Efficiency, added to the controversy surrounding the clinic. 

That’s what American tax dollars were funding,” he said in a Feb. 28 X post. 

His remark, made before his departure from the Trump-Vance administration, spotlighted the clinic’s USAID support, intensifying debates over its role in delivering trans healthcare in India.

The Washington Blade on Feb. 27 detailed how the USAID funding freeze crippled Mitr Clinic’s operations, spotlighting the broader fallout for South Asian LGBTQ organizations. 

The Blade noted the clinic, a vital resource for trans healthcare in India, faced abrupt closure alongside groups in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, as the freeze slashed support for programs addressing HIV/AIDS, mental health, and gender-based violence, leaving thousands without access to essential services.

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and USAID in 2021 launched Program ACCELERATE, spearheaded by the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, to establish Mitr Clinic in Hyderabad in Telangana State. As India’s first comprehensive healthcare center for the trans community, the facility offered tailored medical services, including HIV/AIDS treatment and mental health support, filling a critical gap in the region’s healthcare landscape.

Sabrang Clinic serves a critical role for India’s estimated one million trans people, a population facing a disproportionate HIV/AIDS burden. 

A 2019 Reuters report noted a 3.1 percent HIV prevalence among trans people, translating to roughly 31,000 individuals living with the virus, compared to the national adult rate of 0.26 percent. Similarly, a 2021 UNAIDS report cited a 3.8 percent prevalence, suggesting approximately 38,000 trans people with HIV/AIDS. 

Internal reports indicate the clinic since it opened in 2021 has served more than 3,000 patients. It has become a model of community-led care that fosters trust and addresses the unique health needs of trans people in Hyderabad.

When USAID funding cuts forced Sabrang Clinic’s closure, scores of people and LGBTQ community members in Hyderabad were left without access to reliable, stigma-free healthcare. Undaunted, the clinic’s trans-led team pivoted to virtual consultations and medication delivery, sustaining critical support for patients until corporate funding revived operations.

Tata Trusts, a philanthropic arm of India’s Tata conglomerate, in April pledged to fund the clinic for three years.

The Hindu, a leading Indian English-language newspaper, reported the trust committed approximately $18 per person a year to sustain the clinic’s operations. This contrasts with the earlier USAID program, which had provided about $23 per person each year.

Tata Trusts covers the salaries of Sabrang Clinic’s core medical staff, while its leadership positions are jointly funded by Tata and the clinic’s parent organization. The clinic is now pursuing partnerships with additional donors to expand its trans-focused healthcare services.

“We are elated to continue this service, as we have always believed that sexual minorities deserve respect and their right to self-expression,” said YRGCARE Chief Operating Officer A.K. Srikrishnan. “That’s why we launched Mitr Clinic under Project ACCELERATE in 2021, and it operated until January 2025. The Trump administration’s USAID funding withdrawal forced a shutdown, but we have no comment on that. Fortunately, with great vigor, we secured support from Tata Trusts to sustain Sabrang Clinic. The name change to Sabrang, also called ‘Help for All,’ was simply to reposition the brand, with no deeper logic attached.”

Srikrishnan told the Blade that YRGCARE will aim to raise additional crowdfunding and support if the current funding proves insufficient to maintain the same level of services at the clinic. Srikrishnan also thanked Tata Trusts for its support.

“We want to expand it throughout the country given the choice,” said Srikrishnan. “If someone were to tell us, ‘Can you run it across the country?’ we would certainly love to do it.” 

“Sexual minorities are a reality, and however much someone wishes them away, they exist and need to exist with the respect and rights they deserve,” added Srikrishnan. “We do not differentiate between local and foreign contributions; when we needed it most, Tata Trusts stepped in and helped. So we are certainly grateful to them.”

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Rehoboth Beach

Rehoboth Pride festival to take place July 19

LGBTQ-friendly resort town welcomes third year of celebrations

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Rehoboth Beach celebrates Pride next weekend. (Washington Blade photo by Daniel Truitt)

Rehoboth Beach Pride is back for a day of summer celebration next Saturday. 

The Delaware beach town will host its Pride festival at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center on July 19 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m., followed by an after-party at Freddie’s Beach Bar and a ticketed event in the evening with a film screening, comedian, and musician. 

“It will be a day of community engagement, fun, celebration and learning, all sorts of things rolled into one,” David Mariner, executive director of Sussex Pride, told the Washington Blade. “I think it’s a great opportunity for us to be together, to support each other.”

Pride is organized by Sussex Pride and Gay Women of Rehoboth. The festival will include a free, family-friendly event with vendors offering information and resources, health screenings, and other activities. 

Drag queen Roxy Overbrooke will host the festival, with performances throughout the day by Ivy Blu Austin, Goldstar, the cast of Clear Space Theatre, JC Pizzaz, and Kadet Kelly. 

Mariner said Rehoboth Pride has not seen a decrease in corporate support this year, as some Pride celebrations have. Last year, the vendor spots were capped at 50 but increased to 60 this year. 

“The main thing that’s different this year is what’s happening in the world and what’s happening in the country so it changes the tone,” Mariner said. “I go into this with strength and determination and an awareness and appreciation for the rights that we have here in Delaware. I go into this … knowing there are people in our community feeling under attack. There are a lot of things happening at the national level that impact us from healthcare to education that affect our lives in various ways.”

Funds raised from a raffle will be used to support unhoused LGBTQ youth in Delaware. Last year, the raffle raised $1,000, which was donated to the Safeguards Housing Committee, a program of PFLAG Wilmington. 

In response to LGBTQ youth “increasingly targeted by harmful rhetoric and policies,” the festival will hold various workshops with topics such as supporting the LGBTQ Latinx community, suicide prevention, and an ACLU activist training.  

Mariner referenced a Dan Savage quote from the AIDS epidemic that he loves. He said it reflects Pride festivals and the celebration of pride in the LGBTQ community. 

“During the darkest days of the AIDS crisis, we buried our friends in the morning, we protested in the afternoon, and we danced all night. The dance kept us in the fight because it was the dance we were fighting for,” the quote reads. 

Mariner said having an event like this that combines education, advocacy, and celebration is reflective of “who we are as queer people.” He said it’s important to learn and recommit to the work that needs to be done and that he is looking forward to every piece of the day. 

“I would just like to see everyone leave the convention center feeling loved and connected and supported and with a renewed sense of strength and determination to face whatever challenges may come,” Mariner said. 

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District of Columbia

Gay ANC member announces candidacy for Ward 1 D.C. Council seat

Community leader Brian Footer seeking seat held by Brianne Nadeau

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Brian Footer (Photo courtesy of Brian Footer for D.C.)

Gay Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Brian Footer, a community activist who has been involved for many years in local and national government affairs, has announced his candidacy for the Ward 1 D.C. Council seat up for election in 2026.

Footer, a Democrat, will be running in the city’s June 2, 2026, Democratic primary for the Ward 1 Council seat, but it is uncertain whether he will be running against incumbent Ward 1 Council member Brianne Nadeau (D). Nadeau has not yet announced if she plans to run for re-election for a fourth term following her 12 years on the Council.

 Nadeau has been a longtime vocal supporter of the LGBTQ community.  

If Footer were to win the primary and the November 2026 general election, he would become the Council’s second openly gay member. Ward 5 Council member Zachary Parker (D) is currently the 13-member Council’s only gay member.

Footer is a three-term ANC commissioner who currently serves as Chair of ANC 1E, which represents the city’s Adams Morgan neighborhood.

“Brian has worked at every level of government — federal, state, and local — building a career rooted in public service, aging policy, and inclusive urban planning,”  a statement on his campaign website says.

“I’m running for Council because too many people in Ward 1 are doing everything right and still feel ignored by the city they call home,” Footer states on his website.

“I’m running because we can do better,” his statement continues. “That means making housing more affordable, addressing homelessness with real solutions, and keeping our neighborhoods safe with smart, community focused strategies.”

When contacted by the Washington Blade for comment, Nadeau said she was not ready at this time to discuss her plans about running again or about Footer’s candidacy.

“The primary is a ways away, and I’m very focused right now on the budget and the stadium deal and all the work that we’re doing at the Council,” she told the Blade. “So, I really haven’t had time to turn to my plans. So, as a result, I’m also not going to be commenting on anybody else who is determined that they’re running at this time.” 

She first won election to the Council in 2014 after she defeated four-term gay Ward 1 Council member Jim Graham in the Democratic primary after Graham became embroiled in an ethics controversy.

In the 2022 Democratic primary Nadeau defeated gay challenger Salah Czapary in a three-candidate race, by a margin of 48.5% of the vote compared to Czapary’s 30.9%.

With the third candidate, Sabel Harris, receiving 20.4%, the outcome showed that the two challengers had a combined total vote count higher than Nadeau.

Further details of Footer’s candidacy can be accessed from his campaign website, brianfooterdc.com.

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