Local
LGBT youth hear gunshots outside SMYAL house
Man was shot and killed on 1800 block of Benning Road
SMYAL Executive Director Sultan Shakir said staff have remained safe and have not been directly impacted by the shootings.(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Residents and staff members at the LGBT youth advocacy group SMYAL’s eight-bedroom transitional house for homeless LGBT youth were among many residents living near a section of Benning Road, N.E. that heard the sounds of gunshots last month during the latest of several shooting incidents in the area.
According to D.C. police, a man was shot and killed on the 1800 block of Benning Road., N.E., around the corner from the SMYAL house, in a hail of gunfire about 1:50 p.m. on Nov. 26. Police said a second person received a non-life threatening gunshot wound in the same incident.
The shooting marked another in a series of shootings along or near a section of Benning Rd., N.E. in the last several months, police and residents in the area have said. Police said four people were shot and wounded along the 1800 block of Benning Road, N.E. on Sept. 21 and a man was shot to death there on Sept. 24.
SMYAL Executive Director Sultan Shakir told the Washington Blade that residents and staff at the SMYAL house at 746 19th St., N.E., which is less than one block off of Benning Rd., have remained safe and have not been directly impacted by the nearby shootings. But he said the youth residents and staff were aware of the incidents.
“They heard the shots,” he said in referring to the Nov. 26 incident that took the life of one of two people struck by gunfire.
The SMYAL house opened in January 2017 following a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.
D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham said the shootings did not appear to be random and that the persons shot may have been targets related to disputes. Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Kathy Henderson told NBC 4 News she believes the shootings were linked to possible disputes among drug dealers coming into the neighborhood from other parts of the city.
WorldPride 2025 concluded with the WorldPride Street Festival and Closing Concert held along Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. on Sunday, June 8. Performers on the main stage included Doechii, Khalid, Courtney Act, Parker Matthews, 2AM Ricky, Suzie Toot, MkX and Brooke Eden.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Celebrating the transgender community, Baltimore Safe Haven, an organization committed to empowering LGBTQ individuals in Baltimore City, plans to host their fourth annual Baltimore Trans Pride on Saturday.
Instead of the usual parade and march, this year’s Trans Pride will be a block party on Charles Street and between 21st and 22nd Streets. The event will start at 1 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and last until 10 p.m.
Community members can go on guided tours, enjoy refreshments by local vendors, listen to presenters, and watch performances by special guests.
Sukihana, the event’s headliner, plans to take to the stage to entertain the crowd, along with a variety of local performers, according to Melissa Deveraux, Baltimore Safe Haven’s executive assistant to Executive Director Iya Dammons.
“Some (are) prominently known, some (are) just making a name for themselves,” Deveraux said. Iya is always making sure that community talent is showcased at all of our functions.”
In company with Pride on Saturday, Baltimore Safe Haven will be opening its new building on Friday from 1-4 p.m.
“That is sort of going to be the prelude to pride,” Lau said. “Thanks to Sen. Mary Washington and the Weinberg Foundation, we were able to purchase the building outright, and it’s going to be a community hub of administrative buildings and 12-bedroom apartments.”
Renee Lau, administrative assistant for special projects coordinator for Baltimore Safe Haven, said the planning process for Baltimore Trans Pride began in January, and putting it all together was a collaboration of multiple city agencies and organizations.
“Safe Haven is an LGBT community organization, but we service the entire community, and that’s the message we try to spread,” Lau said. “We’re not just here for the LGBT community. We’re here to spread goodwill and offer harm reduction and housing to the entire community.”
Lau said the organization’s biggest goal for the event is to gain exposure.
“(We want) to let and let people know who we are and what our community is about,” she said. “Right now, because of what’s happening in DC, there’s a lot of bad untruths going on, and the total thing is bringing out the truth.”
Deveraux said having a place of inclusivity, acceptance, and togetherness is important in today’s political climate and the current administration.
“This event will have people seeing the strength and resilience of the transgender community, showing that no matter what we are going through, we still show up,” Deveraux said. “We are here, we will not be erased.”
The 2025 WorldPride Parade was held in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, June 7. Laverne Cox and Renée Rapp were the grand marshals.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key and Robert Rapanut)
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