Local
Longtime Baltimore attorney, activist Ed Jeunette dies
Worked for City Council President Clark


Edward Jeunette, a longtime attorney for the Baltimore City Department of Social Services, community activist, and former aide to City Councilwomen Mary Pat Clark when she was President of the City Council, died suddenly on New Year’s Day after developing pneumonia. He was 62 years old and lived in Mount Washington with his spouse and husband of 30 years James “Jeb” King.
Jeunette was the son of Edward R. Jeanette, an attorney, and Margaret Clark Jeunette, who died when Ed was 11. Like his father and two brothers, he attended and graduated from Mount Saint Joseph High School. He then graduated from Towson State University, and the University of Baltimore School of Law. As soon as he finished law school in 1982, he took over his father’s Hampden-based law practice. He ran the law practice until he began a lifelong career in public service.
Jeunette and Jeb met on April 29, 1989. In 2013, the year that gay marriage became legal in Maryland, Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Edward Hargadon, now retired, married them on April 29, their anniversary date. Judge Hargadon knew Jeunette from his years as a Judge in Juvenile Court where Jeunette tried many cases and said, “To be asked by Ed to officiate his and Jeb’s wedding was such an honor. When I had lunch with them to plan the ceremony, I could see how much they loved one another. They were so playful and gentle together.”
When the two first met, Jeunette was not out to his conservative Catholic family. That all changed when Jeunette was planning to go to a family gathering and asked Jeb if he wanted to come along. Jeb’s answer was an emphatic yes and from then on, they were a couple — to Jeunette’s family and everyone else. Jeb said, “I really believe that was a turning point in Ed’s life because he was not out anywhere up to that point. From that moment on, Ed began living the life that he deserved, wanted and was extremely proud of.”
Jeunette spent much of his life volunteering for community organizations. He grew up in Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood and remained committed to the community even after he moved away. He was a board member of the Hampden Business Association, served as a marshal in the Mayor’s Christmas Parade, volunteered for the Hampden Family Center, and was a past vice president of the Hampden-Woodberry Community Council. He later worked for marriage equality and participated in Pride activities.
He was also active in the Democratic Party and in 1987 joined Mary Pat Clarke’s successful citywide campaign for president of the City Council. Following her election, Jeunette joined her as her director of legislation and was involved during her challenging but successful transition as the first woman elected City Council president. He worked on a number of important early legislative initiatives, but Clarke remembers most an incident that showed Jeunette’s thoughtfulness and humor. She said, “[f]or all the support and help Ed brought to the office, I best recall a surprise transformation of my office itself on our first St. Patrick’s Day in office. I began the day chairing the Board of Estimates and when I returned to my office, the red chairs had all been replaced with green chairs. A wonderful sight to behold, which made my day and stands out in my happy memories of those transitional days. Ed never said where those green chairs came from, and I never asked.”
In 1990, Jeunette began a 30-year career as an attorney with the Department of Social Services representing the agency in difficult child abuse and neglect cases and trials protecting vulnerable adults.
In addition to Jeb, Jeunette is survived by brothers Michael and Clark, sister Patricia Dideriksen, step brother Chuck Thompson, step sister Susan Kohler, nine nieces and nephews, and eight great nieces and nephews. A stepsister Libby Rector died recently.
Jeunette’s family, many friends, and colleagues attended a packed memorial celebration of his life on Jan. 8. The family has suggested that donations be made in his honor to the Maryland SPCA.
Photos
PHOTOS: Helen Hayes Awards
Gay Men’s Chorus, local drag artists have featured performance at ceremony

The 41st Helen Hayes Awards were held at The Anthem on Monday, May 19. Felicia Curry and Mike Millan served as the hosts.
A performance featuring members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and local drag artists was held at the end of the first act of the program to celebrate WorldPride 2025.
The annual awards ceremony honors achievement in D.C.-area theater productions and is produced by Theatre Washington.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)


























District of Columbia
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade

WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.
The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.

Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.
Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.
Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”
“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”
“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.
The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.

2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)










