Local
Comings & Goings
Meet head of DNC’s new LGBTQ engagement effort
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at: [email protected].
Congratulations to Mathew S. Nosanchuk the DNC’s new Senior Advisor and Political Organizer for Jewish Outreach and LGBTQ Engagement. Upon accepting the position, Nosanchuk said, “I am thrilled to join great colleagues at the DNC, including Chair Tom Perez, LGBT Caucus Chair Earl Fowlkes, and many others to lead the party’s engagement with the LGBTQ and Jewish communities. Trump has cruelly targeted the LGBTQ community with a succession of policies that undermine our rights. The Democratic Party is firmly committed to advancing rights for the LGBTQ community so that the arc of the moral universe once again bends towards justice.”
Matt is co-founder of the New York Jewish Agenda, created as a liberal, left-of-center voice on advocating for domestic issues in New York, supporting Israel as a Jewish, democratic state, backing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and combatting anti-Semitism wherever it arises. He is also vice president and senior advisor with Quadrant Strategies in D.C.
Prior to this, Nosanchuk held numerous positions in the Obama administration. They included positions in the State Department as Associate Director Office of Public Engagement/Director of Outreach, National Security Council in the White House; and positions in the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice. He was legislative counsel to Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and prior to that was counsel with Collier Shannon Scott, PLLC in D.C.
Nosanchuk has his bachelor’s in history with honors from Stanford and his J.D. from Stanford Law School. He has written extensively and won numerous awards including the American Bar Association’s Inaugural Stonewall Award recognizing contributions to LGBT civil rights. He is an adjunct professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center.
Congratulations also to Gabrielle Claiborne on her new TEDx talk “Building your courage muscles.” Upon its release, she said, “As it relates to my TEDx talk and my own personal experience, I’ve learned that authenticity is a journey, not a destination. We have to take each scary step, as it presents itself, without necessarily knowing our exact destination. And with each step we take, we get a little stronger, more courageous, less stuck, more authentic.”
Gabrielle Claiborne is co-founder and CEO of Transformation Journeys Worldwide, an inclusion training and consulting firm with a transgender focus. She travels extensively, helping cutting-edge organizations position themselves to attract and retain the best talent, foster collaborative working environments, thus maximizing innovation and directly impacting the bottom line by creating fully trans-inclusive cultures. Her clients have included Home Depot, Sun Life Financial, Royal Bank of Canada, Comcast, Mercedes Benz, and UPS.
Transformation Journeys Worldwide was chosen as the Out Georgia Business Alliance 2018 Small Business of the Year, and received the Atlanta Hawk’s prestigious 2019 True Comes in All Colors award. Claiborne is proud to be a trans-owned NGLCC certified LGBT Business Enterprise. She has been an out and active trans woman since 2010.
Claiborne holds a bachelor’s in mathematics from Emory University and pursued a degree in Civil Engineering at Georgia Tech. She is the proud parent of three adult children and lives in Atlanta.
District of Columbia
Gay D.C. police lieutenant arrested on child porn charges
Matthew Mahl once served as head of LGBT Liaison Unit
D.C. police announced on April 14 that they have placed one of their lieutenants, Matthew Mahl, on administrative leave and revoked his police powers after receiving information that he was arrested in Maryland one day earlier.
Although the initial D.C. police announcement doesn’t disclose the reason for the arrest it refers to a statement by the Harford County, Md. Sheriff’s Office that discloses Mahl has been charged with sexual solicitation of a minor and child porn solicitation.
“On Tuesday, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office contacted MPD’s Internal Affairs Division shortly after arresting Lieutenant Matthew Mahl,” the D.C. police statement says.
“The allegations in this case are extremely disturbing, and in direct contrast to the values of the Metropolitan Police Department,” the statement continues. “MPD’s Internal Affairs Division will investigate violations of MPD policy once the criminal investigation concludes,” it says.
“MPD is not involved in the criminal investigation and was not aware of the investigation until yesterday,” the statement adds.
Mahl served as acting supervisor of the MPD’s then Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit in 2013 when he held the rank of sergeant. D.C. police officials placed him on administrative leave and suspended his police powers that same year while investigating an undisclosed allegation.
A source familiar with the investigation said Mahl was cleared of any wrongdoing a short time later and resumed his police duties. Around the time he was promoted to lieutenant several years later Mahl took on the role as chairman of the D.C. Police Union, becoming the first known openly gay officer to hold that position.
NBC 4 reports that Mahl, 47, has served on the police force for 23 years and most recently was assigned to the department’s Special Operations Division.
Records related to Mahl’s arrest filed in Harford County District Court, show Sheriff’s Department investigators state in charging documents that he allegedly committed the offenses of Sexual Solicitation of a Minor and Child Porn Solicitation on Monday, April 13, one day before he was arrested on April 14.
The court records show he was held without bond during his first appearance in court on April 14. A decision on whether he would be released while awaiting trial or continue to be held without bond was scheduled to be determined during an April 15 bond hearing. The outcome of that hearing could not be immediately determined.
Maryland
Evan Glass is leaning on his record. Is that enough for Montgomery County’s top job?
Gay county executive candidate pushing for equitable pay, safer streets, and cleaner environment
By TALIA RICHMAN | During a meet-and-greet at Poolesville Memorial United Methodist Church, Evan Glass got his loudest applause of the night with a plan he acknowledged was decidedly unsexy.
“Day one, I’ll hire a director of permitting services,” the county executive candidate said.
Doing so, he added, is a step toward easing the regulatory burdens that can stifle small businesses in Montgomery County.
The only problem? At least one of his fiercest competitors is making a similar pledge.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
D.C. bar, LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark Lesbian Visibility Week
‘Ahead of the Curve’ documentary screening, ‘Queeroke’ among events
2026 Lesbian Visibility Week North America will take place from April 20-26.
This year marks the third annual Lesbian Visibility Week, run by the Curve Foundation. A host of events take place from April 20-26.
This year’s theme is Health and Wellness. For the Curve Foundation, the term “lesbian” serves as an umbrella term for a host of identities, including lesbians, bisexual and transgender women, and anyone else connected to the lesbian community.
The week kicks off with a flag-raising ceremony on April 19. It will take place in New York, but will be livestreamed for the public.
“Queeroke” is one of the events being held around the country. It will take place at various participating bars on April 23.
As You Are, an LGBTQ bar in Capitol Hill, is one of eight locations across the U.S. participating. Their event is free and 21+.
On April 24, the D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center will hold a screening of “Ahead of the Curve,” a documentary about the founder of Curve, Franco Stevens. The event is free with an RSVP.
April 25, is Queer Women in Sports Day. And on April 26, several monuments in New York will be illuminated.
Virtual events ranging from health to sports will be made available to the public. Details will be released closer to the start of Lesbian Visibility Week. Featured events can be found on the official website.
Some ways for individuals to get involved are to use #LVW26 and tag the official Lesbian Visibility Week account on social media posts. People are encouraged to display their lesbian flags, and businesses can hand out pins and decorate. They can also reach out to local lawmakers to encourage them to issue an official Lesbian Visibility Week.
Charlie Kirk Act advances in Tenn.
Belarusian president signs bill to allow LGBTQ rights crackdown
‘The Pitt’ stars discuss what season two gets right about queer representation
My family voted for Trump and I cut off contact
Queery: Meet artist, performer John Levengood
Trump budget targets ‘gender extremism’
Viktor Orbán ousted in Hungarian elections
How to navigate shifting tenant expectations
Court orders Pride flag to return to Stonewall
