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Hyattsville mayor dies by suicide

Kevin Ward and husband adopted son in D.C. in 2012

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Hyattsville Mayor Kevin Ward (Photo courtesy of the city of Hyattsville)

The city of Hyattsville released a statement on Wednesday afternoon announcing that their cityā€™s openly gay Mayor Kevin Ward had died one day earlier by an apparent suicide.

ā€œThe city of Hyattsville reports with great sadness that our beloved Mayor Kevin Ward passed away yesterday, Jan. 25, from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound,ā€ the statement says.

ā€œMayor Ward was a valued and trusted leader and a fierce advocate for all the people of Hyattsville,ā€ the statement continues. ā€œWe are heartbroken at this loss and extend our deepest sympathy to the mayorā€™s family,ā€ it says.

ā€œNo further information is available at this time,ā€ the statement adds. ā€œDetails about services and remembrances will be shared when they are available.ā€

The Washington Post reported that U.S. Park Police disclosed that Ward was found deceased in Fort Marcy Park in McLean, Va., with a ā€œself-inflicted gunshot wound.ā€

Ward, 44, became acting mayor of Hyattsville on Jan. 1, 2021, following the resignation of former Mayor Candace Hollingsworth. He was next in line to become mayor under the cityā€™s political system in his then-position as president of the Hyattsville City Council.

He won election to complete the remainder of Hollingsworthā€™s term through 2023 in a May 11, 2021, special election, receiving 57.8 percent of the vote in a three candidate race, according to the Hyattsville election board. His closest opponent, Joseph Solomon, received 31.7 percent of the vote.

Nearby fellow gay mayors ā€” Patrick Wojahn of College Park and Jeffrey Slavin of Somerset ā€” said they got to know Ward through Maryland political circles and thought very highly of him.

ā€œHe was insightful, smart and dedicated,ā€ Wojahn said. ā€œHe always seemed very confident and together as a person. And he had a great sense of humor.ā€

Slavin said he shared that remembrance of Ward, adding that he found Ward to be a ā€œvery nice personā€ dedicated to the people he served both as mayor and during his two terms on the Hyattsville City Council.

ā€œThere was noting in his public life that would have predicted this,ā€ said Slavin in referring to Wardā€™s sudden passing.

The Washington Blade first reported on Ward in 2012 in a feature story on Ward and his then-domestic partner Chad Copeland when the two attended a ceremony at the D.C. Superior Court to complete the process of adopting their then-5-year-old son Norman. Ward and Copeland were among several gay couples who had their adoption papers signed by a judge at the ceremony.

On the website for his mayoral election campaign last year Ward said he and his family made Hyattsville their home in 2014 after he and his husband adopted their two sons.

ā€œI am a pretty straightforward person,ā€ he said in message to voters on his campaign website. ā€œI believe in listening more than talking. But when I talk, I am not one to mince words or tell people what they want to hear,ā€ he said. ā€œI believe in doing the work. I believe that if I can help someone, then I can change her or his life,ā€ he continued.

ā€œThis is why I dedicated my career to providing the best technology to education and to human services, to help as many people as I can,ā€ he said. Ā 

Ward was referring to his career in the field of educational and human services technology.

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Maryland

Md. Senate passes transgender sanctuary bill

Measure passed by 33-13 vote margin

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(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The Maryland Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would make Maryland a sanctuary state for transgender people who are seeking gender-affirming health care and providers who offer it.

Senate Bill 119 passed by a 33-13 vote margin.

State Sens. Clarence Lam (D-Anne Arundel and Howard Counties), Shelly Hettleman (D-Baltimore County) and Jeff Waldstreicher (D-Montgomery County) introduced SB 119. An identical bill has been put forth in the Maryland House of Delegates.

A law that requires Maryland’s Medicaid program to cover gender-affirming treatments took effect on Jan. 1.

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Maryland

Protests interrupt Moms for Liberty meeting about removing books in Howard County schools

Guest speaker led book-removal campaign in Carroll County

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Gabriella Monroe holds a poster that says 'Ban Bigotry Not Books' outside Howard Countyā€™s Central Branch library in Columbia on Feb. 26, 2024 (Photo by Sam Mallon for the Baltimore Banner)

BY KRISTEN GRIFFITHĀ | When a Howard County chapter of Moms for Liberty wanted to learn how to remove books from schools, they wereĀ met with a swarm of protesters sporting rainbow colors and signsĀ looking to send the message that such actions are not welcome in their district.

The conservative parentsā€™ group met Monday night at Howardā€™s Central Branch library in Columbia to brainstorm how they could get books they deemed inappropriate out of their childrenā€™s school libraries. Their guest speaker for the evening was Jessica Garland, who led a successful book-removal campaign in Carroll County. The Howard chapter wanted the playbook.

The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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Maryland

Are Md. prisons out of bounds with federal requirements for trans prisoners?

Department of Correctional Services says transgender prisoners ā€˜housed according to physical genitaliaā€™

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BY BEN CONARCK | Nearly a year after formerly incarcerated transgender people testified to Maryland lawmakers about the troubling conditions they faced in state prisons and Baltimore jails, the agency in charge of their care continues to violate federal standards in how it houses trans prisoners, according to a coalition of trans rights advocates.

The Trans Rights Advocacy Coalition, bolstered by policy experts and attorneys, contends that while the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services has made some strides towards improving conditions, its policy of housing trans prisoners ā€œaccording to physical genitaliaā€ violates the federal standard that those individuals should be housed on a case-by-case basis determined by health and safety and any security problems, among other factors. The group laid out its argument in a 15-page memo presented to the department and lawmakers this week.

The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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