District of Columbia
D.C. mayoral, attorney general candidates cite LGBTQ support
Bowser absent from virtual LGBTQ candidates forum

Three of four candidates running in the city’s June 21 Democratic primary for mayor and two of the three candidates running in the primary for the office of D.C. Attorney General cited what they each said was their strong record of support on LGBTQ related issues at a May 2 LGBTQ candidates forum.
The forum was the third in a series of five LGBTQ candidate forms organized by Capital Stonewall Democrats, the city’s largest local LGBTQ political organization.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter whose administration includes more out LGBTQ appointees than any previous D.C. mayor, did not attend the Monday night forum due to an apparent scheduling conflict.
Bowser instead attended a Ward 3 “Meet & Greet” reception for the mayor co-organized by gay Democratic activist Kurt Vorndran at a restaurant in the city’s Tenleytown neighborhood. Vorndran said the event was scheduled before he received word that Capital Stonewall Democrats would be holding its mayoral forum at the same time and date.
Those attending the Stonewall mayoral forum included the three other mayoral candidates on the June 21 primary ballot — D.C. Councilmember Robert White (D-At-Large), D.C. Councilmember Trayon White (D-Ward 8), and former trial attorney and civil rights advocate James Butler.
The three mayoral candidates responded to a wide range of questions asked by forum moderator John Riley ranging from LGBTQ housing and homeless related services, anti-LGBTQ violence, special needs for LGBTQ seniors and youth, and the continuing higher rate of HIV infection among black men who have sex with men, MSM.
The candidates also addressed additional issues pertaining to all city residents, including gun violence and public safety, the shortage of affordable housing, whether the city’s public school system should remain under mayoral control, and whether sex work should be decriminalized. Several local LGBTQ and transgender rights organizations have expressed support for decriminalization of sex work.
As he had when the issue came before the D.C. Council in a public hearing, Robert White expressed support for decriminalizing sex work for consenting adults with continued criminalization of sex trafficking. Trayon White said he needed more time to learn about the pros and cons and decriminalization and did not have a position on the issue. Butler expressed strong opposition to decriminalization, saying it would lead to more sex trafficking by pimps.
Trayon White said he favors ending the current mayoral control over the public school system and Robert White said he wants an “independent” school superintendent no longer under the control of the mayor. Butler said he supports retaining the current mayoral control over the school system.
Two of the three D.C. attorney general candidates participated in the attorney general part of Monday’s night’s forum. Those participating included longtime D.C. attorneys Bruce V. Spiva and Ryan L. Jones. The third candidate running in the primary for the attorney general position, local attorney and law firm official Brian Schwalb, did not attend the forum. Schwalb has been endorsed by current D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine, who is not running for re-election.
Jones and Spiva each said they have supported LGBTQ equality in representing LGBTQ clients in discrimination cases. The two said they would push hard for the enforcement of the city’s Human Rights Act that bans discrimination against LGBTQ people and other minorities if elected attorney general.
Similar to past D.C. elections, each of the Democratic mayoral and attorney general candidates expressed strong support for the LGBTQ community.
Longtime D.C. gay rights activist Phil Pannell, who said he watched most of the Monday night mayoral and attorney general forum, said this year’s city election was continuing D.C.’s longstanding status of fostering candidates running for public office who strongly back LGBTQ equality. Like other activists, Pannell said this gives LGBTQ voters the “luxury” of choosing which candidates to support based on other important issues.
The next Capital Stonewall Democrats forum, scheduled for Wednesday, May 4, will be for the city’s Ward 1 and Ward 5 D.C. Council races. The Stonewall group will hold its fifth and final forum on Wednesday, May 11, for the D.C. Council Chair and at-large Council races.
A video recording of the May 2 forum can be accessed here.
Following is a Washington Blade transcript of the opening statements of each of the mayoral and attorney general candidates participating in the Capital Stonewall Democrats virtual forum on May 2:
Mayoral Candidates
Robert White
Thank you so much. I’m very excited to be here. I’m Robert White. I’m a father, a husband, an at-large Council member and a fifth generation Washingtonian. So, I grew up in D.C. like so many other people in a family that struggled to get by decade after decade, generation after generation. But my life took a very important turn when I was young. I was 8 years old. I lost my mom to breast cancer. And just a month later I was in a near fatal car accident myself and it left me out of school recovering so long that I fell tragically behind at school.
I failed the third grade. I could not catch up still and actually failed every single grade from third grade to tenth grade. Now what happened to me is what happened to so many young people who fall behind in school. I was labeled a troublemaker and I was treated that way. And at a time when I needed people to step up for me, most people counted me out.
But ten years after my tenth grade a guidance counselor told me that I would never go to college. I was a lawyer sitting beside Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton fighting on Capitol Hill for D.C. residents. To get from where I was to where I am now, I had to learn to become a problem solver. And that skill set is a skill set that I have brought the past fifteen years working in all three branches of government and both the federal and local government.
It’s how I helped deliver for D.C. on Capitol Hill with Congresswoman Norton. It’s how I helped deliver for D.C. residents when I worked in the Office of the Attorney General under Attorney General Karl Racine. And it’s how I’ve delivered for D.C. residents as a Council member. I have focused on affordable housing, workforce development, on helping our returning citizens, and on education.
I have been a national leader on childhood education. I have fought outside the box in ways to address our affordable housing crisis. And I’ve made the District of Columbia the first jurisdiction in the nation to expand voting rights to all incarcerated residents, who never should have lost the right to vote.
Today I’m asking for your vote because we need a problem solver as mayor. And that’s the mayor I will be.
James Butler
Thank you so much. And thank you to the Capital Stonewall Democrats. And thank you for my opponent, Robert. I’m seeing way too much of you these days, almost on a daily basis. But thank you for all you do to further the ends of democracy for these organizations, Capital Stonewall Democrats.
I’m James Butler. And I’m running to be D.C.’s next mayor. As many of you know, or you probably know, I’m a former trial lawyer and former ANC commissioner. I have sued state governments. I have sued municipalities. I have fought for justice and equality around the country my entire adult life. I currently am an advocate before the EEOC and the Office of Human Rights. I want to depart from my normal introduction since I am the only candidate that does not hold a public office right now and share with you what I’ve done over the last decade and what I continue to do in some of the LGBTQ spaces.
I have just recently did a forum on Capitol Hill at Henry’s focused on LGBTQ rights. That was moderated by Sterling Washington, who is Vincent Gray’s former LGBTQ Affairs Director. I’ve also been a volunteer and continue to be a volunteer for Whitman-Walker. I started in the days volunteering with Whitman-Walker when you could go up to the counter and just submit a dollar in your donation that way when they were in the Elizabeth Taylor Building. So, for nearly 20 years I’ve done that and still continue to do that today.
Presently, as an advocate before OHR [D.C. Office of Human Rights] I represent transgender persons, persons that are brining aggrievement based on gender identity and gender discrimination. I am committed to the fight. I will continue to be committed to the fight. And I appreciate you all having the name Capital Stonewall Democrats, because I’ve actually been to the Stonewall Inn in New York. I will continue to fight for justice and equality until the day I die.
Trayon White
Thank you. I want to thank everyone who joined tonight. I want to thank Capital Stonewall Democrats for your leadership and all the other organizations that have joined us tonight about this very important election that can change the trajectory of Washington, D.C. My name is Trayon White. I was born and raised here in Washington, D.C. My history has been fighting for those who are disadvantaged, and that includes those left without having a voice in D.C., for over 18 years. And as a result, people of D.C. have elected me to be a Council member here in the great Ward 8.
What I do know as a resident and a citizen of D.C., with a $20 billion budget, the money is not reaching everybody in an equitable way, not just in money but in resources and government accountability. And as a result, I have fought back and forth about tickets, lack of access to services, educational issues, housing insecurities. And so instead of me complaining about the problem, my job has become a solution to the problem. So, I put my name on the ballot to represent the entire D.C., especially for those who don’t feel they have a voice to make sure we have equity and inclusion. When the city has been growing tremendously every year but there are a lot of us in D.C. that don’t feel that growth. And so, our campaign has been a people’s campaign, giving people power and putting people over politics. So, my history has been fighting for several marginalized populations, especially the LGBTQ in D.C.
And as a result, we started a Commission on LGBTQ Affairs, with several organizations joining us, like the [inaudible] collaborative, Check It, Casa Ruby, SMYAL, Whitman-Walker Clinic, Mega Health, Bridge Project, THR Logistics, and the Anacostia Coordinating Council. So, we are excited to join you guys tonight to have this intensive dialogue on how we can help move D.C. along. My name is Trayon White. And I’m running for mayor. I hope to get your support on the ballot June 21, 2022. Thank you.
D.C. Attorney General Candidates
Ryan L. Jones
Thank you for having me. I feel honored and this is a privilege for me to be here. I enjoy sharing the stage with my colleagues and I relish the opportunity to tell you a little about myself. My name is Ryan Jones. However, I’m running because I know that it’s possible to create change that’s necessary…for all District residents. I’m certain today that many folks woke up in a single-family home under the comfort of warm sheets with the certainty that a meal could be had in the morning, while many others didn’t wake up with those same conditions.
And I want to create a balanced creative polity that allows each resident to [inaudible] some semblance of what most residents or many residents do have. We have the issues of food insecurity, lack of education opportunities, lack of opportunities to enjoy jobs that pay for all of the nice things that allow us to live wonderful lives…And I know that laws make a difference to allow us all to enjoy these things. And that’s a part of the reason why I’m running.
Since 2020, things have changed, with new conditions and a new reality. We’re on Zoom as opposed to in-person because of what was created, because of the pandemic. And I know that has exacerbated conditions. And I’m looking forward to creating and sharing a vision which strives to cure the disparity that’s been spiking and causing other problems like crime and homelessness and people being put out without the opportunity to succeed…As Attorney General you have the ability to allow these responsibilities to come to fruition. I look forward to our discussion to share our opportunity to get that done.
Bruce V. Spiva
Thank you so much. Thank you for having me. My name is Bruce Spiva and I’m running for D.C. Attorney General. My parents grew up in the Jim Crow South and they went on to lives of service to others. And they believed strongly in the power of the law to change our lives for the better. And my father graduated from HBCU in 1954, the year that the Brown decision came down. And he was the one who really inspired me to become a lawyer.
And he instilled in me a sense of duty and courage to fight for change. And that’s what I’ve been doing these past 30 years as a civil rights lawyer fighting for housing justice, fighting for reform, including, I’m most proud, I’m very proud of the fact that I have fought for marriage equality for our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters, having submitted a brief fighting the blood rival that our brothers and sisters should not be allowed to marry because it wasn’t good for children. I submitted a brief on behalf of the American Psychological Association on that proposition.
And in truth – and I’ll be able to tell you a little bit more about this as we go on. But my consciousness on these issues was formed long ago in the 1970s when I was a kid and Anita Bryant came to town spewing that kind of hate. And my parents, I think because of the conditions that they had grown up in, in prejudice, fought strongly against that and spoke out against it. And that’s something that has stuck with me throughout my life as my consciousness grew on these issues.
I look forward to your questions tonight. And as AG, I will vigilantly enforce anti-hate laws and fight against discrimination against LGBTQ+ folks. Thanks so much.
District of Columbia
$3.7 billion RFK stadium proposal draws support from Team DC
Washington Commanders ‘proud’ to champion LGBTQ community

Miguel Ayala, president of the D.C. LGBTQ sports organization Team D.C., has expressed support for the $3.7 billion deal reached between Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Washington Commanders football team to bring the team back to D.C. in a redeveloped site on the grounds of the city’s long shuttered RFK stadium.
With the deal calling for the city to provide $1 billion in taxpayer funds for infrastructure related costs for the massive redevelopment project — and with the Commanders to provide the remaining $2.7 billion — as of this week the deal did not have majority support on the D.C. Council, which must vote to approve it.
Ayala’s support for the project on behalf of Team D.C. raises the question of whether members of the city’s influential LGBTQ community might play some role in urging the D.C. Council to approve the project.
The proposal comes at a time when the Washington Commanders team includes a message of support for the LGBTQ community on its website. The message follows its hosting last October of its 4th annual LGBTQ Pride Night Out at the Commanders game against the Cleveland Browns.
“The Washington Commanders are proud to champion the LGBTQ+ community and its allies,” the team states on its website. “Through the unifying power of sports, we aim to create a culture where all feel welcome and celebrated.”
In a statement released to the Washington Blade, Ayala points out that the Commanders are among every D.C.-based professional sports team that hosts a Pride Night Out event, which Team DC helps to organize.
“Each year, our events have grown stronger, with vibrant tailgates, on-field celebrations, and powerful moments that shine a spotlight on our community,” Ayala said. “We can’t wait to kick off our first Night Out at the Commanders Stadium in 2030.”
He was referring to plans by the Commanders organization and the D.C. mayor’s office to have the stadium deal approved by the D.C. Council in July, with construction of the new stadium to begin then, and with a planned completion in time for the 2030 professional football season.
Ayala also points out that the RFK stadium grounds currently serve as home to LGBTQ-related sports activity, including the D.C. Gay Flag Football League and the D.C. Front Runners group. He added that the RFK grounds will serve as the playing fields for this year’s WorldPride Capital Cup sports competition, where LGBTQ rugby and soccer teams from around the world will compete.
“This new stadium will be more than just a field – it will be a powerful new addition to the vibrant, diverse, and proud communities we champion every day,” he said in his statement.
At an April 28 news conference, Bowser, Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris and other city officials provided details of the stadium project, noting that it includes a massive development of the new stadium and the surrounding 180 acres of land.
In addition to the 65,000-seat domed stadium, officials said the project would include 5,000 to 6,000 residential housing units, with 30 percent designated as “affordable” for low- and moderate-income residents. They said the project would also include parks and recreation areas, hotels, restaurants, retail, and neighborhood amenities.
“As we focus on the growth of our economy, we’re not only bringing our team home, but we’re also bringing new jobs and new revenue to our city and to Ward 7,” Bowser said in a statement
Opponents of the project, including D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), have said they don’t believe the city should use its own funds for a stadium and the related development.
So far, just four Council members have expressed support for the project. Mendelson and two other Council members have expressed opposition, and the remaining five have not yet said whether they would vote for or against it. The project needs seven of the current 12-member Council for it to be approved.
Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), the Council’s only gay member, who initially had not taken a position on the proposal, this week said he was looking at the project more favorably, according to news media reports.
District of Columbia
Welcome home: DC LGBTQ Center opens its doors to healing and hope
The 6,671 square foot DC LGBTQ Center will offer a wide range of resources for LGBTQ individuals in need – including mental health services, job readiness programs, cultural events, and community support groups, all under one roof.

On a sunny spring day in Washington’s Shaw neighborhood, the once empty Holzbeierlein Bakery warehouse now showcases energy, pride, and the sounds of chosen family coming closer together. After years in a less-than-perfect space on 14th Street, the DC LGBTQ community finally has a new home at the DC LGBTQ Center—and Executive Director Kimberley Bush says it’s more than a building. It’s a promise.
That promise, Bush explained to the Washington Blade on April 26—the day of the new LGBTQ Center’s opening—may change depending on who is being uplifted by the DC Center, but at its core remains the same goal: a thriving LGBTQ community in the nation’s capital. The commitment to the DC LGBTQ community is able to grow more connected and stronger, she explained, as more resources, space, and funding become available for the DC Center.
“This is a glorious home,” Bush said, beaming as groups of community members walked in under the giant inflatable rainbow at the Center’s doors. “It’s our new home. Today was a whole day of welcome home. This space has been an amazing endeavor for a long time, one that we’ve always known we’ve needed. This is space that we need for our LGBT siblings in need—and it’s amazing when your intentions match your efforts.”
The DC Center has long worked to “educate, empower, uplift, celebrate, elevate, and connect” the LGBTQ community from its former location at the Reeves Center. But now, in its new space at 1828 Wiltberger St., N.W., these efforts are more visible, accessible, and impactful than ever before.
“This space is a model that is new, that we are creating,” Bush said as groups of DC Center supporters chatted with Etta James’s “At Last” filling the hallways. “There is, I believe, no other LGBTQ+ community center in the country that not only has its own life and supportive services in its building, but is also co-housed with other organizations. A lot of community centers try and do it all, but that’s not what we wanted. We wanted to be able to bring everybody together under one roof, to be able to have that whole life supportive services center like one-stop shopping. We didn’t want to take over anything anyone else did. We don’t want to take away the dollars those organizations have to do what they do for the community. We want us all to be together. So that’s what we are. We’ve been able to now expand into almost 7,000 square feet of space.”

The new DC Center features a variety of functional spaces designed to meet the diverse needs of the LGBTQ community. It includes office space for up to nine additional partner organizations, creating a hub for collaboration and support. Local and integral LGBTQ organizations like SMYAL, Team DC, and HIPS are some of the groups taking advantage of the space.
“People can be spread out,” Bush said about the opportunity for these LGBTQ-specific organizations to have a dedicated office in the Center. “We are on a grander scale, so we have a grander number of individuals that we can positively and effectively take care of. We [as members of the DC LGBTQ Center] can’t provide everything someone needs, but we can be an outpost for other organizations. Because we’ve expanded, we are able to expand the love, kindness, and support we can give our siblings.”
Additional support, Bush explained, is made possible by the intentional design of the new DC Center. Specialized rooms meet critical needs—from an HIV and STI testing room to therapy spaces and a boutique offering professional attire for job interviews. While the DC Center may not provide every service directly, it offers a shared space where partner organizations can step in and support the community—all under one roof.
“Often people are not able to go here, here, and here, to get what those gaps in life are creating,” she said. “To bridge them in one space just gives that person the opportunity to have less on their heart and their mind in regards to what they need to take care of themselves.”
In addition to being able to provide a space for instrumental elements of protecting the safety and well-being of the DC LGBTQ community, the Center also has a food pantry, a boutique with a clothing closet, an ADA-accessible shower, a mailroom to assist those without a permanent address, and a spacious kitchen.
This, she explained, is why this space is so monumental to providing the DC LGBTQ community the resources they need in a succinct and approachable way.

“By bridging those gaps and having as much as we can here means you’re in one space to get your needs met,” she added. “From sexual health needs, in terms of testing, counseling, and what have you, to mental and behavioral health needs. You can get food, you can get clothing, you can shower. You can store some of your things here. That is such an ease off of your mind to where now you can breathe.”
After stepping into the Center’s director role in 2022, Bush said that she often sees her “siblings” within the community make a better life for themselves starting by walking through the front doors. Sometimes the following steps take more time and resources than for others, but regardless of what it takes, Bush emphasized the goal is to alleviate some stress and make tomorrow an approachable reality.
“I have the amazing opportunity to interact with our community members, our siblings, on a regular basis,” she said. “Often I see them when they first walk in our door. Sometimes they walk in unhappy, sometimes devastated, or they walk in not in a good space. When they come in and invite us in to hear their stories, when they want to share what’s going on with them so we can learn how to best care, love, and support them, it’s incredible. We make a POA, a plan of action, outlining how to take care of them and what that’s going to take.”
Walking through the Center, it is hard to not notice the smiles coming from everyone’s faces—from volunteers, board members, community members, and those seeking assistance. The DC Center, with its rainbow murals and shining floors, has become a beacon of hope for many LGBTQ Washingtonian residents in need. For some, Bush explained, that can be as simple as having a space for solace in a city that seems to have no shortage of stressors.
“The space is made for anyone who’s in need, and even if you’re not,” she said. “This is a place for you to come and be peaceful. A place for you to come and have a cup of tea, not to pay a thing, or have to talk to anybody. You can just sit here and have a cup of tea.”
The more she spoke about the space, it became clear that providing a space for LGBTQ people to be is just as important as providing spaces for the services to take place. The DC LGBTQ Center invites people to not only find what they need to make themselves better in a literal sense but also allows them to simply exist. It is rare for a city to provide this kind of refuge from the constant motion that life demands. And that can be life-changing, she says.
“I will say, ‘How are you today? How are you feeling today?’ ‘How are you’ and ‘how are you feeling’ are two different things, but I do want to know how you’re feeling. If you don’t answer me, that’s good. You know? That’s perfect,” Bush said. “This space is built for everyone, especially for trans and non-binary folk, and for our brown and Black folk. It’s a space for those who just need a space to be.”
In a world that often erases or overlooks LGBTQ people, especially trans, non-binary, Black, and brown community members, the simple act of being seen and cared for can be revolutionary. The DC Center aims to be a place for LGBTQ people to be themselves—not to force them to prove anything or lead them to speak, but to truly be themselves. That quiet affirmation of ‘allowing to be’ can plant the seed to a better, more authentic life.

“One thing that I love to hear, and it makes me feel so good, because they say it in a way that’s just like you and I would say it, or anyone would say it, but sometimes they may not have thought they would say it. They would say, ‘See you tomorrow. See you later.’ This is a person who may not have had tomorrow in their mind. Where you and I say that all the time, but for a lot of our people, our siblings, who come to us, that may not be a thing for them. But when they come in our doors, receive the care and the love and the support and kindness, but then they walk out and they say, ‘See you tomorrow,’ and we do see them tomorrow! I can tell you that this response not only drives me to do this work, because this is good work and I’m very fortunate and privileged to be here, but it’s hearing that out of someone’s mouth. That’s it. That’s all I need.”
District of Columbia
Ruby Corado sentencing postponed for third time
Attorneys say former Casa Ruby director has ‘significant medical issues’

A federal judge on April 8 approved a request by defense attorneys to postpone the sentencing of Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now closed D.C. LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby on a charge of wire fraud, from April 29 to July 29.
Court records show that Judge Trevor N. McFadden of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia approved a motion filed by Corado’s two defense attorneys on that same day calling for the sentencing postponement on grounds of health issues.
“Ms. Corado has significant medical issues,” the April 8 motion states. “She has an important medical appointment related to one of her diagnoses scheduled in June 2025 and will need time to recover from that appointment,” it says.
The motion gives no further details on Colorado’s medical issues. A.J. Kramer, director of the D.C. Office of the Federal Public Defender, whose attorneys are representing Corado, said the office has a policy of never disclosing specific medical related information regarding its clients.
Court records show that prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C. did not object to the defense motion seeking the third sentencing postponement.
The records show that an earlier postponement of the sentencing, from March 28 to April 29, was initiated by the judge due to a scheduling conflict. The first postponement from Jan. 10 to March 28 came at the request of Corado’s attorneys, court records show.
Corado pleaded guilty on July 17, 2024, to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors. The charge to which she pleaded guilty says she allegedly diverted at least $150,000 “in taxpayer backed emergency COVID relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for her personal use,” according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Prosecutors have said funds that Corado allegedly diverted for her own use were intended to be used by Casa Ruby in support of its various programs, including housing services for homeless LGBTQ youth and support for LGBTQ immigrants.
The U.S. Attorney’s statement also notes that in 2022, when “financial irregularities at Casa Ruby became public,” Corado sold her home in Prince George’s County, Md. and “fled to El Salvador.” It was at that time that Casa Ruby ceased its operations.
Court records show that FBI agents arrested Corado on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. At the request of her attorney and against the wishes of prosecutors, another judge at that time agreed to release Corado into custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order.
The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail at the time of her arrest by the FBI.
Under the federal wire fraud law Corado could be sentenced to a possible maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s statement. However, court observers have said that due to Corado’s decision to waive her right to a trial and plead guilty, prosecutors will likely ask the judge to hand down a lesser sentence than the maximum sentence.
The statement by prosecutors points out that Corado’s decision to plead guilty to the one charge came after she had been charged in a criminal complaint filed on March 1, 2024, with bank fraud, wire fraud, laundering of monetary instruments, monetary transactions in criminally derived proceeds, and failure to file a report of foreign bank accounts.
All those charges except for the wire fraud charge were dropped at the time of her guilty plea.
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