District of Columbia
Independent at-large D.C. Council candidates endorse LGBTQ rights at forum
Race considered only contest on ballot with uncertain outcome
Four of the five independent candidates running in the Nov. 8 election for two at-large D.C. Council seats expressed strong support for LGBTQ rights at a virtual candidates forum Monday night, Oct. 17, sponsored by the Capital Stonewall Democrats.
The D.C. LGBTQ Democratic group limited the forum to the five independent candidates running against a Democrat, Republican, and a Statehood Green Party candidate for two at-large seats, one of which must go to a non-majority party candidate under D.C.’s election law.
The four independents who participated were incumbent D.C. Council member Elissa Silverman (I-At-Large), attorney Karim D. Marshall, businessman Fred Hill, and former corporate manager and small business advocate Graham McLaughlin. The fifth independent running, incumbent D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-Ward 5), was unable to attend due to a scheduling conflict, according to Capital Stonewall Democrats President Jatarious Frazier.
Frazier noted that the Stonewall Dems group has endorsed the other at-large incumbent Council member, Anita Bonds, a Democrat. He said the group decided against endorsing a second at-large candidate on grounds that the other candidate would be running against the group’s Democratic endorsee.
But Frazier said Capital Stonewall Democrats decided to organize the forum to help its members and other LGBTQ voters decide whom to support for the second at-large Council seat that cannot go to a Democrat.
Both Bonds and McDuffie have longstanding records of support on LGBTQ related issues. With all the at-large candidates having expressed support on LGBTQ issues, local activists have said LGBTQ voters will likely select the two candidates they vote for based on non-LGBTQ issues.
The remaining two of the eight at-large Council candidates on the ballot are Republican Giuseppe Niosi, who marched in D.C.’s Capital Pride Parade in June, and Statehood Green Party candidate David Schwartzman, who has expressed support for LGBTQ rights.
The two co-moderators of the forum, Rebecca Bauer, a member of the board of the D.C. Center for the LGBT Community, and Larry Miller, WUSA 9 TV anchor and morning show host, asked the candidates questions on a wide range of both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ issues.
Longtime D.C. political observers point out that with the city’s overwhelmingly Democratic electorate, the Democratic candidate running for mayor – incumbent Mayor Muriel Bowser – and incumbent Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), along with the Democrats running for Council seats in Wards 1, 3, 5, and 6 are all considered odds-on favorites to win. Among them is gay Ward 5 Democratic candidate Zachary Parker, who is considered the strong front-runner in the Ward 5 race.
It’s just the at-large race, where only one Democrat is allowed to run, in which the outcome is uncertain, observers have said.
Among the independent candidates appearing at the Capital Stonewall Dems forum on Monday, which was broadcast over Zoom and which Frazier said will be available for viewing online, McLaughlin was the only one who claimed to have worked directly with LGBTQ organizations and LGBTQ people in his role as an advocate for homeless youth.
“In a nation where 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBTQ, and that number is pretty high into one’s 20s as well, I opened my home to a member of that community who was homeless,” McLaughlin told the forum. “I have partnered and walked with individuals who are of color and who are in the LGBTQ community to be able to help launch businesses,” he said, adding that he has collaborated with the Trevor Project, a national organization that provides suicide prevention and crisis intervention services for LGBTQ young people.
Silverman, Marshall, and Hill each told of their own efforts to improve the services that city agencies provide for LGBTQ youth and seniors.
Following is a Washington Blade transcript of the opening remarks of each of the four who participated in the Capital Stonewall Democrats forum.
Fred E. Hill (Independent)
Thank you so much for the invitation to share with you this evening. My name is Fred Hill. I’m Number 3 on the ballot. And I’m an independent running in this race for at-large. Many know that I’m a 25-year successful business owner here in the city and a veteran and a father and a grandfather.
More importantly, for my standing for the last 25 years is my desire to change this government. We have watched how the government right now is running almost as a failing enterprise and it does not consider the concerns and the management of money and the trust of the residents here in the District of Columbia. I seek to change that. I bring the courage, the understanding and knowledge of what is needed on this Council right now.
We have watched where public safety, housing, and education all have been the same concerns in the last four years repeating itself again. So, I should tell everyone that those who were on the Council in its entirety did not do what the people needed and it’s time to make a change for that. Again, my name is Fred Hill. I’m Number 3 on the ballot and I’m asking for one of your two votes. Thank you.
Karim D. Marshall (Independent)
Good afternoon. And thank you to the Stonewall Dems for hosting this event for independents. It is a pleasure to be here before the only political organization in the city that’s named after a righteous riot. My name is Karim D. Marshall. I’m running to be the next at-large Council member and I’m asking for one of your two votes. I’m Number 2 on the ballot. I’m a third generation Washingtonian, a proud product of the District of Columbia public school system, a graduate of Dartmouth College and an American law school.
But most importantly, I’m a father and a husband. I’m currently general counsel for a nonprofit foundation and a professor of environmental justice. But before that, I had more than a decade of experience for the District of Columbia government, writing laws, implementing programs, and advancing equity. I know what this government does well, what it does poorly, and I know how to make broken systems work to serve the residents of our city.
I wish we could stay together in person and talk about the issues that will be covered today in the detail they deserve. But I will do my best to put as much information into each answer as possible. I’m looking forward to hearing about what your community needs to be successful and what could be improved in protection and service programs, what our nonprofits can be doing more effectively to serve you, and what the government can be doing to meet the needs before they become a crisis.
Again, my name is Karim Marshall. I’m number two on the ballot and I’m asking for one of your two votes.
Graham McLaughlin (Independent)
Hello, and I echo Karim in saying thank you to the Stonewall Dems for hosting this and letting us have important discussions on some of these critical issues for the city. You have two votes, as you know. And it really comes down to who do you think has the head and the heart to deliver the results that this city needs, and the LGBTQ community needs. From a heart perspective in a nation where 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBTQ, and that number is pretty high into one’s 20s as well. I opened my home to a member of that community who was homeless.
When we’re in a country, unfortunately, that still, if you are an LGBTQ person of color, you have lower wages, harder opportunities to become employed, etcetera. I have partnered and walked with individuals who are of color and who are in the LGBTQ community to be able to help launch businesses. From a head level, I lead a help equity program focused on critical issues that we’re going to talk about today. I’ve partnered with the Trevor Project to ensure that LGBTQ youth of color who desire the same access to mental health service as their white peers but have significantly less access to it, would be able to receive those same services and would have the outreach necessarily by culturally competent support professionals to do so.
Having shared that 18 percent of transgender individuals who are turned away from care would not do so at a health level. I’ve been doing this work significantly. I’d love the opportunity to be able to do it in government.
D.C. Council member Elissa Silverman (Independent)
Good evening, Rebecca and Jatarious and Larry and everyone watching. My name is Elissa Silverman. And for the last eight years I have been serving you as an at-large Council member. I’m the incumbent. I’m an independent. And I am as well asking you for one of your two votes. I’m asking you to return me back to the Council for another four years.
I’ve worked my heart out these last eight years in trying to make life better for working families, including LGBTQ working families in this city. I think a lot of people know me for paid family leave and the benefits that brings to LGBTQ families. Beyond that, as the Labor chair I’ve had a real focus on making sure people have access to good living wage jobs. And I’ve also been able to survive these past two years in COVID.
I have a big focus on oversight, which is clear, as Colby King said, being kind of a solitary voice in trying to highlight the issues with the D.C. Housing Authority. I think we can spend your tax dollars better so our city can be more equitable and just. And I ask for one of your votes to do that.
The Capital Stonewall Democrats’ independent candidate forum can be viewed in its entirety here.
District of Columbia
D.C. Black Pride theme, performers announced at ‘Speakeasy’
Durand Bernarr to headline 2026 programming
The Center for Black Equity held its 2026 DC Black Pride Theme Reveal event at Union Stage on Monday. The evening, a “Speakeasy Happy Hour,” was hosted by Anthony Oakes and featured performances by Lolita Leopard and Keith Angelo. The Center for Black Equity organizes DC Black Pride.
Kenya Hutton, Center for Black Equity president and CEO, spoke following the performances by Leopard and Angelo. Hutton announced this year’s theme for DC Black Pride: “New Black Renaissance.”
Performers for 2026 DC Black Pride were announced to be Bang Garcon, Be Steadwell, Jay Columbus, Bennu Byrd, Rue Pratt and Akeem Woods.
Singer-songwriter Durand Bernarr was announced as the headliner for the 2026 festivities. Bernerr gave brief remarks through a video played on the screen at the stage.
DC Black Pride is scheduled for May 22-25. For more information on DC Black Pride, visit dcblackpride.org.
In an official statement released at the reveal event Capital Pride Alliance described its just announced 2026 Pride theme of “Exist, Resist, Have the Audacity” as a “bold declaration affirming the presence, resilience, and courage of LGBTQ+ people around the world.”
The statement adds, “Grounded in the undeniable truth that our existence is not up for debate, this year’s theme calls on the community to live loudly and proudly, stand firm against injustice and erasure, and embody the collective strength that has always defined the LGBTQ+ community.”
In a reference to the impact of the hostile political climate, the statement says, “In a time when LGBTQ+ rights and history continue to face challenges, especially in our Nation’s Capital, where policy and public discourse shape the future of our country, together, we must ensure that our voices are visible, heard, and unapologetically centered.”
The statement also quotes Capital Pride Alliance CEO and President Ryan Bos’s message at the Reveal event: “This year’s theme is both a declaration and a demand,” Bos said. “Exist, Resist, Have Audacity! reflects the resilience of our community and our responsibility to protect the progress we’ve made. As we look toward our nation’s 250th anniversary, we affirm that LGBTQ+ people have always been and always will be part of the United States’s history, and we will continue shaping its future with strength and resolve,” he concluded.
District of Columbia
Capital Pride board member resigns, alleges failure to address ‘sexual misconduct’
In startling letter, Taylor Chandler says board’s inaction protected ‘sexual predator’
Taylor Lianne Chandler, a member of the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors since 2019 who most recently served as the board’s secretary, submitted a letter of resignation on Feb. 24 that alleges the board has failed to address instances of “sexual misconduct” within the Capital Pride organization.
The Washington Blade received a copy of Chandler’s resignation letter one day after she submitted it from an anonymous source. Chandler, who identifies as transgender and intersex, said in an interview that she did not send the letter to the Blade, but she suspected someone associated with Capital Pride, which organizes D.C.’s annual LGBTQ Pride events, “wants it out in the open.”
“It is with a heavy heart, but with absolute clarity, that I submit my resignation from the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors effective immediately,” Chandler states in her letter. “I have devoted nearly ten years of my life to this organization,” she wrote, pointing to her initial involvement as a volunteer and later as a producer of events as chair of the organization’s Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, and Intersex Committee.
“Capital Pride once meant something profound to me – a space of safety, visibility, and community for people who have often been denied all three,” her letter continues. “That is no longer the organization I am part of today.”
“I, along with other board members, brought forward credible concerns regarding sexual misconduct – a pattern of behavior spanning years – to the attention of this board,” Chandler states in the letter. “What followed was not accountability. What followed was retaliation. Rather than addressing the substance of what was reported, officers and fellow board members chose to chastise those of us who came forward.”
The letter adds, “This board has made its priorities clear through its actions: protecting a sexual predator matters more than protecting the people who had the courage to come forward. … I have been targeted, bullied, and made to feel like an outsider for doing what any person of integrity would do – telling the truth.”
In response to a request from the Blade for comment, Anna Jinkerson, who serves as chair of the Capital Pride board, sent the Blade a statement praising Taylor Chandler’s efforts as a Capital Pride volunteer and board member but did not specifically address the issue of alleged sexual misconduct.
“We’re also aware that her resignation letter has been shared with the media and has listed concerns,” Jinkerson said in her statement. “When concerns are brought to CPA, we act quickly and appropriately to address them,” she said.
“As we continue to grow our organization, we’re proactively strengthening the policies and procedures that shape our systems, our infrastructure, and the support we provide to our team and partners,” Jinkerson said in her statement. “We’re doing this because the community’s experience with CPA must always be safe, affirming, empowering, and inclusive,” she added.
In an interview with the Blade, Chandler said she was not the target of the alleged sexual harassment.
She said a Capital Pride investigation identified one individual implicated in a “pattern” of sexual harassment related behavior over a period of time. But she said she was bound by a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) that applies to all board members and she cannot disclose the name of the person implicated in alleged sexual misconduct or those who came forward to complain about it.
“It was one individual, but there was a pattern and a history,” Chandler said, noting that was the extent of what she can disclose.
“And I’ll say this,” she added. “In my opinion, with gay culture sometimes the touchy feely-ness that goes on seems to be like just part of the culture, not necessarily the same as a sexual assault or whatever. But at the same time, if someone does not want those advances and they’re saying no and trying to push you away and trying to avoid you, then it makes it that way regardless of the culture.”
When asked about when the allegations of sexual harassment first surfaced, Chandler said, “In the past year is when the allegation came forward from one individual. But in the course of this all happening, other individuals came forward and talked about instances – several which showed a pattern.”
Chandler’s resignation comes about five months after Capital Pride Alliance announced in a statement released in October 2025 that its then board president, Ashley Smith, resigned from his position on Oct. 18 after Capital Pride became aware of a “claim” regarding Smith. The statement said the group retained an independent firm to investigate the matter, but it released no further details since that time. Smith has declined to comment on the matter.
When asked by the Blade if the Smith resignation could be linked in some way to allegations of sexual misconduct, Chandler said, “I can’t make a comment one way or the other on that.”
Chandler’s resignation and allegations come after Capital Pride Alliance has been credited with playing the lead role in organizing the World Pride celebration hosted by D.C. in which dozens of LGBTQ-related Pride events were held from May through June of 2025.
The letter of resignation also came just days before Capital Pride Alliance’s annual “Reveal” event scheduled for Feb. 26 at the Hamilton Hotel in which the theme for D.C.’s June 2026 LGBTQ Pride events was to be announced along with other Pride plans.
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