District of Columbia
Matthew Shepard portrait dedicated at National Cathedral
Gay Wyoming student killed in 1998 hate crime honored in daylong ceremony
Matthew Shepard, the gay University of Wyoming student who was murdered in a 1998 anti-gay hate crime while tied to a fence outside Laramie, Wyo., was honored at a ceremony on Thursday, Dec. 1, at Washington National Cathedral dedicating a newly commissioned portrait of Shepard.
Officials at the cathedral said the portrait by artist Kelly Latimore and commissioned by LGBTQ members of the Cathedral staff, is the only artistic image of Matthew Shepard created in collaboration with Shepardās parents, Dennis and Judy Shepard, who were present during the ceremony.
Matthew Shepardās ashes were interred at the Washington National Cathedral in 2018, 20 years after his death. The Cathedral announced in a statement this week that the Dec. 1 dedication of the Shepard portrait would also take place on what would have been Shepardās 46th birthday.
āThe horrific murders at Club Q in Colorado Springs are a tragic reminder that our LGBTQ friends and family continue to be targeted for who they love, and Matthew Shepardās legacy reminds us of the urgency to confront bigotry and embrace people of all backgrounds, gender identities and sexual orientations,ā said The Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, dean of Washington National Cathedral, in a statement.
Events surrounding the portrait dedication began with a 7 a.m. online prayer service āto celebrate and recall Matthew Shepardās life,ā the statement released by the Cathedral says. The service was led by Right Rev. V. Gene Robinson, the first openly gay priest to be consecrated as a bishop in the Episcopal Church.
The Cathedral next hosted a preview of the portrait for the news media at 10:30 a.m., where Dennis and Judy Shepard talked about the portrait and their sonās life and the impact his death had on the nationās understanding of hate crimes.
āItās amazing how similar and what a great job that Kelly [Latimore] has done to make it look like Matt and showing the essence of Matt,ā Dennis Shepard told the Washington Blade while viewing the portrait in the Cathedralās St. Josephās Chapel, where the portrait was on display.
Artist Latimore, who also spoke to reporters during the morning briefing at the chapel, said he was moved in his discussions with Judy and Dennis Shepard while getting ready to begin work on the painting by copies of dozens of letters they sent him that had been sent to the Shepards by people across the country after their sonās death.
Latimore included written excerpts from dozens of those letters as the background to his portrait of Matthew Shepard, which can be seen and read when standing close to the portrait.
āMatthew will not be forgotten,ā an excerpt from one of the letters on the portrait says.
Dennis and Judy Shepard created the Matthew Shepard Foundation shortly after Matthewās death, which has been credited with playing a lead role in advocating for the passage by Congress in 2009 of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The measure was the first federal hate crime statute that expanded the coverage of the federal hate crimes law to include a victimās sexual orientation and gender identity as a protected class.
The Cathedral was to open its St. Josephās Chapel from 2-5 p.m. on Thursday to visitors where the Matthew Shepard portrait was on display. Dennis and Judy Shepard were scheduled to be present to greet visitors.
According to the statement released by the Cathedral, later in the evening at 7 p.m., the portrait was to be officially dedicated in a private service in the Cathedralās crypt near the site where Shepardās ashes were interred.
āA longtime supporter of the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the life of the church, the Cathedral considers LGBTQ equality one of the great civil rights issues of the 21st century,ā the statement released by the Cathedral says.
One of the two men charged with Matthew Shepardās murder, Russell Henderson, pleaded guilty to a murder charge in exchange for an agreement by prosecutors not to seek a death sentence. He was sentenced to life in prison.
The other man charged in the murder, Aaron McKinney, pleaded not guilty and went to trial, where he was convicted of murder by a jury. In a dramatic statement before the judge at the conclusion of the trial, Dennis Shepard announced he and his wife had asked prosecutors and the judge to spare McKinney from being sentenced to death, something he said McKinney did not do while fatally striking his son in the head multiple times with the barrel of a gun after the two men tied him to a fence post in a remote field outside Laramie.
The judge sentenced McKinney to two consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole.
District of Columbia
Whitman-Walker names new CEO for Health System unit
Heather Aaron credited with advancing LGBTQ health for seniors
Whitman-Walker Health, D.C.ās longtime LGBTQ and HIV health services provider, announced on March 26 that it has appointed Heather Aaron, a health care educator and executive for more than 30 years, as the new CEO for Whitman-Walker Health System.
Whitman-Walker Health System, a division of Whitman-Walker, among other things, advances the mission of Whitman-Walker through expanding its financial and fundraising capacity through the Whitman-Walker Foundation; the Whitman-Walker Institute, which conducts HIV-related research; and the Whitman-Walker Health System Real Property Holdings, according to a write-up on the Whitman-Walker website.
In a press release announcing the appointment, Whitman-Walker Health System Board Chair Ann Bonham called Aaron a ādynamic and collaborative leader that will help us to realize the vision and full potential of our health system ā¦ building revenue and growth opportunities that will further Whitman-Walkerās care, advocacy, education, and research goals in partnership with Naseema Shafi, CEO of Whitman-Walker Health.ā
The Whitman-Walker Health System CEO position became open in April 2023 when former Health System CEO Dr. Ryan Moran left the position to become Deputy Secretary of Health and Healthcare Finance for the State of Maryland. Whitman-Walker named Cindy Lewin, a healthcare specialist with nonprofit organizations, as interim CEO while it conducted a national search for a permanent CEO.
āHeather has spent her entire career in health care, making a difference for the communities where she has served as Health Care Executive and Educator for more than thirty years,ā the Whitman-Walker announcement of her appointment says. āShe has worked tirelessly to develop diversity, equity, and inclusion in all her work,ā it says, adding that her work experience includes services for members of the LGBTQ community and people with HIV/AIDS.
āIn Connecticut, she operated the only continuum of care model which included a nursing home, independent living apartments and case management in one centralized community,ā the announcement continues. āThe care model was specifically designed for people living with HIV and AIDS,ā it says.
āIām thrilled to be joining the Whitman-Walker family in service to the community,ā Aaron said in the announcement press release. āI look forward to getting to know staff, patients, and engaging with D.C. in a meaningful way,ā she said.
District of Columbia
Howard University, Gilead working to encourage HIV prevention
āA strategic, community-centered approach to address systemic disparitiesā
Howard University earlier this month hosted an event to support efforts in the Washington, D.C. area to spread HIV/AIDS awareness.
The event highlighted a collaboration between Howard University and Gilead Sciences’ new Setting the P.A.C.EĀ (Prevention ā Arts and Advocacy ā Community ā Education)Ā initiative, which addresses HIV prevention, health equity and anti-stigma efforts for both cisgender and transgender Black women and girls.Ā
āBy taking a strategic, community-centered approach to address systemic disparities and improve overall health outcomes, Gilead continues its commitment to advancing health equity for Black cisgender and transgender women and girls in the U.S. who continue to be disproportionately impacted by the HIV epidemic,ā said Deborah H. Telman, executive vice president of Corporate Affairs and General Counsel, Gilead Sciences.
Gilead’s Setting the P.A.C.E. Initiative is a three-year, $10 million commitment to increase HIV prevention, anti-stigma and health equity efforts for Black cisgender and transgender women and girls in the United States. Howard is one of Setting the P.A.C.E.ās grantees and through the program, it conducts HIV prevention training and informational resources, arts and advocacy, community and nonprofit capacity building, and education.
In 2021, Black women accounted for 53% of new HIV diagnoses among women aged 16 and older in the United States, despite comprising only 14% of the women living in the country, according to the Centers for Diseases Control & Prevention. Additionally, Black transgender women are likelier to be diagnosed with HIV and are likelier, more than their peers, to go undiagnosed and untreated.
Through Setting the P.A.C.E., high-impact organizations and projects working to improve the HIV landscape receive specialized help that assists them in tackling barriers to equitable HIV health outcomes, and in receiving funding to support a variety of impactful projects to expand programs that provide culturally responsive HIV care training and leverage arts and media to engage local communities and address stigma.
Because of the urgency of HIV awareness in the Black queer community, more than 75% of the organizations selected for P.A.C.E grants are led by Black women. Funding is directed toward initiatives spearheaded by Black women.
āGileadās Setting the P.A.C.E. initiative will help empower organizations to expand custom programs tailored toward fighting stigma and expanding access to HIV care in their communities,ā said Telman.
District of Columbia
D.C. Council member proposes LGBTQ senior housing in Ward 2
Calls on mayor to include funding for project in FY 2025 budget
D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) is calling on Mayor Muriel Bowser to include $22.9 million in the cityās Fiscal Year 2025 budget to establish what Pinto calls the cityās āfirst affordable housing for LGBTQQIA+ seniors in Ward 2.ā
In a Feb. 27 letter to Bowser proposing specific amounts of city funding on a wide range of issues, including the Councilās recently passed crime bill, Pinto told Bowser the need for affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors is pressing.
āHaving faced decades of workplace and healthcare discrimination and been barred for most of their lives from marrying or having children, our LGBTQQIA+ seniors are more likely to face financial and health challenges and need housing and social supports as they age,ā Pinto states in her letter.
āAs the Council-funded task force meets to identify a site for a Ward 2 Senior Center, we should endeavor to locate a building that serves a dual purpose: a Ward 2 Senior Center as well as LGBTQQIA+ senior housing,ā Pinto states. DHCD [D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development] should leverage federal Community Development Block Grants funding to produce at least 80 affordable units for low-and-moderate-income seniors and provide meals and other supportive services,ā she wrote.
Pinto was referring to legislation passed by the D.C. Council and signed by the mayor creating a Wards 2 and 3 Senior Wellness Center Feasibility and Planning Task Force, which is assigned to āadvise and guideā the mayor, the Council, and other city government agencies in the development of senior wellness centers in Wards 2 and 3.
The task force, whose members are appointed by the mayor and the Council, has already met twice and has discussed one possible building in the Dupont Circle area that could be considered for a seniors wellness center and residence for seniors, according to John Fanning, a member of the staff of D.C. Council member Anita Bonds (D-At-Large). Bonds serves as chair of the Councilās Committee on Executive Administration and Labor, which oversees city programs pertaining to senior citizens.
Fanning, who is gay and a longtime D.C. LGBTQ rights advocate, and gay D.C. civic activist and former Dupont Circle Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Mike Silverstein, are among those who have been appointed to the senior wellness center task force.
Silverstein said LGBTQ community members in the Dupont Circle area are suggesting the task force and the mayor consider arranging for the city to purchase a building owned by Baltimoreās Johns Hopkins University at 1740 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., for the senior facility.
The university used the building for many years for its various educational programs before it moved its programs and offices into a newly renovated building on Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., near the U.S. Capitol.
āSince the mayorās budget hasnāt been released yet, thereās no telling whether thereās dedicated funding included for the purchase of this property,ā Fanning told the Washington Blade.
A spokesperson for Johns Hopkins Universityās D.C. office couldnāt immediately be reached to determine the price the university is asking for the building, which it announced last year it was planning to sell. The D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue states on its website that the 8-story building has been assessed for 2024 at a value of $35,894,220.
āCouncil member Pintoās request to the mayor is a vitally important first step toward establishment of LGBT+ affirmative housing in the historic epicenter of our community,ā Silverstein told the Blade. āThe need is clear, as so many of our seniors are struggling to age in place with soaring rents and inflation eating away at savings or just dealing with the effects of social isolation that comes with the loss of a partner or close friends,ā Silverstein said.
āThereās no question the Districtās budget is very tight and this project as envisioned would be a very heavy lift,ā Silverstein added. āBut just putting this request on the table and perhaps setting up a task force to seek a way forward is a giant step forward,ā he said.
Silverstein noted that a city-funded senior housing facility under existing law would have to be open to all city seniors, not just LGBTQ seniors, but he said it would be āLGBT+ affirmative,ā making it an important and welcoming place for LGBTQ seniors.
News surfaced this week that Bowser, who had planned to release her budget proposal to the Council this week, needed more time to finalize the budget and it would be released sometime later.
Mayoral spokesperson Daniel Gleick told the Blade last week that ideas like the Pinto LGBTQ-supportive housing proposal would be part of the budget process discussions by the mayor and the Council in the coming weeks.
Pintoās proposal for an LGBTQ-supportive senior housing facility in Ward 2 comes six months after Mayor Bowser and other city officials participated in a groundbreaking ceremony launching the construction of Maryās House for Older Adults, which is expected to be the cityās first home for LGBTQ seniors. The Maryās House facility, which is located in the cityās Fort Dupont neighborhood in Ward 7, will include 15 single-occupancy residential apartments, compared to the 80 apartments that Pintoās proposal calls for.
LGBTQ rights advocates nevertheless have called the Maryās House Project, which is receiving city funds as well as support from private donors, an important project organized and founded by longtime LGBTQ community advocate Imani Woody, who is expected to operate the facility when it opens.
-
Florida4 days ago
Professor at Baptist university in Virginia found dead in Florida gay saunaĀ
-
Maryland2 days ago
Maryland’s Joe Vogel would make history if elected to Congress
-
Opinions22 hours ago
Attacking Jews is latest Trump outrage
-
California5 days ago
First lady highlights attacks on LGBTQ rights at HRCās Los Angeles dinner