District of Columbia
Gay D.C. liquor board member says he was unfairly denied reappointment
Mayor’s office mum on allegation that Grandis was falsely accused of ethics violations
Gay longtime D.C. attorney Edward Grandis who has served for the past four years as a member of the city’s Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis (ABC) Board is calling on D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large) to investigate what he believes was the use of false and defamatory allegations against him to persuade Mayor Muriel Bowser against appointing him to a second four-year term on the ABC Board.
Grandis said he has reached out to McDuffie because he serves as chair of the Council’s Committee on Business and Economic Development, which oversees the ABC Board. Under D.C. law, members of the ABC Board are appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the Council.
In a Nov. 14 letter to McDuffie sent by email, a copy of which he sent to the Washington Blade, Grandis blames Steve Walker, the former director of the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Appointments, known as MOTA, which advises the mayor on whom to appoint to dozens of city boards and commissions, for failing to provide Grandis an opportunity to respond to allegations that he violated city ethics rules by representing business clients in his private law practice that are regulated by the ABC Board.
Grandis told McDuffie that in addition to failing to allow him to respond to the alleged ethics violations, Walker also failed to inform him and provide an opportunity to respond to another allegation that Grandis lives in Rehoboth Beach, Del., where he owns a home, and no longer lives in D.C., which would make him ineligible to serve on the ABC Board.
According to his letter to McDuffie, Walker informed Grandis that MOTA learned of the allegations from sources who appeared to have an ax to grind against Grandis, but Walker did not disclose this to Grandis until after Grandis repeatedly attempted to reach Walker by phone and email earlier this year to inform him that he would like to serve another term on the ABC Board.
Grandis says he believes he adequately refuted the allegations in subsequent email messages and phone conversations with Walker, but by that time Walker and ABC Board Chairperson Donovan W. Anderson had already advised the mayor or her top aides not to reappoint Grandis and to replace him with another nominee.
He notes that while he spends time in Rehoboth Beach, like countless other D.C. residents, he is a legal District resident and fully meets the city’s residency requirements for an appointed position on the ABC Board.
He also notes that details of his law practice and some of his clients were carefully examined and cleared by the D.C. Board of Ethics and Government Accountability (BEGA) at the time he was first nominated for his ABC Board appointment in 2019. Nothing has changed since that time to rise to the level of an ethics violation, Grandis says.
“To say I was surprised by such defamatory accusations by Mr. Walker, that called into question my decades of private service to my clients as well as my decades of public service to residents of the District, does not reflect the anxiety such falsehoods cause,” Grandis told McDuffie in his Nov. 14 letter. “I don’t think the Mayor, who knows me, would have believed that I was unethical,” his letter continues.
“I bring this to your attention because I want to defend my reputation,” he wrote. “I also want you to know that I do not believe the Mayor or you, if known, would have tolerated these abusive actions by Mr. Walker or Mr. Anderson.”
Grandis told the Blade that he respects Mayor Bowser’s authority to make the final decision on whom to appoint to the ABC Board and other boards and commissions. But he said his concern is that the mayor may have based her decision in his case on false information. He said he has reached out to people with ties to the mayor’s office to discuss his concerns, including the possibility of his being considered for one of as many as four ABC Board positions that remain vacant.
He told McDuffie in his letter that he received a phone call saying the so-called ethical allegations were not pursued. “The reason that I was not considered for another term was because Donovan Anderson, the ABC Board chairperson, requested that I not be renominated to the ABC Board,” he says in his letter. Grandis told the Blade he did not want to publicly speculate why Anderson opposes his reappointment.
City records show that Walker, who was appointed to the position of director of the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Appointments in 2015, changed jobs in October of this year to become Deputy Chief of Staff at the Office of the Mayor. But Grandis said Walker continued to interact with him after beginning his new job.
In his most recent phone conversation with him, Walker “ended the call stating that I was not to speak to anyone about these accusations or about my desire to be renominated to the ABC Board,” Grandis told McDuffie in his letter. “Being told by Mr. Walker to stay silent only made me more determined to attempt to clear my name with the Mayor,” Grandis says in his letter.
The Blade has sent email messages to Walker, ABC Board Chair Anderson, and Bowser spokesperson Susana Castillo providing details of Grandis’s concerns and allegations about being unfairly dropped from consideration for reappointment to the ABC Board and asking the three to respond as well as to disclose whether they believe Grandis’s allegations have merit. As of the end of the business day of Nov. 21, Walker had not responded.
Anderson replied with a brief message saying only that he had forwarded the Blade’s inquiry to the “Agency” for a formal response. By the Agency, he appeared to be referring to the D.C. Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA), which sometimes responds to press inquiries sent to the ABC Board. As of Nov. 21, the Blade had not heard back from an ABCA spokesperson.
Mayoral spokesperson Castillo twice responded to the Blade with short messages saying she was in the process of arranging for a response from the mayor’s office to the Blade’s inquiry, but as of Nov. 21, more than a week after the Blade first contacted her, no response was received.
Also not immediately responding to a request by the Blade for comment on Grandis’s concerns was Council member McDuffie’s press spokesperson, Jose Sousa.
“As I discussed with you, I had looked forward to continuing the work of the Board on alcoholic beverages and cannabis to implement policies that benefit District residents,” Grandis concludes in his letter to McDuffie. “Thank you for the excellent work of your Committee.”
Grandis told the Blade that as an out gay man who is familiar with the D.C. LGBTQ nightlife scene he believes he brings to the ABC Board a perspective and knowledge that has and can continue to help to render fair and informed decisions on LGBTQ-related businesses with liquor licenses.
Also expressing concern about the apparent decision not to reappoint Grandis to the ABC Board is D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2). Pinto told the Blade that in addition to Grandis’s role as a gay member of the board, he also has provided representation on the board for Ward 2, where Grandis has lived and operated his law practice for more than 30 years. Pinto, who spoke to the Blade about the Grandis matter last month while attending the 17th Street High Heel Race, said she planned to contact the mayor’s office about the matter.
D.C. Council records show that the mayor’s office, through MOTA, submitted the nomination in October of Silas H. Grant Jr., a former member of McDuffie’s Council staff, to replace Grandis on the ABC Board. Council records show the Council voted to approve Grant’s nomination on or around Nov. 2. Although Grandis’s term on the ABC Board expired on May 3 of this year, under board rules he continued as a board member until his replacement was confirmed.
Grandis told the Blade he believes Grant, who is from Ward 5, is highly qualified to serve on the board and he has no objections to Grant. But Grandis points out that there are now just three members on the ABC Board, including Grant, Chairperson Anderson, who represents Ward 8, and Ward 7 representative James Short Jr. The board’s website says under city law there may be as many as seven ABC Board members, but the board can operate with a quorum of just three members.
With four vacant seats on the board, Grandis says there was no reason for Grant to be named as his replacement rather than to be appointed to one of the vacant seats other than as a sign of animus toward him by Board Chair Anderson and Walker.
District of Columbia
D.C. police investigating threat of shooting at WorldPride festival
Police chief says weekend was ‘success without incident’
D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a June 9 press conference that police investigators are looking for a man who reportedly threatened to “shoot up” the WordPride festival on Sunday, June 8, inside the fence-enclosed festival grounds.
Smith, who joined D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser at the press conference to discuss public safety issues, said aside from the shooting threat, WorldPride events took place “without an incident’ and called WorldPride 2025 D.C. a success.
“I think last evening at the festival footprint there was an individual inside the festival who said there was an individual who was there and that they were going to shoot up the place in some terminology they used,” Smith told news media reporters.
“As you know, the event went off without incident,” she said. “We did have appropriate resources down there to address it. We did put out a photo of the individual – white male. That’s all we have right now. But our team is working very diligently to find out who that individual is.”
Smith added that D.C. police made 15 arrests during the WorldPride weekend with at least 23 violent crimes that occurred across the city but which she said were not related to WorldPride.
“There was a lot going on,” she said. “But I’m so grateful we were able to have a WorldPride 2025 in this city that was very successful.”
In response to reporters’ questions, Bowser said she regretted that an incident of violence took place in Dupont Circle Park shortly after she persuaded the U.S. Park Service to reverse its earlier decision to close Dupont Circle Park during WorldPride weekend.
The mayor was referring to an incident early Saturday evening, June 7, in which two juveniles were stabbed inside the park following a fight, according to D.C. police. Police said the injuries were nonfatal.
Bowser noted that she agreed with community activists and nearby residents that Dupont Circle Park, which has been associated with LGBTQ events for many years, should not be closed during WorldPride.
Park Service officials have said their reason for closing the park was that acts of vandalism and violence had occurred there during past LGBTQ Pride weekends, even though LGBTQ Pride organizers have said the vandalism and violent acts were not associated with Pride events.
“I think if I were standing here this morning and we hadn’t opened up the park you would be asking me were there any requests for not pushing hard to have a D.C. park opened that’s important to the LGBT community during Pride,” Bowser told reporters.
“So, any time that there is harm to someone, and our responsibility, we regard it as our number one responsibility to keep the city safe and keep from harm’s way, certainly I have some regrets,” she said. “But I know I was working very hard to balance what our community was calling for with our preparations. And that was the decision I made,” she said, referring to her call to reopen Dupont Circle Park.
Bowser also noted that the National Park Service would not likely have agreed to reverse its decision to reopen Dupont Circle Park if an event had not been planned to take place there over the WorldPride weekend.
She was referring to a Saturday, June 7, D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation “DISCO” party in Dupont Circle Park, which took place after the decision to reopen the park.
“Step Outside, Feel The Beat, And Shine With Pride,” a flyer announcing the event states.
District of Columbia
WorldPride wraps up after epic weekend of events
Historic LGBTQ celebration brings color, music, activism to nation’s capital
After more than two years of preparation, thousands of volunteers, countless LGBTQ community members and allies, queer celebrities, and hundreds of events across the District, WorldPride in Washington has come to a close.
“It has been an extremely powerful three weeks,” Ryan Bos, executive director of the Capital Pride Alliance, told the Blade on Sunday at the International March on Washington for Freedom. “This weekend has been well above expectations in relation to the energy and the crowds.”
WorldPride celebrations were set to kick off on May 31 with Shakira’s “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour,” but following reports of stage issues, the Colombian superstar canceled her D.C. show — and her Boston stop the day prior.
The festivities got into full swing on June 4 with the 2025 Human Rights Conference. Held at the J.W. Marriott, the three-day gathering brought together more than 800 attendees, including Jessica Stern, Spanish Sen. Carla Antonelli, Peruvian Congresswoman Susel Paredes, and Mariann Edgar Budde of the Washington National Cathedral.
Following the conference, Capital Pride hosted the annual Capital Pride Honors and Gala, recognizing outstanding figures in LGBTQ advocacy. Honorees included Cathy Renna, Jerry St. Louis, Ernest Hopkins, Lamar Braithwaite, Rev. Dr. Donna Claycomb Sokol, Kriston Pumphrey, Gia Martinez, Kraig Williams, and SMYAL.
As the week went on, the tone shifted from formal to festive. Venues across the city filled with partygoers draped in glitter and rainbows, dancing and celebrating love in all forms. From the 17th Street Block Party and Full Bloom celebration to Kinetic’s dance events and the Pride on the Pier boat parade and fireworks (presented by the Washington Blade), nearly every corner of D.C. turned into a dancefloor. The Wharf was transformed into a Pride dance party on both Friday and Saturday nights for the Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier and culminated in the city’s only Pride fireworks display.
The annual Pride Parade was a standout. The nearly six-hour-long march drew hundreds of thousands to 14th Street, stretching toward the Capitol. A 1,000-foot rainbow flag led the way as parade grand marshals Renée Rapp and Laverne Cox waved to cheering crowds. Confetti, beads, condoms, and joy poured from elaborate floats.
The parade fed into the WorldPride Street Festival and Concert, which for the first time spanned two days. The festival featured hundreds of booths — from queer merch and leather vendors to nonprofit fundraisers — and drew thousands of LGBTQ attendees under sunny skies.
Evenings wrapped with free concerts headlined by LGBTQ talent and allies, including Cynthia Erivo and Doechii. Other crowd favorites included Khalid , David Archuleta, and Kristine W.
At the RFK Stadium grounds, the WorldPride Music Festival drew thousands for powerhouse performances by Troye Sivan, RuPaul, Kim Petras, and Renée Rapp. Under glowing rainbow lights, fans danced and sang through the night.
Despite security concerns, no major issues were reported, though a few minor incidents occurred.
One of the biggest pre-event concerns was safety for LGBTQ attendees amid rising anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and anti-trans policies from the Trump administration. Multiple countries issued travel warnings for trans and gender-nonconforming individuals visiting the U.S., but turnout — including trans folks and their allies — remained strong and visible throughout.
Another flashpoint was the temporary closure of Dupont Circle, a cornerstone of D.C.’s — and the nation’s — LGBTQ rights movement. The U.S. Park Service initially closed the park, citing the need to “secure the park, deter potential violence, reduce the risk of destructive acts and decrease the need for extensive law enforcement presence” — despite the MPD chief’s request to keep it open. Strong public backlash led to a reversal, and soon the park was full of rainbow-clad LGBTQ people celebrating freely.
On Saturday night following the parade, two juveniles were stabbed in Dupont Circle. However, MPD later confirmed the incident was unrelated to WorldPride celebrations.
The weekend ended with the International Rally and March on Washington for Freedom. Hundreds of LGBTQ people and allies gathered at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to hear prominent activists speak on why Pride is still essential in 2025. Speakers called out rising hate and violence — and named Trump directly. As rain began to fall, the crowd only grew, marching from the Memorial to the Capitol, signs raised high, ending WorldPride as the first Pride began — as a protest.
District of Columbia
Two juveniles stabbed in Dupont Circle Park hours after U.S. Park Service reopens it
Early police reports don’t indicate connection to nearby WorldPride events
D.C. police are investigating a stabbing incident inside Dupont Circle Park early Saturday evening, June 7, in which two juvenile males were injured about 12 hours after U.S. Park Service workers removed a fence they installed closing the park.
Park Service officials said they initially decided to close Dupont Circle Park during the concluding weekend of WorldPride 2025 D.C. out of concern over possible destruction of property and violence. They cited incidents of vandalism and violent acts that occurred in the park during previous Capital Pride weekends over the past several years.
Capital Pride Alliance officials have said the destruction of property and reported acts of violence were not associated with any Pride events.
Capital Pride Alliance organizes most of D.C.’s annual LGBTQ Pride events and is the lead organizer of WorldPride 2025.
Around 5 a.m. on Saturday, June 7, Park Service workers began removing the fencing they had put up one day earlier to close Dupont Circle Park and reopened the park.
A short time later on Saturday the National Park Service and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser released a joint statement saying it was decided that the park should be reopened and the fence taken down following strong objections to the closing by nearby community leaders, including at least two gay Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners.
“We are pleased that the mayor’s office and the National Park Service could work together overnight on a solution that protects the historic features of this park while also ensuring the safety of all who enjoy it,” the statement says. “We want this weekend to be a safe and fun celebration in our nation’s capital – and one that includes one of the best parks and community spaces in our city, Dupont Circle,” it says.
In response to a request from the Washington Blade for information about the stabbing incident, a D.C. police spokesperson said a more detailed incident report had not yet been completed but released this statement:
“At 7:02 p.m. a stabbing occurred in Dupont Circle Park during a fight between groups of juveniles. Two juvenile males were transported to area hospitals conscious and breathing.”
The spokesperson, Public Affairs Specialist Freddie Talbert, included in his statement information about an unrelated shooting that occurred a short time later just outside Dupont Circle Park.
“At 7:52 p.m., after MPD officers cleared Dupont Circle Park, a shooting occurred in the 1300 block of 19th Street, N.W. immediately south of the circle. One adult male was transported conscious and breathing with a gunshot wound to the foot.”
No further information was provided, and Talbert didn’t immediately respond to a follow-up question from the Blade asking if police investigators knew whether the victims and perpetrators in the two incidents were in any way involved with WorldPride events.
At the time of the stabbing and shooting the WorldPride parade was nearing its end, with the last parade contingents traveling several blocks away from Dupont Circle on 14th Street from T Street to Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. The first day of the two-day WorldPride Festival was also still taking place on Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. from 9th Street to 3rd Street, N.W.
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