Maryland
Maryland’s Trone, Alsobrooks pledge to champion LGBTQ rights in U.S. Senate
Sen. Cardin to retire at end of term

The two leading Democratic candidates who are running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) have pledged to continue to champion LGBTQ rights in the U.S. Senate.
Jared DeWese, a spokesperson for Congressman David Trone’s campaign, in a statement to the Washington Blade noted the Total Wine & More founder is a member of the LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus and co-sponsored the Equality Act, which would add sexual orientation and gender identity to federal civil rights law.
DeWese pointed out that Trone voted in favor of the Respect for Marriage Act and co-sponsored a U.S. House of Representatives resolution in support of transgender rights. DeWese also highlighted that Trone helped secure $530,000 in grants from the Department of Homeland Security to develop violence prevention programs for LGBTQ youth in Montgomery County.
Total Wine & More began to offer benefits to employees’ same-sex partners more than 20 years ago. (Maryland voters in 2012 approved the state’s same-sex marriage law.)
“David Trone is the most outspoken and long-standing supporter of the LGBTQ+ community in this race,” said DeWese. “Before marriage equality was a reality in Maryland and across the country, David extended partner benefits to all employees at the company he founded, Total Wine & More, because he believes that equal rights are the bedrock of American democracy and must be extended to everyone.”
DeWese further described Trone as a “consistent ally” in Congress.
“Congressman Trone’s record aligns with his personal values and those of the voters of Maryland, and they can expect that from him in the Senate,” said DeWese.
Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks in a statement to the Blade noted she supported Maryland’s marriage equality law in 2012 and “will continue to stand up for the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans, including the right to marry, grow their families, and live free from discrimination, in the Senate.”
Alsobrooks is among those who attended a pro-marriage equality fundraiser at state Del. Anne Kaiser (D-Montgomery County)’s home in October 2012.
The Montgomery County Democrat last week told the Washington Blade during a telephone interview that her now wife worked with Alsobrooks when she was Prince George’s County state’s attorney. Kaiser said Alsobrooks encouraged her wife to propose to her, and toasted them at their wedding in 2013.
“A lot of people were good personally, but not so much publicly,” said Kaiser, referring to Alsobrooks’s support for marriage equality before the 2012 referendum. “She was for marriage equality before it was cool to be for marriage equality.”
Alsobrooks in her statement to the Blade said she will “strongly oppose Republican efforts to undermine equality and promote discrimination including the recent wave of anti-trans legislation in some Republican-led legislatures.”
Trone, company made donations to anti-LGBTQ Republicans
Cardin earlier this year announced he will retire from the Senate after three terms.
Gov. Wes Moore; Lieutenant Gov. Aruna Miller; Comptroller Brooke Lierman; U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.); Maryland Congressmen Glenn Ivey, Steny Hoyer and Kweisi Mfume, Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott, Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, Maryland House of Delegates Speaker Adrienne Jones, state Sen. Mary Washington (D-Baltimore City), Somerset Mayor Jeffrey Slavin and Howard County Registrar of Wills Byron Macfarlane are among the officials who have endorsed Alsobrooks. Emily’s List and the Congressional Black Caucus PAC are two of the organizations that have also backed her campaign.
Maryland Congressman C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger and state Del. Kris Fair (D-Frederick County) are two of the dozens of current and former elected officials in the state and across the country who have endorsed Trone.
IBEW Locals 24, 26 and 307 and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers have also backed his campaign.
Campaign finance records indicate Trone and/or his wife have previously supported anti-LGBTQ Republicans. These include a $38,000 donation to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s election campaign in 2014, two $4,000 contributions to former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory in 2008 and 2012 and $2,500 to U.S. Sen. Tom Tillis (R-N.C.).
Total Wine & More between 2007-2022 contributed $272,971 to Republican officials, candidates and state parties.
Trone in 2015 stepped down as the company’s CEO. His campaign on Tuesday noted to the Blade that he “has had no involvement in the company’s contributions since becoming a member of Congress.”
“Prior to stepping down from Total Wine & More, David made contributions to support his company’s efforts to protect tens of thousands of jobs across the nation,” it said.
“While our opponents may attempt to distract from David’s proven track record as an ally and advocate for LGBTQIA+ Americans, the facts are clear: David Trone is the only candidate for United States Senate in Maryland who has taken bold action to support the LGBTQIA+ community,” added the campaign. “That’s why the Human Rights Campaign has given David a 100 percent rating and was honored to endorse him in 2022.”
His campaign further noted Trone “has supported causes to strengthen and expand mental health access for the LGBTQIA+ community across the country.” They include $8.5 million in donations to the Democratic Party and pro-LGBTQ candidates. Trone, according to his campaign, has “also been a decades-long supporter of the ACLU, one of the first organizations to fight for marriage equality and equal rights in the nation.”
Alsobrooks disavows anti-gay comments made at her church
Prince George’s County Councilwoman Krystal Oriadha, who is bisexual, in June criticized the decision not to hold a ceremony for the raising of the Pride flag over the county administrative building in Upper Marlboro.
Pastor John K. Jenkins, Sr., of First Baptist Church of Glenarden, the Upper Marlboro church that Alsobrooks attends, in 2012 urged his congregants to vote against Maryland’s marriage equality law. Shirley Caesar, a well-known gospel singer, during a 2017 appearance at the church defended Kim Burrell, another gospel singer who referred to the “perverted homosexual lifestyle” in an online sermon that has been removed from YouTube and social media.
“You (Burrell) should’ve said something four years ago when our president made that stuff alright,” said Caesar.
Alsobrooks’s campaign told the Blade she “does not agree with those sentiments.”
Maryland
Silver Spring holds annual Pride In The Plaza
‘Today means inclusion. It means to build resilience’

Silver Spring’s annual Pride in the Plaza event took place on Sunday to celebrate the LGBTQ community and emphasize inclusion and resilience.
“Today means inclusion. It means to build resilience, love,” Robyn Woods, program and outreach director for Live In Your Truth, which organized the event, said. “I mean, just being surrounded by the community and so many great entrepreneurs, business owners, and just being a part of this whole rainbow coalition that we call the LGBTQIA to be about.”
With the event being her first time organizing for Live In Your Truth, Woods said she felt emotional to see the support and love at the event.
“Some people (are) bringing out their children, their babies, their grandparents,” Woods said. “It’s a lot more allies here than anything else. That type of support to me means so much more than just support from my community; just outside support, inside support, so much support around it, so much love. Everyone’s smiling outside, helping each other.”
Attendees of the event were able to head over to the Family Fun Zone, an air-conditioned Pride Cool Down Lounge, or watch live drag performances in the main stage area.
Along with entertainment and a shaved-ice stand, rows of information tables stood along the plaza, including FreeState Justice, the Washington Spirit, Trans Maryland, Moco Pride Center, and the Heartwood Program, an organization that offers support, therapy, education, and resources to the LGBTQ community.
“I want people to know about our services, and I love what we have to offer,” Jessica Simon, psychotherapist for Heartwood Program’s Gender Wellness Clinic, said. “I (also) want to be part of a celebration with the community, and so it feels good to be here with other people who have something they want to give to the community.”
She added that within today’s political climate, to which she called an “antidote to shame,” it’s important to be celebrating Pride.
“There’s a lot of demonization of LGBTQI people,” Siena Iacuvazzi, facilitator for Maryland Trans Unity, said. “(Pride) is part of the healing process.”
Iacuvazzi said she was taught to be ashamed of who she was growing up, but being a part of a community helped her flourish in the future.
“I was taught how to hate myself. I was taught that I was an abomination to God,” she said. “But being a community is like understanding that there are people who have experienced the same thing, and they’re flourishing. They’re flourishing because they’re willing to stand up for themselves as human beings and discover themselves and understand what’s true for themselves.”
She added that Pride allows for a mutual understanding to take place.
“It’s more of a sense of belonging … and just taking that home and understanding you’re not alone,” Iacuvazzi said. “We’re each taking our own journey — we’re not putting that on each other. It’s just walking away with a sense of belonging and humanity.”
Similar to Iacuvazzi, Woods said she hopes attendees’ biggest takeaways would be family, fun, resilience, and pride.
“Being proud of yourself, being happy for who you are, and representation and how much it matters,” she continued. “And I think all these young people that are walking around here get to see versions of themselves, but older. They get to see so many different lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual people that are successful, that are showing love, that care, and it’s not how we’re portrayed in the media. It’s lovely to see it out here. (It’s) like we’re one big old, happy family.”
Maryland
Wes Moore hosts annual Pride reception
‘Nobody should have to justify their own humanity in Maryland’

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore on Wednesday hosted his annual Pride month reception at Government House in Annapolis.
“One of the things that makes me so proud to be the governor of the great state of Maryland is that we are a safe haven for the LGBTQIA+ community,” Moore. “And I want to be clear that is a reputation we intend to keep.”
Organizations like FreeState Justice and the New Wave Singers of Baltimore gathered in attendance as speakers, including Moore, Maryland first lady Dawn Moore and FreeState Justice Executive Director Philip Westry spoke to the crowd of around 175 people.
In his speech, Moore acknowledged the accomplishments made with organizations and individuals within the audience, including passing the Trans Health Equity Act within his first 100 days in office.
A month after his first 100 days in office, Moore emphasized how an executive order protecting gender-affirming care in Maryland was signed, as well as more recent initiatives to decriminalize HIV and promote best practices in HIV prevention and care.
“But I want to be clear: we cannot — and will not — stop fighting. We must stand up and protect all of our fellow Americans — lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual … all identities,” Moore said. “Because what we are seeing out of this new White House is the latest chapter in a long playbook of demonizing specific groups for political gain. It isn’t just cruel and immoral — it also masks the humanity of our fellow Marylanders. Nobody should have to justify their own humanity in Maryland. So we are going to fight.”
Maryland
Thousands expected at Pride in the Plaza in Silver Spring
Annual event celebrates love, authenticity, collective liberation

Montgomery County’s annual Pride in the Plaza will take place from 12-8 p.m. on June 29 in Veterans Plaza in downtown Silver Spring. The new theme is “We Will Not Be Silenced. We Will Not Be Erased.”
Live In Your Truth, in partnership with MoCo Pride Center, Inc., Montgomery County Pride Family, and Montgomery County HHS, will organize the event that is expected to draw thousands of attendees and will celebrate love, authenticity, and collective liberation.
“We have two stages, tons of wellness vendors, queer-owned businesses, and enabling partners who are all there, affirming our LGBTQIA+ community members,” Live In Your Truth CEO Phillip Alexander Downie. “And this year it is even larger.”
A multitude of events and activities are set for attendees to participate in, including a drag story hour, face painting, science activities, and community showcases, like The Emmy-nominated “Drag Duels Season 4” finale hosted by Live In Your Truth — a live competition of show-stopping performances, creativity, and queer excellence.
Prominent speakers like Montgomery Council President Kate Stewart, Council Vice President Will Jawando, and Councilmember Evan Glass will also be in attendance at the event.
“Specifically, here in Montgomery County, our elected officials have your back,” Downie said. “The County Council voted unanimously to fund this work two years in a row, and so it’s like our leadership wants you to know that you absolutely belong in these spaces, in our classrooms and in our collective communities and futures.”
There will also be special zones placed throughout the event, like the Family Fun Zone and Pride Cool Down Lounge, where attendees can take a chance to rest with cool air conditioning. There will also be free onsite STI testing, health screenings, and community resource stations.
“If you go through the orgs, you’ll notice that even our sponsors are very mission-oriented, like our main stage sponsor, Gilead, who is always promoting prep and wellness within our LGBTQIA+ communities,” Downie said.
With national federal funding cuts, Downie said these organizations want to show the LGBTQ community that they’re here for them.
“(They’re) trying to prevent disease and outbreak within our communities, and especially focused on saying that Black LGBTQIA+ lives matter, that trans rights are human rights,” Downie said. “And that all of our queer siblings, especially our BIPOC siblings, who are under disproportionate attack right now, especially in trans and gender expansive communities, that they all absolutely matter and that they belong in these spaces and in the fabric of our society.”
Downie said within today’s political climate, it’s “essential” to provide access to resources and community.
“I mean, for some it’s life-saving,” Downie added. “I hope that people feel very seen (and affirmed.) I hope that they walk away knowing that even if there is a national rhetoric that is seeking to silence them, seeking to erase them, seeking to dismantle human rights from our most vulnerable communities, that (they) absolutely belong in our spaces.”
During a tumultuous time with a lot of rhetoric, Downie said it’s important for the LGBTQ community to know people care.
“And I always say this, ‘You have not met all of the people who are going to love you,’ yet you absolutely belong and always love the new truth,” Downie said. “And I really mean that for our community members. There is such a beautiful future ahead for them, where they can find community, love, and support, even amongst all of the crazy chaos that’s taking place. Hopefully, people will find tribes and community members here and just have a fantastic time.”
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