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Queer man flees El Salvador, finds refuge in D.C.

Xander participated in State Department’s Welcome Corps program

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(Washington Blade photo by Lou Chibbaro, Jr.)

AĀ queer manĀ from El Salvador who participated in a State Department program that allows American citizens to help refugees resettle in the U.S. is now living in D.C.

Xander, who is not his real name, on Dec. 18 told the Washington Blade he left El Salvador because he and his family “found ourselves in dangerous situations.”

“I suffered certain (instances) of discrimination and verbal abuses from people who were connected with criminal groups,” said Xander. “I endured that situation for a long time, until I decided to stop all of this.” 

Xander said a neighbor beat his mother and grandmother and gang members threatened them. Xander told the Blade he had a second incident with the neighbor’s son.

“The son did not attack me, but I was still afraid because his mother threatened me with gangs, that they were going to take care of us,” he said. “I received ridicule, some of which were partly homophobic, from my neighbor, and it is known that in El Salvador there are no laws that protect people like me.”

Xander said he lived in a neighborhood “where calling the police was prohibited by criminal groups, which is why I began to seek help because I feared for my life.”

“I feared being followed to my place of work, or that my family or me would be murdered,” he said.

Xander told the Blade his mother and grandmother did not leave their home because they were afraid. 

“I had to seek psychological help because there was a lot of stress and thoughts in my head,” said Xander. “To this day I cannot hear people or screaming because I remember the day when my mother and my grandmother were beaten.”

Xander left El Salvador on Nov. 16, 2023, and arrived in the U.S. on the same day. He said his mother and grandmother remain in El Salvador because they “did not want to travel to be safe.”

Discrimination, violence against LGBTQ, intersex Salvadorans widespread

The State Department’s 2022 human rights report notes discrimination and violence against LGBTQ and intersex Salvadorans is “widespread,” even though the country’s legal code contains enhanced penalties for hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Activists in El Salvador with whom the Blade has spoken say authorities remain reluctant to apply them.

The Salvadoran capital of San Salvador from El BoquerĆ³n Volcano (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

Rainbow Railroad and the Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration are among the organizations that have partnered with the State Department to implement the Welcome Corps program it launched last year.

Xander said a migrant organization connected him to Rainbow Railroad, which facilitated his participation in the program.

“I decided to live with a family that was going to give me what I needed for a few months,” he said. “They have been my second family.”

Xander added he has felt “very respected” since he arrived in D.C.

“Nobody asks about my orientation, much less discriminates against me,” he said. “The support that these programs offer is undoubtedly much to be admired. They give you an opportunity to be happy, to live your life and to see things from a different perspective.”

“I am not alone,” added Xander. “Thank God I am with a family that has given me a place to live, I have eaten, and I have gotten to know beautiful places in Washington, D.C. They have treated me with a lot of care, understanding and with great respect.”

Xander said he hopes to graduate from university and work in a health-related profession.

“I also want to begin building my own life, find a good job, learn the English language very well, acquire new knowledge, help others and have the opportunity to get my green card and American citizenship,” he added. “I would like to be able to help more people like me, or whoever needs it.”

Xander told the Blade he hopes to have the chance to travel.

“One of my most personal (goals) is to return (to El Salvador) to see and hug my grandmother and mother,” he said.

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District of Columbia

D.C. gay bar Uproar issues GoFundMe appeal

Message says business struggling to pay rent, utilities

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Uproar has launched a GoFundMe appeal to help pay rent and utilities.

The D.C. gay bar Uproar located in the cityā€™s Shaw neighborhood at 639 Florida Ave., N.W., has issued a GoFundMe appeal seeking financial support as it struggles to pay rent and utilities.

The GoFundMe appeal, which was posted by Uproarā€™s owner Tammy Truong, says its goal is to raise $100,000. As of Dec. 10, the posting says $4,995 had been raised.

ā€œFor over nine years Uproar has been an integral part of the D.C. LGBTQIA+ community,ā€ the GoFundMe message says. ā€œIt has been a place of refuge for many people and has been a space where people have been allowed to express themselves freely.ā€

The message adds, ā€œWe have recently faced unexpected challenges and are asking for help from the community that weā€™ve given so much to. We want to be able to continue to pay and support our staff and our community. All donations will be used to pay for these unexpected costs and will be used to improve the space for staff and patrons.ā€

On its website, Uproar provides further details of the unexpected costs it says it is now faced with.

ā€œDue to significant increases in insurance costs for 2025, weā€™ve had to deplete our reserves from our summer sales,ā€ the website message says. ā€œAs a result, we are now struggling to cover rent and utility costs through the winter.ā€

The message adds, ā€œOur top priority is to ensure that our amazing staff, who are the heart and soul of Uproar, are fully supported. We are committed to keeping them fully employed and scheduled during this difficult time so they can continue to provide for themselves and  their families.ā€

Uproar, which caters to a clientele of the cityā€™s leather and bear communities, has faced challenges in the past when the local D.C. Advisory Neighborhood Commission voted to oppose the routine renewal of its liquor license.

In November 2019, ANC 1B voted unanimously to oppose the license renewal of Uproar and 22 other liquor serving establishments in the U Street-Florida Avenue area on grounds that they have a negative impact on ā€œpeace, order, and quietā€ in the surrounding neighborhoods. The cityā€™s liquor board nevertheless approved the license renewals for Uproar and most of the other establishments.

Local nightlife advocates criticized the ANCā€™s action, saying it was based on an anti-business and anti-nightlife bias that requires bars such as Uproar to expend large sums of money on retaining lawyers to help them overcome the license opposition.

The Uproar GoFundMe page can be accessed here:

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District of Columbia

Mayor, police chief highlight ā€˜significantā€™ drop in D.C. crime

Officials cite arrests in two LGBTQ-related cases

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D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said the improved crime data this year was due to a combined effort in adopting new programs to fight crime. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser joined District Police Chief Pamela Smith and Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice Lindsey Appiah in crediting a series of stepped-up crime fighting and crime reduction programs put in place over the past year with bringing about a 35 percent reduction in violent crime in the city over the past year.

Bowser, Smith, and Appiah highlighted what they called a significant drop in overall crime in the nationā€™s capital at a Dec. 9 news conference held at the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department headquartersā€™ Joint Operations Command Center.

Among other things, the city officials presented slides on a large video screen showing that in addition to the 35 percent drop in overall violent crime during the past year, the number of carjackings dropped by 48 percent, homicides declined by 29 percent, robberies declined by 39 percent, and assaults with a dangerous weapon also dropped by 29 percent.

ā€œI want to start by thanking MPD and I want to thank all of our public safety teams, local and federal, and the agencies that support their work,ā€ Bowser said in noting that the improved crime data this year was due to a combined effort in adopting several new programs to fight crime.

Bowser also thanked D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) who introduced legislation backed by the mayor and approved by the Council in March of this year called the Secure D.C. bill, which includes a wide range of new crime fighting and crime prevention initiatives.

In response to a question from the Washington Blade, Chief Smith said she believes the stepped-up crime fighting efforts played some role in D.C. police making arrests in two recent cases involving D.C. gay men who were victims of a crime of violence.  

In one of the cases, 22-year-old Sebastian Thomas Robles Lascarro, a gay man, was attacked and beaten on Oct. 27 of this year by as many as 15 men and women at the D.C. McDonaldā€™s restaurant at 14th and U Street, N.W., with some of them shouting anti-gay slurs. D.C. police, who listed the incident as a suspected hate crime, arrested a 16-year-old male in connection with the case on a charge of Assault with Significant Bodily Injury.

The other case involved a robbery and assault that same day of gay DJ and hairstylist Bryan Smith, 41, who died 11 days later on Nov. 7 from head injuries that police have yet to link to the robbery. Police  have since arrested two teenage boys, ages 14 and 16, who have been charged with robbery. 

Smith said the police departmentā€™s Special Liaison Branch, which includes the LGBT Liaison Unit, will continue to investigate hate crimes targeting the LGBTQ community.

ā€œAnd so, I think that what we will do is what we have been doing, which is really making sure that the reports are coming in or the incident reports are coming in and weā€™re ensuring that the Special Liaison Branch is getting out to the communities to ensure that those types of hate crimes are not increasing across our city,ā€ she said.

Smith added, ā€œWe will continue to work with the community, work with our members, our LGBTQ, our other groups and organizations to ensure that we are getting the right information out and making sure that people, when they see something, they say something to share that information with us.ā€

Data posted on the D.C. police website show from Jan. 1-Oct. 31, 2024, a total of 132 hate crimes were reported in the District. Among those, 22 were based on the victimā€™s sexual orientation, and 18 were based on the victimā€™s gender identity or expression.

During that same period, 47 hate crimes based on the victimā€™s ethnicity or national origin were reported, 33 were reported based on the victimā€™s race, and six were based on the victimā€™s religion. 

The data show that for the same period in 2023, 36 sexual orientation related hate crimes were reported, and 13 gender identity or expression cases were reported.

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District of Columbia

Dupontā€™s Soho Coffee and Tea closes

Neighborhood institution holds fond memories for many older gay residents

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Soho today, emptied of tables and artwork. (Photo courtesy Larry Ray)

Beloved Dupont Circle Soho Coffee and Tea has closed unexpectedly.

During the early evening of Nov. 25, Soho Coffee and Tea employees began taking down artwork and menus of the establishment. Within 12 hours, everything from the rolling counters to the patio furniture had disappeared. Today, only the yellow walls remain.

On May 30, 2018, Eduard Badalyan received his new business license: Group Soho and closed on the sale of Soho Tea and Coffee at 2150 P St., N.W., in Dupont Circle. Eduardā€™s sister Liana Badalyan became the manager. Conveniently, they lived in the neighborhood.

Eduard Badalyan was born in Yerevan, Armenia and earned his masterā€™s in Public Administration. Liana had experience in the service industry. She was front office manager for the Remington Hotel Marriot in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica, Calif.   

So the stage was set for a great neighborhood coffee and tea shop.

Owner Edward and manager Liana transformed it into a clean and organized establishment. But business gradually fell off and the rent continued to rise so Edward closed Soho unexpectedly.  

For many older gay residents, the closing brought back fond memories when Soho Coffee and Tea was the gay hub of West Dupont Circle. At that time, 22nd and P Streets, N.W., aka West Dupont Circle, was D.C.ā€™s gayborhood. Across the street from Soho was a section of Rock Creek Park known as P Street Beach, a large grassy area perfect for sunbathing. For many years starting in 1972, this was home for the unofficial Gay Pride celebration. In fact, for many years the Gay Pride Parade kicked off at 22nd and P streets.

Adjacent to the so-called P Street Beach was the Black Forest, a popular cruising area occasionally raided by the National Park Police. They chopped down many bushes and trees so their cruisers could drive directly onto P Street Beach.

Entrepreneurs and lesbians Helene Bloom and Fran Levine opened Soho in 1994. At that time, this was the center of many gay bars including the dance bar Badlands (1984-2002 which then became Apex) on 22nd Street; Fraternity House, which became Omega, was located down the Twining Alley (closed 2013); Friends Piano Bar on P Street then became gay Latino bar Escandalo; and finally Deco Cabana, as well as P Street Station (rebranded as The Fireplace) and Mr. Pā€™s. Each night when the bars closed, the patrons would flood to Soho for eggs, bacon, and coffee.

Helene and Fran had envisioned a New York City-style eclectic restaurant hangout. It became a spot for book clubs, art shows, political meetings and wine parties. 

Longtime Dupont Circle residents and Soho customers Gordon Binder and Michael Rawson lamented the loss of Soho.   

ā€œSoho was around the corner from where we live, we’ve been going to Soho several times a week since it opened in the ā€˜90s, 30 years enjoying the atmosphere, the patrons, the friendly albeit ever changing staff, the chicken salad sandwich, and so much more,ā€ Binder said. ā€œSad news indeed. We will surely miss this neighborhood hangout.ā€

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