Virginia
Alexandria City High School teacher called ‘faggot,’ threatened by students: report
Letter to school board says school officials failed to adequately respond
An English teacher who identifies as gay reports being verbally and physically threatened at Alexandria City High School and says school officials have failed to adequately respond to the students’ behavior, which he says included hurling the name “faggot” at him.
The teacher, Matthew Henry, who holds a doctorate degree, sent a detailed two-and-a-half-page letter to the Alexandria School Board through its online public comment site describing how he believes he’s facing threats by students.
“In my 13 years at ACHS, a school I love, I have never previously been called faggot to my face,” Henry states in his letter. “I have never been made to feel less than by any student that I can recall due to my sexuality, even if their religion, culture, church, neighborhood, friends or family tells them otherwise,” he wrote.
“Twice now this year, students have used that word toward me simply because I have asked them to go to class,” his letter continues. “Twice within a month’s time: November 13th and December 13th. Twice now,” he states in his letter. “A third time I was physically threatened, though that word was not used.”
He states that on the day he wrote his letter to the school board a student “wondering the halls” asked him a question about a location within the school he was looking for. When Henry responded, another student replied, “We ain’t talkin to you, faggot,” Henry recalls in his letter.
The letter, a copy of which the Washington Blade received from an Alexandria Public Schools spokesperson, has no date on it. But the Alexandria Times, which was the first media outlet to report the story on Henry’s letter to the school board, reports that the letter was sent early “this year.”
Henry has not responded to a request from the Blade to be interviewed about his report of anti-gay threats from students. His letter also does not say how the students targeting him for harassment learned that he is gay or whether he self identifies as gay at his school.
In response to a request from the Blade, the Alexandria Public Schools sent the Blade a short statement from Julia Burgos, the school system’s Chief of School & Community Relations, which was released in response to media inquiries.
“Please know that safety is a top priority at Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS),” the statement says. “We are dedicated to creating a safe and welcoming environment for all students, staff, visitors and members of our school community,” the statement continues.
“To that end, we place a strong emphasis on adherence to our Student Code of Conduct with our students,” it says. “When we are made aware of matters that do not align with our code of conduct, we address them and take appropriate action with those students as warranted,” the statement concludes.
The statement does not say whether school officials have taken action against any of the students who Henry says have threatened him or subjected him to anti-gay name calling.
“Here, we count on the administration and this district to defend us when needed through quick and efficient consequences,” Henry says in his letter. “And I feel like my school and district is letting me down,” he wrote.
“This is why I’m so shaken by this. I am not allowed to defend myself and my instinct is to defend, both myself and others, especially LGBTQ+ students, in all aspects of my life,” he states.
“The word ‘faggot’ immediately alerts me and other LGBTQ+ people that a situation is now dangerous,” Henry’s letter continues. “The response by campus leaders was very unsatisfactory,” he wrote.
“The hallways of this school are an absolute NIGHTMARE,” Henry concludes in his letter. “I love being an educator, I love this school, and teaching is something I think I’m really good at. Many in this building feel the same,” his letter states. “It saddens me that a small group of students in this school is taking that away from us and is forcing many of us to look for off-ramps.”
Virginia
McPike wins special election for Va. House of Delegates
Gay Alexandria City Council member becomes 8th LGBTQ member of legislature
Gay Alexandria City Council member Kirk McPike emerged as the decisive winner in a Feb. 10 special election for a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates representing Alexandria.
McPike, a Democrat, received 81.5 percent of the vote in his race against Republican Mason Butler, according to the local publication ALX Now.
He first won election to the Alexandria Council in 2021. He will be filling the House of Delegates seat being vacated by Del. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker (D-Alexandria), who won in another Feb. 10 special election for the Virginia State Senate seat being vacated by gay Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria).
Ebbin is resigning from his Senate next week to take a position with Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s administration.
Upon taking his 5th District seat in the House of Delegate, McPike will become the eighth out LGBTQ member of the Virginia General Assembly. Among those he will be joining is Sen. Danica Roem (D-Manassas), who became the Virginia Legislature’s first transgender member when she won election to the House of Delegates in 2017 before being elected to the Senate in 2023.
“I look forward to continuing to work to address our housing crisis, the challenge of climate change, and the damaging impacts of the Trump administration on the immigrant families, LGBTQ+ Virginians, and federal employees who call Alexandria home,” McPike said in a statement after winning the Democratic nomination for the seat in a special primary held on Jan. 20.
McPike, a longtime LGBTQ rights advocate, has served for the past 13 years as chief of staff for gay U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and has remained in that position during his tenure on the Alexandria Council. He said he will resign from that position before taking office in the House of Delegates.
Virginia
Spanberger signs bill that paves way for marriage amendment repeal referendum
Proposal passed in two successive General Assembly sessions
Virginians this year will vote on whether to repeal a state constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger on Friday signed state Del. Laura Jane Cohen (D-Fairfax County)’s House Bill 612, which finalized the referendum’s language.
The ballot question that voters will consider on Election Day is below:
Question: Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to: (i) remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law?
Voters in 2006 approved the Marshall-Newman Amendment.
Same-sex couples have been able to legally marry in Virginia since 2014. Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who is a Republican, in 2024 signed a bill that codified marriage equality in state law.
Two successive legislatures must approve a proposed constitutional amendment before it can go to the ballot.
A resolution to repeal the Marshall-Newman Amendment passed in the General Assembly in 2025. Lawmakers once again approved it last month.
“20 years after Virginia added a ban on same-sex marriage to our Constitution, we finally have the chance to right that wrong,” wrote Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman on Friday in a message to her group’s supporters.
Virginians this year will also consider proposed constitutional amendments that would guarantee reproductive rights and restore voting rights to convicted felons who have completed their sentences.
Lieutenant Gov. Ghazala Hashmi on Monday opened Equality Virginia’s annual Lobby Day in Richmond.
The Lobby Day was held at Virginia’s Capitol and was open to the public by RSVP. The annual event is one of the ways that Equality Virginia urges its supporters to get involved. It also offers informational sessions and calls to action through social media.
Hashmi, a former state senator, has been open about her support for the LGBTQ community and other marginalized groups. Her current advisor is Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman, and the group endorsed her for lieutenant governor.
Hashmi historically opposes anti-transgender legislation.
She opposed a 2022 bill that sought to take away opportunities from trans athletes.
One of the focuses of this year’s Lobby Day was protecting LGBTQ students. Another was protecting trans youth’s access to gender-affirming care.
Advocates spent their day in meetings and dialogues with state legislators and lawmakers about legislative priorities and concerns.
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