Maryland
Bethesda church hosts transgender, nonbinary photo exhibit
Photographer Gwen Andersen showcases community members of all ages, backgrounds
Amid the spate of anti-transgender legislation, the bullying of trans students and lack of gender-affirming care for young people across the country, photographer Gwen Andersen’s photo exhibit seeks to portray the trans and nonbinary community in a positive light.
Andersen’s “Becoming Ourselves” exhibit that documents trans and nonbinary people will be on display at the Bethesda United Church of Christ (10010 Fernwood Road) this summer.
Andersen spearheaded the exhibit along with the Rev. Dr. Jill McCrory from Bethesda UCC. The church paid for the project with a donation it received from Stevie Neal, a trans woman who passed away and left part of her estate to McCrory.
McCrory herself has been a pillar in the LGBTQ community for decades, including while pastor at Twinbrook Baptist Church.
The congregation that McCrory closed dispersed more than $1 million to various ministries and LGBTQ organizations, founded the MoCo Pride Center, and married a same-sex couple on the rainbow stage of Capital Pride in 2010. Bethesda UCC has also marked the Transgender Day of Remembrance, and hosted a renaming ceremony for a trans baptized member.
“I happen to have access to a wonderful transgender woman’s (Stevie) donation that she left me to do something for the transgender community,” said McCrory over a Zoom interview. “Andersen came to Rev. McCrory in November of 2023 with the idea. “Gwen knew Stevie. I thought this would be perfect because this is something that would benefit the transgender community.”
“WIthout Stevie, this surely would not have happened. And I say that with great confidence,” Andersen said in a Zoom interview.
“Becoming Ourselves” debuted at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Rockville in March.
The exhibit features photos of trans and nonbinary people from across the country that Andersen and a number of other photographers took.
The photos feature people from all ages — from preteens to elders from all walks of life that include teachers, community leaders, and athletes. Andersen’s exhibit also showcases people who are proudly showing their top surgery scars. It also shows trans and nonbinary people in a variety of ways, from enjoying music, playing sports, and working.
The exhibit most importantly shows them being happy.
Anderson’s exhibit has two main goals: Give a space for trans and nonbinary people to see others in their community in a positive way, and to shift the narrative on how people see trans and nonbinary people.
“It was an emotional issue that won hearts and minds.” said Andersen in reference to the LGBTQ movement to legalize same-sex marriage. “I believe we will reduce the hostility against transgender people by winning hearts and minds.”
“One of the most effective messages is to protect trans kids,” she added. “Right now the hostility has not just gone against adults, it has gone against children, and children are being harassed, beaten up, and killing themselves. In much the same way as gays and lesbians were killing ourselves 30 years ago. I think what will be effective is tugging on hearts and minds and reclaiming the narrative from hate and fear, to love.”
Andersen wants to eventually get a more permanent location for the exhibit rather than bringing it to different venues. But until then, she plans to bring it to other churches that are interested in hosting it.
Anyone interested in supporting Andersen’s exhibit can log onto the “Becoming Ourselves” website, or directly help any of the photographers whose work is showcased. Andersen has directed folks to support photographer Liam Woods, whose online name is Analogue Papi.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore on Tuesday signed a bill that decriminalizes HIV in the state.
State Dels. Kris Fair (D-Frederick County) and Luke Clippinger (D-Baltimore City) are among the lawmakers who sponsored House Bill 39 or the Carlton R. Smith Act, which is named after the long-time activist known as the “mayor” of Baltimore’s Mount Vernon neighborhood who died in May 2024.
Smith was a member of the Coalition to Decriminalize HIV in Maryland that advocated for the bill. FreeState Justice, a statewide LGBTQ rights group, was also part of the coalition.
“At FreeState Justice, we are proud to stand with advocates, health experts, and lawmakers who worked diligently to advance this bill. The bipartisan support for the Carlton R. Smith Act is a testament to the power of education, research, and courageous leadership,” said FreeState Justice Executive Director Phillip Westry in a statement. “It sends a clear message: Maryland is committed to evidence-based policymaking and to ending the criminalization of people living with HIV. We honor the memory of Carlton R. Smith by continuing the work of building a more just, inclusive, and informed society.”
Maryland is the fifth state to decriminalize HIV.
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, a Republican, in March signed a bill that decriminalized HIV in his state.
Maryland
A Baltimore theater educator lost jobs at Johns Hopkins and the Kennedy Center
Tavish Forsyth concluded they could not work for Trump
BY WESLEY CASE | Tavish Forsyth had come to a conclusion: They could not work for President Donald Trump.
So the 32-year-old Baltimore resident stripped down, turned on their camera, and lit their career on fire.
“F—— Donald Trump and f—— the Kennedy Center,” a naked Forsyth, an associate artistic lead at the Washington National Opera’s Opera Institute, which is run by the Kennedy Center, said in a video that went viral. The board of the nation’s leading cultural institution had elected Trump just weeks prior as its chairman after he gutted the board of members appointed by his predecessor, President Joe Biden.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
Md. schools plan to comply with federal DEI demands
Superintendents opt for cooperation over confrontation
By LIZ BOWIE | Deciding not to pick a fight with the Trump administration, Maryland school leaders plan to sign a letter to the U.S. Department of Education that says their school districts are complying with all civil rights laws.
The two-paragraph letter could deflect a confrontation over whether the state’s public schools run diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that the Trump administration has called illegal. The Baltimore Banner reviewed the letter, which was shared by a school administrator who declined to be identified because the letter has not yet been sent.
Maryland school leaders are taking a more conciliatory approach than those in some other states. Education leaders in Minnesota, New York, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, and Wisconsin said they will not comply with the federal education department’s order, the demands of which, they say, are based on a warped interpretation of civil rights law.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Let love and compassion guide our response to Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis
D.C. Black Pride 2025: Events, parties, and empowerment
Cuban lawmakers to consider simplifying process for trans people to change IDs
Frank Kameny’s legacy lives on
