Maryland
HRC endorses Angela Alsobrooks
Prince George’s County executive running against Larry Hogan for Cardin Senate seat
The Human Rights Campaign has endorsed Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks in the race to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.).
HRC President Kelley Robinson in a statement that Alsobrooks’s campaign released on Tuesday said Alsobrooks “has always been a champion for equality and freedom, from her support for the state law that legalized same-sex marriage in 2012, to becoming the first Maryland county executive to authorize flying the Progress Pride flag over county buildings, and much more.”
“With everything at stake and democracy itself hanging in the balance, Marylanders deserve that kind of champion,” said Robinson.
Alsobrooks said she is “very honored to earn the endorsement of the Human Rights Campaign.”
“In the U.S. Senate, I will always stand up for the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans and make sure we have a future where our freedoms are always protected,” she said.
Alsobrooks in May defeated Congressman David Trone in the Democratic primary for Cardin’s seat. She will face off against former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in November.
“Angela is a trailblazer who is poised to defeat Trump-endorsed Republican Larry Hogan and become the first Black woman from Maryland to serve in the U.S. Senate,” said Robinson. “The Human Rights Campaign is excited and proud to put our full support behind Angela Alsobrooks and help rally Maryland’s voters to elect her in November.”
Maryland
Layoffs and confusion at Pride Center of Maryland after federal grants cut, reinstated
Trump administration move panicked addiction and mental health programs
By ALISSA ZHU | After learning it had abruptly lost $2 million in federal funding, the Pride Center of Maryland moved to lay off a dozen employees, or about a third of its workforce, the Baltimore nonprofit’s leader said Thursday.
The group is one of thousands nationwide that reportedly received letters late Tuesday from the Trump administration. Their mental health and addiction grants had been terminated, effective immediately, the letters said.
By Wednesday night, federal officials moved to reverse the funding cuts by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, estimated to total $2 billion, according to national media reports. But the Pride Center of Maryland’s CEO Cleo Manago said as of Thursday morning he had not heard anything from the federal government confirming those reports.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
Steny Hoyer, the longest-serving House Democrat, to retire from Congress
Md. congressman served for years in party leadership
By ASSOCIATED PRESS and LISA MASCARO | Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the longest-serving Democrat in Congress and once a rival to become House speaker, will announce Thursday he is set to retire at the end of his term.
Hoyer, who served for years in party leadership and helped steer Democrats through some of their most significant legislative victories, is set to deliver a House floor speech about his decision, according to a person familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to discuss it.
“Tune in,” Hoyer said on social media. He confirmed his retirement plans in an interview with the Washington Post.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Maryland
Joseline Peña-Melnyk elected Md. House speaker
Family immigrated to New York City from the Dominican Republic
By PAMELA WOOD | Moments after being elected speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates Tuesday, state Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk stood before the chamber and contemplated her unlikely journey to that moment.
Born in the Dominican Republic, the Peña family lived in a small wooden house with a leaky tin roof and no indoor plumbing. Some days, she said, there was no food to eat.
When she was 8 years old, the family immigrated to New York City, where Peña-Melnyk was dubbed “abogadito” or “little lawyer” for helping her mother and others by translating at social services offices.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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