District of Columbia
GLAA releases ratings for only four of 10 D.C. Council candidates
Defends decision to base scores on non-LGBTQ issues
GLAA D.C., formerly known as the Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, announced on Oct. 8 that it has issued ratings for only four of the 10 D.C. Council candidates running in the city’s Nov. 5 general election.
Under a policy adopted earlier this year, GLAA only rates candidates that return a GLAA questionnaire, the responses to which GLAA uses to determine its ratings. In resent years, GLAA has also limited its ratings to D.C. Council candidates and candidates for mayor in years when a mayoral race takes place.
The GLAA ratings for the four candidates, three of whom are incumbent Council members, include Council members Robert White (D-At-Large) +9; Christina Henderson (I-At-Large) +8.5; and Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4) +9.5. Ward 7 Democratic candidate Wendell Felder received a rating of +2 rating.
Felder is running for the seat being vacated by Council member and former D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray (D), a longtime LGBTQ rights supporter who is not running for re-election.
Under the GLAA rating system, the candidate ratings range from a +10, the highest possible score, to a -10, the lowest possible score.
When GLAA, a nonpartisan LGBTQ advocacy group, began its candidate ratings in the 1970s, it based its ratings on the candidates’ positions and record on specific LGBTQ-related issues. But in recent years, with D.C.’s local government having long ago passed LGBTQ supportive nondiscrimination legislation, the group has based its ratings on issues raised in its candidate questionnaire that are mostly non-LGBTQ specific.
Among the issues raised in the GLAA candidate questionnaire this year include asking candidates if they support decriminalizing sex work among consenting adults; removing criminal penalties for possession of drugs that are currently illegal for personal use; increased funding for programs to reduce drug overdose deaths; and “addressing concentrated wealth in the District” by raising revenue “through taxing the most wealthy residents.”
Just one of the nine questions on the questionnaire asks about a potentially LGBTQ-specific issue. The question asks if the candidate supports sufficient funding in the city’s budget for the D.C. Office of Human Rights to adequately investigate cases of discrimination. The Office of Human Rights has investigated LGBTQ discrimination cases and could investigate those cases in future years.
GLAA President TyrONE Hanley has argued that each of the specific issues it raises in its questionnaire has an impact on LGBTQ people and should not be dismissed as non-LGBTQ issues.
“We believe all of the issues are LGBTQ issues as they impact LGBTQ people,” he told the Washington Blade. “LGBTQ people are disproportionately impacted by the lack of affordable housing, incarceration, and overdoses,” he said. “To ignore the questions in our questionnaire would mean abandoning LGBTQ people who are most impacted by the failures of our government and community inaction.”
The D.C. Council candidates that were not rated because they did not return the GLAA questionnaire included Council members Brooke Pinto (D-At-Large), and Trayon White (D-Ward 8). The non-incumbent candidates who GLAA did not rate include Rob Simmons (R-At-Large), Darryl Moch (Statehood-Green Party-At Large), Noah Montgomery (R-Ward 7), and Nate Derenge (R-Ward 8).
Under its policy of only rating D.C. Council and mayoral candidates, GLAA also does not rate candidates running for the D.C. Board of Education, Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, and the shadow U.S. Senate and U.S. House seats, which are unpaid offices with no voting authority in Congress.
Among those who disagree with GLAA’s focus on non-LGBTQ specific issues for its candidate ratings is gay Democratic activist Peter Rosenstein.
“GLAA has moved from asking candidates questions related to the LGBTQ+ community to asking general questions,” Rosenstein said. “I don’t believe that is their role, or that anyone consults the GLAA ratings anymore before they vote,” he said. “My recommendation is we as a community thank GLAA for all their past work, when activists like Rick Rosendall ran the organization, and now they should close their doors and disband.”
The questionnaire and candidate ratings can be accessed at glaa.org.
District of Columbia
Campaign launched to elect more LGBTQ candidates to ANC seats
Capital Stonewall Democrats behind Queering ANCs effort
The Capital Stonewall Democrats, D.C.’s largest local LGBTQ political group, announced on July 7 it has launched a campaign to help elect large numbers of LGBTQ candidates to the city’s Advisory Neighborhood Commissions.
The D.C. local government is believed to be unique among U.S. cities in currently having 46 Advisory Neighborhood Commissions consisting of 345 single-member districts in neighborhoods throughout the city in which unpaid Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners are elected for two-year terms.
The commissions are charged with considering a wide range of policies and programs impacting their neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, liquor licenses, zoning, economic development, police protection, sanitation and trash collection, and D.C.’s annual budget, according to the ANC website.
Although the ANCs do not have authority to set or reject policies or proposals, such as applications for liquor licenses, city agencies are required to give “great weight” to ANC recommendations, according to the law creating the ANCs.
Kent Boese, a gay former ANC commissioner, currently serves as executive director of the D.C. Office of ANCs.
“We are launching the most ambitious hyperlocal LGBTQ+ candidate pipeline initiative in the country,” said Stevie McCarty, the Capital Stonewall Democrats president, in a July 7 statement that announced the Queering ANCs campaign.
“As an ANC member, I know firsthand how these seats shape our neighborhoods, from housing and public safety to sanitation,” McCarty says in the statement. “I’m proud to lead this effort to ensure more LGBTQ+ Washingtonians see themselves as leaders in their communities,” he said.
The ANC Rainbow Caucus, which was created by LGBTQ ANC members, shows on its website that there are currently 38 caucus members consisting of elected LGBTQ ANC commissioners serving in the current 2025-2026 two-year term.
The website shows there are LGBTQ commissioners who are caucus members in each of the city’s eight wards, with six in Ward 1, eight in Ward 2, one in Ward 3, six in Ward 4, five in Ward 5, three in Ward 6, eight in Ward 7, and one in Ward 8.
The Washington Blade couldn’t immediately determine how many of them will be running for re-election in D.C.’s general election in November. But McCarty said Capital Stonewall Democrats hopes to recruit many more LGBTQ candidates to run for ANC seats.
The D.C. Board of Elections website shows the deadline for filing 25 required petition signatures to be placed on the ballot is Aug. 5.
A Queering ANCs website launched this week by Capital Stonewall Democrats provides details on how to run for an ANC seat and offers help for those interested in running.
“Think of someone in your building, neighborhood, friend group, community organization, or professional network who cares deeply about D.C. and would make a strong leader,” McCarty says in his statement. “Send them QueeringANCs.org and personally ask them to consider running,” he said.
The website can be accessed at QueeringANCs.org.
District of Columbia
Mary’s House founder, CEO retires
Dr. Imani Woody played leading role in opening DC’s first home for LGBTQ seniors
The board of directors for Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC’s first official home dedicated to providing affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors, announced on July 7 that its founding president and CEO, Dr. Imani Woody, has retired.
Woody, who holds a PhD in Human Services, is credited with playing a leading role over many years in arranging both city and private funding needed to construct and operate the Mary’s House three-story building located at 401 Anacostia Road, S.E., in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood.
The house, which opened in March 2025, with a grand opening ceremony held in May 2025, includes 15 single-occupancy residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of shared communal living space.
“It is with profound gratitude and hearts full of celebration that the board of directors of Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC (MHFOA) announces the retirement of our visionary founder, Dr. Imani Woody, from her role as president and CEO,” the Mary’s House board says in a statement.
“Dr. Woody’s journey with Mary’s House began with her vision and a kitchen table gathering of women with a bold, urgent, and loving vision: to create safe, affirming, affordable housing for LGBTQ/SGL older adults in Washington, DC,” the statement says.
It adds, “What started as a dream has grown into DC’s first affordable LGBTQ+/SGL affirming communal living space for adults 60 and over, a 15-room community residence at 401 Anacostia Road in Southeast Washington.”
The statement says Woody will continue to serve on Mary’s House board.
“The board will be sharing information about the leadership transition process in the coming weeks,” the statement continues. “We are committed to honoring Dr. Woody’s legacy by ensuring Mary’s House continues to thrive and grow in faithful service to LGBTQ/SGL elders experiencing housing insecurity and isolation.”
District of Columbia
SMYAL receives $25,000 award for ‘courageous acts’
D.C. group provides support services for LGBTQ youth
The D.C.-based organization SMYAL, which provides services for LGBTQ youth in the D.C. metro area, including housing for homeless LGBTQ youth, announced on June 30 that it received a $25,000 award for its “courageous acts” in support of the community it serves.
The award was a monetary grant from The Courage Project, which describes itself as a “national initiative investing in acts of courage and compassion that strengthens our communities and democracy.”
A statement on its website says it was launched in May 2025 and is funded and backed by leading national foundations in the U.S.
“At SMYAL, we are deeply grateful to receive support from The Courage Project and are inspired by their bold investment in LGBTQ+ youth at such a critical moment,” SMYAL CEO Erin Whelan said in a statement. “For queer and trans young people, simply showing up as themselves each day requires immense courage, and that courage is strengthened when organizations like The Courage Project stand behind them loudly, proudly, and without hesitation,” Whelan said.
In its statement announcing the award SMYAL says The Courage Project will recognize SMYAL and other awardees and their work on July 3 at the Washington National Cathedral as part of a special interfaith service marking the U.S. 250th anniversary.
“The Courage Project is a bold initiative honoring everyday acts of bravery – the quiet, often unseen acts of heroism that reflect the best of the American spirit and strengthen democracy at the community level,” the project states on its website.
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