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Local officials weighing impact of Trump’s D.C. executive order

‘Safe and Beautiful Task Force’ slammed as ‘blatant federal overreach’

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Mayor Bowser has been walking a tightrope as she contemplates how to respond to President Trump’s attacks on D.C. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

D.C. government officials and local LGBTQ rights advocates have expressed differing views on the potential impact of an executive order issued by President Donald Trump on March 27 that creates a federally controlled D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force.

 A statement released by the White House says the task force, among other things, will be directed to, “Surge law enforcement officers in public areas and strictly enforce quality-of-life laws in public areas like drug use, unpermitted demonstrations, vandalism, and public intoxication.”

The White House statement adds that the task force will also, “Maximize immigration enforcement to apprehend and deport dangerous illegal aliens, including monitoring D.C.’s cooperation with federal immigration authorities.” 

According to the five-page executive order, the newly created D.C. task force will take on a wide range of other functions, including overseeing and coordinating “more robust local law enforcement presence” throughout the city, including in federal parks such as the National Mall, museums and national monuments, Union Station, and widely used public roads and highways such as Rock Creek Parkway.

One of its provisions calls for government entities to provide “assistance to increase the speed and lower the cost of processing concealed carry license requests in the District of Columbia.” The provision refers to D.C.’s process for licensing the right to carry a concealed handgun. 

D.C. Congressional Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) is among the city’s elected officials who have denounced the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Task Force as a serious infringement on the city’s locally elected home rule government.

 “President Trump’s thoroughly anti-home rule EO is insulting to the 700,000 D.C. residents who live in close proximity to a federal government, which continues to deny them the same rights afforded other Americans,” Norton said in a statement.

 “The task force created by the EO would not include a single D.C. official to represent the interests of the people who reside within the District,” Norton said.

 D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has been cautious in her response to the Trump administration’s controversial policies to downsize the federal government, has not yet taken a position on the Trump D.C. executive order, according to mayoral spokesperson Daniel Gleick. 

D.C. City Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) is among the local officials and community  advocates who have said it is too soon to make a definitive judgment on the Trump created task force’s impact on D.C. home rule. Mendelson pointed out at a March 31 news conference that a large part of the stated actions for the task force are aimed at overseeing federal parklands and other federally controlled areas such as national monuments.

 “I don’t want to say that everything in there is innocuous,” Mendelson told reporters at the news conference. “But overall, a lot of it, if not most of it, is directives to the federal government to do things that are within the federal government’s purview, not as a let’s step on home rule,” Mendelson said.

But others, including Norton, said they believe the overall executive order and the task force it creates will result in a serious infringement on D.C. home rule and possibly the rights of D.C. residents.

Gay D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5) issued a statement pointing out that over two decades D.C. has had a balanced local budget, achieved “historic decline in crime,” and had one of the nation’s “fastest improving urban school districts,” suggesting the Trump task force was not needed.  

“Based on my reading of the executive order, I think it is impossible to determine if it will have any direct impact on the LGBTQ community in the District,” said longtime D.C. LGBTQ rights advocate Peter Rosenstein. 

But Rosenstein added, “The EO is an offense to all the people of the District, as it disregards home rule. It will be crucial to see who is finally appointed to the panel and see what their plans are to implement it.” 

He was referring to the fact that the order itself and the White House so far have not announced which federal officials will be appointed to serve on the task force. However, the White House statement names nine federal agencies whose leaders or designees will be among the task force’s members. Among the agencies named are the Departments of Interior, Transportation, and Homeland Security, along with the FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service.

The leaders of D.C.’s local LGBTQ Democratic Party and local LGBTQ Republican Party organizations – Capital Stonewall Democrats and Log Cabin Republicans of D.C. – had sharply differing views on the impact of the executive order and task force on the LGBTQ community.

The Washington Blade reached out to the two leaders for comment.

 “This executive order is not about D.C. ‘Safe and Beautiful’ – it’s about control,” said Capital Stonewall Democrats president Howard Garrett in a statement to the Blade. “It’s about stripping away the power of the people who live, work, and love in the city,” Garret said.

 “History has shown that when authoritarian leaders impose their will on a people without their consent, it is the most vulnerable – LGBTQ+ individuals, people of color, the unhoused – who bear the brunt of that oppression,” Garret’s statement continues. “We will not be silent as our community is put at risk under the guise of ‘safety and beautification.’”

He added, “Capital Stonewall Democrats reject this blatant federal overreach, and we stand firm in the belief that D.C.’s future must be decided by D.C. residents – not by those who neither understand nor respect our community.” 

Andrew Minik, president of Log Cabin Republicans of D.C., expressed strong support for the Trump executive order and its D.C. task force, saying it will have a positive impact on the city as a whole and on the LGBTQ community.

 “The only thing negatively impacting D.C. residents is the incompetent leadership of local Democratic politicians,” Minik said in his own statement. “’Home rule’ means nothing when the people in charge surrender the city to criminals, allow our parks to become open-air drug markets, and treat public spaces like dumpsters,” he said.

Minik called the commission “a breath of fresh air,” adding, “Finally someone is stepping in to do what the city government refuses to: clean up the filth, restore safety, and make our Nation’s Capital beautiful again.” 

Asked by the Blade if he feels the commission could have a negative impact on the LGBTQ community, Minik said, “Absolutely not.” He added, “What does harm LGBT Washingtonians is having to walk through trash-strewn streets, sleep deprived from sirens and gunshots and live in fear of crime.”

 “This commission is a win for LGBT residents who are sick of being ignored by a local government more concerned with virtue signaling than actual leadership,” he said. “The LGBT community in D.C. and across the country deserves more than broken promises and chaos. We deserve leadership that works, and President Trump is giving us that.”

 Norton and other city officials have disputed claims by Trump and his fellow Republicans that crime in D.C. has been out of control.

 “The ‘Fact Sheet’ about the EO currently on the White House website states that crime in D.C. is ‘near historic highs,’” Norton says in her statement on the executive order. “This simply isn’t true. It’s contradicted by the Department of Justice, which noted on January 3 that violent crime was down by 35% in 2024 and overall violent crime in D.C. is at a 30-year low,” according to Norton.

 “Like cities, states, and counties across the country, D.C. has passed laws to support and protect the safety of all its residents, regardless of immigration status,” Norton said. “In passing these laws, D.C. followed its values and was convinced of the benefits for the entire city,” she said.

Details of the Trump D.C. executive order and the task force it creates can be accessed on the White House website.

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District of Columbia

$3.7 billion RFK stadium proposal draws support from Team DC

Washington Commanders ‘proud’ to champion LGBTQ community

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The long-suffering RFK Stadium will be razed to make way for a new domed facility that could one day host the Super Bowl. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Miguel Ayala, president of the D.C. LGBTQ sports organization Team D.C., has expressed support for the $3.7 billion deal reached between Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Washington Commanders football team to bring the team back to D.C. in a redeveloped site on the grounds of the city’s long shuttered RFK stadium.

With the deal calling for the city to provide $1 billion in taxpayer funds for infrastructure related costs for the massive redevelopment project — and with the Commanders to provide the remaining $2.7 billion — as of this week the deal did not have majority support on the D.C. Council, which must vote to approve it.

Ayala’s support for the project on behalf of Team D.C. raises the question of whether members of the city’s influential LGBTQ community might play some role in urging the D.C. Council to approve the project.

The proposal comes at a time when the Washington Commanders team includes a message of support for the LGBTQ community on its website. The message follows its hosting last October of its 4th annual LGBTQ Pride Night Out at the Commanders game against the Cleveland Browns.

“The Washington Commanders are proud to champion the LGBTQ+ community and its allies,” the team states on its website. “Through the unifying power of sports, we aim to create a culture where all feel welcome and celebrated.”

In a statement released to the Washington Blade, Ayala points out that the Commanders are among every D.C.-based professional sports team that hosts a Pride Night Out event, which Team DC helps to organize.

“Each year, our events have grown stronger, with vibrant tailgates, on-field celebrations, and powerful moments that shine a spotlight on our community,” Ayala said. “We can’t wait to kick off our first Night Out at the Commanders Stadium in 2030.”

He was referring to plans by the Commanders organization and the D.C. mayor’s office to have the stadium deal approved by the D.C. Council in July, with construction of the new stadium to begin then, and with a planned completion in time for the 2030 professional football season.

Ayala also points out that the RFK stadium grounds currently serve as home to LGBTQ-related sports activity, including the D.C. Gay Flag Football League and the D.C. Front Runners group. He added that the RFK grounds will serve as the playing fields for this year’s WorldPride Capital Cup sports competition, where LGBTQ rugby and soccer teams from around the world will compete.

“This new stadium will be more than just a field – it will be a powerful new addition to the vibrant, diverse, and proud communities we champion every day,” he said in his statement.

At an April 28 news conference, Bowser, Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris and other city officials provided details of the stadium project, noting that it includes a massive development of the new stadium and the surrounding 180 acres of land.

In addition to the 65,000-seat domed stadium, officials said the project would include 5,000 to 6,000 residential housing units, with 30 percent designated as “affordable” for low- and moderate-income residents. They said the project would also include parks and recreation areas, hotels, restaurants, retail, and neighborhood amenities.

“As we focus on the growth of our economy, we’re not only bringing our team home, but we’re also bringing new jobs and new revenue to our city and to Ward 7,” Bowser said in a statement

Opponents of the project, including D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), have said they don’t believe the city should use its own funds for a stadium and the related development. 

So far, just four Council members have expressed support for the project. Mendelson and two other Council members have expressed opposition, and the remaining five have not yet said whether they would vote for or against it. The project needs seven of the current 12-member Council for it to be approved.

Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5), the Council’s only gay member, who initially had not taken a position on the proposal, this week said he was looking at the project more favorably, according to news media reports. 

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District of Columbia

Welcome home: DC LGBTQ Center opens its doors to healing and hope

The 6,671 square foot DC LGBTQ Center will offer a wide range of resources for LGBTQ individuals in need – including mental health services, job readiness programs, cultural events, and community support groups, all under one roof.

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The D.C. Center (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

On a sunny spring day in Washington’s Shaw neighborhood, the once empty Holzbeierlein Bakery warehouse now showcases energy, pride, and the sounds of chosen family coming closer together. After years in a less-than-perfect space on 14th Street, the DC LGBTQ community finally has a new home at the DC LGBTQ Center—and Executive Director Kimberley Bush says it’s more than a building. It’s a promise.

That promise, Bush explained to the Washington Blade on April 26—the day of the new LGBTQ Center’s opening—may change depending on who is being uplifted by the DC Center, but at its core remains the same goal: a thriving LGBTQ community in the nation’s capital. The commitment to the DC LGBTQ community is able to grow more connected and stronger, she explained, as more resources, space, and funding become available for the DC Center.

“This is a glorious home,” Bush said, beaming as groups of community members walked in under the giant inflatable rainbow at the Center’s doors. “It’s our new home. Today was a whole day of welcome home. This space has been an amazing endeavor for a long time, one that we’ve always known we’ve needed. This is space that we need for our LGBT siblings in need—and it’s amazing when your intentions match your efforts.”

The DC Center has long worked to “educate, empower, uplift, celebrate, elevate, and connect” the LGBTQ community from its former location at the Reeves Center. But now, in its new space at 1828 Wiltberger St., N.W., these efforts are more visible, accessible, and impactful than ever before.

“This space is a model that is new, that we are creating,” Bush said as groups of DC Center supporters chatted with Etta James’s “At Last” filling the hallways. “There is, I believe, no other LGBTQ+ community center in the country that not only has its own life and supportive services in its building, but is also co-housed with other organizations. A lot of community centers try and do it all, but that’s not what we wanted. We wanted to be able to bring everybody together under one roof, to be able to have that whole life supportive services center like one-stop shopping. We didn’t want to take over anything anyone else did. We don’t want to take away the dollars those organizations have to do what they do for the community. We want us all to be together. So that’s what we are. We’ve been able to now expand into almost 7,000 square feet of space.”

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The new DC Center features a variety of functional spaces designed to meet the diverse needs of the LGBTQ community. It includes office space for up to nine additional partner organizations, creating a hub for collaboration and support. Local and integral LGBTQ organizations like SMYAL, Team DC, and HIPS are some of the groups taking advantage of the space.

“People can be spread out,” Bush said about the opportunity for these LGBTQ-specific organizations to have a dedicated office in the Center. “We are on a grander scale, so we have a grander number of individuals that we can positively and effectively take care of. We [as members of the DC LGBTQ Center] can’t provide everything someone needs, but we can be an outpost for other organizations. Because we’ve expanded, we are able to expand the love, kindness, and support we can give our siblings.”

Additional support, Bush explained, is made possible by the intentional design of the new DC Center. Specialized rooms meet critical needs—from an HIV and STI testing room to therapy spaces and a boutique offering professional attire for job interviews. While the DC Center may not provide every service directly, it offers a shared space where partner organizations can step in and support the community—all under one roof.

“Often people are not able to go here, here, and here, to get what those gaps in life are creating,” she said. “To bridge them in one space just gives that person the opportunity to have less on their heart and their mind in regards to what they need to take care of themselves.”

In addition to being able to provide a space for instrumental elements of protecting the safety and well-being of the DC LGBTQ community, the Center also has a food pantry, a boutique with a clothing closet, an ADA-accessible shower, a mailroom to assist those without a permanent address, and a spacious kitchen.

This, she explained, is why this space is so monumental to providing the DC LGBTQ community the resources they need in a succinct and approachable way.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

“By bridging those gaps and having as much as we can here means you’re in one space to get your needs met,” she added. “From sexual health needs, in terms of testing, counseling, and what have you, to mental and behavioral health needs. You can get food, you can get clothing, you can shower. You can store some of your things here. That is such an ease off of your mind to where now you can breathe.”

After stepping into the Center’s director role in 2022, Bush said that she often sees her “siblings” within the community make a better life for themselves starting by walking through the front doors. Sometimes the following steps take more time and resources than for others, but regardless of what it takes, Bush emphasized the goal is to alleviate some stress and make tomorrow an approachable reality.

“I have the amazing opportunity to interact with our community members, our siblings, on a regular basis,” she said. “Often I see them when they first walk in our door. Sometimes they walk in unhappy, sometimes devastated, or they walk in not in a good space. When they come in and invite us in to hear their stories, when they want to share what’s going on with them so we can learn how to best care, love, and support them, it’s incredible. We make a POA, a plan of action, outlining how to take care of them and what that’s going to take.”

Walking through the Center, it is hard to not notice the smiles coming from everyone’s faces—from volunteers, board members, community members, and those seeking assistance. The DC Center, with its rainbow murals and shining floors, has become a beacon of hope for many LGBTQ Washingtonian residents in need. For some, Bush explained, that can be as simple as having a space for solace in a city that seems to have no shortage of stressors.

“The space is made for anyone who’s in need, and even if you’re not,” she said. “This is a place for you to come and be peaceful. A place for you to come and have a cup of tea, not to pay a thing, or have to talk to anybody. You can just sit here and have a cup of tea.”

The more she spoke about the space, it became clear that providing a space for LGBTQ people to be is just as important as providing spaces for the services to take place. The DC LGBTQ Center invites people to not only find what they need to make themselves better in a literal sense but also allows them to simply exist. It is rare for a city to provide this kind of refuge from the constant motion that life demands. And that can be life-changing, she says.

“I will say, ‘How are you today? How are you feeling today?’ ‘How are you’ and ‘how are you feeling’ are two different things, but I do want to know how you’re feeling. If you don’t answer me, that’s good. You know? That’s perfect,” Bush said. “This space is built for everyone, especially for trans and non-binary folk, and for our brown and Black folk. It’s a space for those who just need a space to be.”

In a world that often erases or overlooks LGBTQ people, especially trans, non-binary, Black, and brown community members, the simple act of being seen and cared for can be revolutionary. The DC Center aims to be a place for LGBTQ people to be themselves—not to force them to prove anything or lead them to speak, but to truly be themselves. That quiet affirmation of ‘allowing to be’ can plant the seed to a better, more authentic life.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

“One thing that I love to hear, and it makes me feel so good, because they say it in a way that’s just like you and I would say it, or anyone would say it, but sometimes they may not have thought they would say it. They would say, ‘See you tomorrow. See you later.’ This is a person who may not have had tomorrow in their mind. Where you and I say that all the time, but for a lot of our people, our siblings, who come to us, that may not be a thing for them. But when they come in our doors, receive the care and the love and the support and kindness, but then they walk out and they say, ‘See you tomorrow,’ and we do see them tomorrow! I can tell you that this response not only drives me to do this work, because this is good work and I’m very fortunate and privileged to be here, but it’s hearing that out of someone’s mouth. That’s it. That’s all I need.”

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District of Columbia

Ruby Corado sentencing postponed for third time

Attorneys say former Casa Ruby director has ‘significant medical issues’

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Ruby Corado has pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

A federal judge on April 8 approved a request by defense attorneys to postpone the sentencing of Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now closed D.C. LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby on a charge of wire fraud, from April 29 to July 29. 

Court records show that Judge Trevor N. McFadden of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia approved a motion filed by Corado’s two defense attorneys on that same day calling for the sentencing postponement on grounds of health issues.

“Ms. Corado has significant medical issues,” the April 8 motion states. “She has an important medical appointment related to one of her diagnoses scheduled in June 2025 and will need time to recover from that appointment,” it says.

The motion gives no further details on Colorado’s medical issues. A.J. Kramer, director of the D.C. Office of the Federal Public Defender, whose attorneys are representing Corado, said the office has a policy of never disclosing specific medical related information regarding its clients.

Court records show that prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for D.C. did not object to the defense motion seeking the third sentencing postponement. 

The records show that an earlier postponement of the sentencing, from March 28 to April 29, was initiated by the judge due to a scheduling conflict. The first postponement from Jan. 10 to March 28 came at the request of Corado’s attorneys, court records show.

Corado pleaded guilty on July 17, 2024, to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors. The charge to which she pleaded guilty says she allegedly diverted at least $150,000 “in taxpayer backed emergency COVID relief funds to private offshore bank accounts for her personal use,” according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Prosecutors have said funds that Corado allegedly diverted for her own use were intended to be used by Casa Ruby in support of its various programs, including housing services for homeless LGBTQ youth and support for LGBTQ immigrants.

The U.S. Attorney’s statement also notes that in 2022, when “financial irregularities at Casa Ruby became public,” Corado sold her home in Prince George’s County, Md. and “fled to El Salvador.” It was at that time that Casa Ruby ceased its operations.

Court records show that FBI agents arrested Corado on March 5, 2024, at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. At the request of her attorney and against the wishes of prosecutors, another judge at that time agreed to release Corado into custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order.

The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail at the time of her arrest by the FBI.

Under the federal wire fraud law Corado could be sentenced to a possible maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s statement. However, court observers have said that due to Corado’s decision to waive her right to a trial and plead guilty, prosecutors will likely ask the judge to hand down a lesser sentence than the maximum sentence.  

The statement by prosecutors points out that Corado’s decision to plead guilty to the one charge came after she had been charged in a criminal complaint filed on March 1, 2024, with bank fraud, wire fraud, laundering of monetary instruments, monetary transactions in criminally derived proceeds, and failure to file a report of foreign bank accounts. 

All those charges except for the wire fraud charge were dropped at the time of her guilty plea.

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