National
Two gay candidates shine in fundraising
Pougnet, Cicilline post strong second-quarter results
Congressional candidate David Cicilline, the mayor of Providence, R.I., has raised $1.16 million over the course of his campaign. (Photo courtesy of Cicilline)
Two gay politicians posted strong second-quarter fundraising numbers that could propel them to seats in Congress.
Campaign finance reports made public earlier this month show Steve Pougnet, the mayor of Palm Springs, Calif., and David Cicilline, the mayor of Providence, R.I., boasting particularly strong numbers.
And Pougnet had the added accomplishment of keeping his fundraising numbers on par with his incumbent Republican opponent, Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.). Both candidates raised about $400,000 for the April to June period.
The second-quarter numbers mean Pougnet has raised $1,267,910 so far in his campaign, leaving him with $878,283 in cash on hand, while Bono Mack raised $1,731,752, leaving her with $1,241,919 in cash on hand.
In a statement, Pougnet said he’s “incredibly humbled” by the support he’s received in his bid to represent California’s 45th congressional district.
“In these very difficult times, our congresswoman has been absent and it’s clear people are hungry for change,” Pougnet added.
But Ryan Mahoney, campaign manager for Bono Mack, touted the Republican candidate’s fundraising ability and noted that Bono Mack is “humbled” by the support she’s received.
“She is proud to represent the people of California’s 45th congressional district and will continue to fight on their behalf to end reckless spending and debt in Washington and create more jobs and better business opportunities in California,” Mahoney said.
Pougnet’s ability to match Bono Mack during the second quarter is unusual because challengers often do not match their incumbent opponents in fundraising. The fundraising numbers are also significant because the race in the 45th district is widely seen as among the most competitive congressional contests in the country.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee put Pougnet on its “Red to Blue” program, and Bono Mack has been a lawmaker the National Republican Congressional Committee has worked to protect.
Notable donations to Pougnet from LGBT groups include $2,400 from the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and $6,900 from the Human Rights Campaign. Both organizations have endorsed the candidate. Donations also have come from Bruce Bastian, a Utah-based gay billionaire philanthropist, who donated $2,400; Hilary Rosen, a D.C. lesbian PR executive, who donated $1,000; and Lane Hudson, a D.C. gay activist, who contributed $300.
But Bono Mack is not without LGBT donors. In April, the Log Cabin Republicans gave $500 to her campaign.
Bono Mack had been considered a pro-LGBT Republican because of her votes in favor of the hate crimes bill and a version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, as well as votes against the Federal Marriage Amendment. Her record was tarnished in May when she voted against an amendment that would lead to repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
R. Clarke Cooper, Log Cabin’s national director, noted his organization made the $500 contribution prior to Bono Mack’s vote against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal.
He said although Bono Mack voted against the repeal amendment, she ultimately voted in favor of the fiscal year 2011 defense authorization bill as a whole. Consequently, Cooper said Log Cabin’s endorsement of the Republican lawmaker stands.
“[Log Cabin] will continue to work with Representative Bono Mack,” Cooper said. “Using the carrot approach, additional [Log Cabin] PAC funds could be made available contingent upon her future work and performance in the House.”
Cicilline, who’s running to succeed Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) to represent Rhode Island’s 1st congressional district, meanwhile raised $436,000 in the second quarter. He’s raised $1.16 million over the course of his campaign and ended the quarter with $901,000 in cash on hand.
In a statement provided by his campaign, Cicilline said he’s pleased with his fundraising and the LGBT support he received in the second quarter.
“I am extremely grateful to the members of our community who are supporting my campaign for Congress,” he said. “They are helping to ensure that we have the resources necessary to get our message out for the Sept. 14 primary.”
Bill Lynch, the former head of the Rhode Island Democratic Party who’s running against Cicilline in the primary, raised $55,832 in the second quarter. In the same period, he spent $126,000, leaving him with $139,000 in cash on hand.
The winner of the Democratic primary will likely face Republican John Loughlin, an Iraq war veteran and Rhode Island Assembly member. He raised $104,786 in the second quarter while spending $192,000. Loughlin has $101,000 in cash on hand.
Cicilline is running in a safely Democratic district and the Democratic nominee who wins the primary is widely expected to succeed Kennedy in the U.S. House.
The Providence mayor has been the beneficiary of LGBT support over the course of the campaign, particularly during the second quarter. The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which has endorsed Cicilline, contributed $2,400 to his campaign in the second quarter.
Michael Cole, an HRC spokesperson, said his organization donated $721 to Cicilline in the second quarter, which was mostly in-kind contributions raised through HRC’s website.
Noting that HRC previously donated $6,025 to Cicilline, Cole said HRC plans to max out that contribution to $10,000 by year’s end.
Among the notable contributors to Cicilline’s campaign in the second quarter were Bastian, who donated $4,800; Rosen, who donated $500; Joe Solmonese, HRC’s president, who personally donated $500; and Winnie Stachelberg, senior vice president for external affairs at the Center for American Progress, who donated $1,000.
Other gay congressional candidates seeking office didn’t fare as well as Pougnet or Cicilline during the second quarter.
Ed Potosnak, a gay Democratic former staffer for Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) and public school teacher running in New Jersey, raised $47,000 in the second quarter while spending $26,000.
His finances leave him with $72,000 in cash on hand. Potosnak has raised $148,000 over the course of his campaign. Potosnak’s GOP opponent in his race to represent New Jersey’s 7th congressional district, one-term incumbent Rep. Leonard Lance (R-N.J.), raised $108,000. However, he spent nearly $250,000 in the same period, leaving him with $359,000 in cash on hand.
In what could be an uphill battle for a U.S. House seat, Potosnak is running in a traditionally Republican district. He hasn’t been endorsed by HRC or the Victory Fund.
Despite the funding disparity, Potosnak said he’s happy with the amount he raised in the second quarter because it came from individuals donors and not special interest money.
“Compared to the opponent, the guy that I’m running against, Congressman Lance, I received more contribution from individuals in the last filing — about $5,000 more,” Potosnak said. “I didn’t get the special interest money from the big banks and Wall Street that are fueling his campaign.”
A similar situation with campaign finances is playing out in Florida’s 17th congressional district, where nine candidates, including North Miami City Council member Scott Galvin, are vying for the Democratic nomination in a primary set for Aug. 24.
After raising $57,000 in the second quarter while spending $97,000, Galvin had about $15,000 in cash on hand. He’s raised about $112,000 over the course of his campaign, according to FEC records.
Galvin said he’s feeling good about his finances for the second quarter and was preparing to submit an amended report showing that he has raised $130,000 over the course of his campaign.
“We found several pages of donations that didn’t get included by accident, so for what it’s worth, the to-date total, I guess, would show $130,000,” Galvin said.
The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which has endorsed Galvin, contributed $2,400 to his campaign during the second quarter.
The candidate in the Democratic primary with the greatest war chest is Rudolph Moise, a physician and president of the Comprehensive Health Center in North Miami. He raised $938,162 for his campaign, although $800,000 was a personal loan to his campaign from himself. He spent $280,000 in the second quarter, leaving him with $909,000 in cash on hand.
Galvin said the disparity in finances didn’t bother him and he would remain focused on a “grassroots concentrated effort.”
“We’re doing it through all the old-fashioned, knocking-on-door, mail-to-the-home, traditional way of campaigning,” he said.
The 17th congressional district in Florida is also considered a safely Democratic seat. No Republican candidate has filed for candidacy, so the winner of the Democratic primary would be the presumptive winner of the seat.
State Department
State Department implements anti-trans bathroom policy
Memo notes directive corresponds with White House executive order
The State Department on April 20 announced employees cannot use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity.
The Daily Signal, a conservative news website, reported the State Department announced the new policy in a memo titled “Updates Regarding Biological Sex and Intimate Spaces, Including Restrooms.”
The State Department has not responded to the Washington Blade’s request for comment on the directive.
“The administration affirms that there are two sexes — male and female — and that federal facilities should operate on this objective and longstanding basis to ensure consistency, privacy, and safety in shared spaces,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Piggot told the Daily Signal. “In line with President Trump’s executive order this provides clear, uniform guidance to the department by grounding policy in biological sex as determined at birth.”
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January 2025 issued an executive order that directed the federal government to only recognize two genders: male and female. The sweeping directive also ordered federal government agencies to “effectuate this policy by taking appropriate action to ensure that intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are designated by sex and not identity.”
The Daily Signal notes the new State Department policy “does not prohibit single-occupancy restrooms.”
National
I’m telling the scared little girl I once was it’s okay to feel free
This week is Lesbian Visibility Week
Uncloseted Media published this article on April 23.
By SOPHIE HOLLAND | At 13 years old, I remember looking in the mirror in my Toronto bathroom and thinking, “Yeah, I’m a lesbian.” At the time, I thought it was a dirty word. Thinking back, it could be because the first time I heard it was when a family member said, “I don’t know what a lesbian is, they are like aliens.”
And although I walked around in camouflage Crocs with a rainbow My Little Pony charm, plaid knee-length shorts and a shark tooth necklace (yes, these are all, in my opinion, stereotypically lesbian apparel!), I didn’t feel like I fit the mold. The longer I thought about it, the worse I felt, so I buried my feelings deep inside.
Now I am 25, and I have been out since I was 22. Three years ago, I never could have imagined that I’d be working for a queer news publication and celebrating Lesbian Visibility Week, an annual event meant to honor and uplift lesbian perspectives and highlight the hardships our community faces. To me, LVW is so important because, frankly, it has been an absolute shit show getting here, to a place where I feel love and joy most days.
I think back to the frustration of constantly being asked, “Do you have a boyfriend?” Of watching princess movies and seeing a broken girl only find herself when her prince charming arrives. I remember listening to music that was always about heterosexual relationships. I remember feeling left out in high school when, one by one, my friends got boyfriends.
I tried the boyfriend, and I tried really hard for it to work at a large detriment to my wellbeing. I brainwashed myself into thinking I was probably bisexual, which I told my closest friends around 16 and unsuccessfully told my parents at the same age. I was probably subconsciously using this as a litmus test of their acceptance and to soothe the anxiety I felt around my sexuality.
Learning to love who I am did not only come from me unraveling my internalized lesbophobia and dissecting the oppressive societal messages of heteronormativity. It came from meeting an awesome community of lesbians and queers. I found people who understood my worldview and who showed me the ropes. I no longer had to stutter over concepts like lesbian loneliness or my frustration with misogynistic straight men.
They all just got it.
Without this community, I am not sure if I could be as warm and confident in myself as I am today.
And while I still experience homophobia, like being spat on while walking with an ex in downtown Toronto or having a stranger yell in my face “Are you fucking lesbians?” in Kensington Market, the joy and love still outweighs the nasty.
So, as the sentimental dyke that I have become, I decided to ask a set of lesbians in my orbit — including my friends as well as Uncloseted staffers, board members and followers — if they would share a little bit about what makes them love being a lesbian. And now, I can share it with all of you. Here they are. Happy LVW!
Timi Sotire
Falling in love with her was a reset. I felt like a kid again, hopeful about the future. We’ve had to overcome many obstacles to be together, but I’d choose her in every lifetime. I was sick with a long-term health condition when we met, and hanging out with Sophia really helped me with my recovery after my surgery.
Bella Sayegh
Being a lesbian is one of the most beautiful things in the world. To be authentically yourself in resistance and joy is so special within the lesbian community.
Parker Wales
When I met Liv, I finally understood why almost every song is about love.
Gillian Kilgour
There is no connection quite as perfect as between lesbians, no one sees me like my lesbians do.
Chyna Price
There’s many things I love about being a lesbian. But here are my top three:
- There’s just a deeper understanding when it comes to being loved by another woman.
- The next one would be the sense of community, especially being a POC masculine-presenting lesbian. I don’t feel like I’m cosplaying as someone else like I felt like I was doing before I came out.
- There’s so much history going back to the 1800s on how we found and fought for our love. That fight makes me proud because it shows me … that we’ve [found] ways to express our love even when it was misunderstood, illegal and deemed as madness.
Hope Pisoni
Before I knew I was a lesbian, romantic relationships seemed suffocating — it felt like everyone would expect me to act my part in the meticulous performance that is heterosexuality. But meeting my spouse and discovering our identities together showed me just how freeing it could be to love without a script to follow.
Leital Molad
It was the joy of watching the New York Sirens defeat the Toronto Sceptres at our first professional women’s hockey game — surrounded by hundreds (maybe thousands?) of cheering lesbians.
Angela Earl
I spent years building a life that looked right. But I never felt settled, and eventually I started asking what would actually make me happy. Coming out was about more than who I love, it was letting go of everything I was told to be. The last few years have felt like coming home to a life that had been waiting for me.
Tali Bray
What I love about being a lesbian is what I love about being in love … the wonder and joy of “oh, this is what it’s supposed to feel like.” I love moving through the world with women.
Izzy Stokes
I didn’t fall in love until I realized that queerness was an option. My queer friends have helped me see so much more than I grew up seeing. I’m so proud of us, and I’m so grateful for my lesbian community.
Nandika Chatterjee
When I met my fiancée is when I started to feel most like myself. That meant loving myself for who I am and embracing my identity as a lesbian. I felt free in a way I have never before. That’s the long and short of it.
Liz Lucking
The love and joy of being a lesbian is getting to live the life I dreamed of but never thought I would get to have!
Reflections
As I read these beautiful entries, it’s not lost on me that we’re still living in a world where lesbians are more likely to struggle with maternity problems, fetishization, and compulsory heterosexuality — not to mention the intersectional pressures of racism from both inside and outside the queer community. That’s part of why, according to a 2024 survey, 22 percent of LGBTQ women have attempted suicide, and 66 percent have sought treatment for trauma.
So if you are a lesbian who isn’t out or doesn’t feel safe, I hope you read this and can glean some hope from these messages. So when you look in the mirror, you know that it’s okay to release the weight — which can feel so heavy — of a heteronormative world.
We still have a long fight until all lesbians can feel safe to be themselves, but this is a community that does not back away from the tough, from the joy, from being loud and from all the other things that it takes to start a small revolution.
Hell yeah, lesbians! Here’s to you.
*I am signing off with my cat on my lap and a pride flag over my head <3.
Cuba
Trans parent charged with kidnapping, allegedly fled to Cuba with child
Cuban authorities helped locate Rose Inessa-Ethington
Federal authorities have charged a transgender woman with kidnapping after she allegedly fled to Cuba with her 10-year-old child.
An affidavit that Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Jennifer Waterfield filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Utah on April 16 notes the child is a “biological male who identifies as a female” and “splits time living with divorced parents who share custody” in Cache County, Utah.
Waterfield notes the child on March 28 “was supposed to be traveling by car to” Calgary, Alberta, “for a planned camping trip with his transgender mother, Rose Inessa-Ethington, Rose’s partner, Blue Inessa-Ethington, and Blue’s 3-year-old child.”
The affidavit notes the group instead flew from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Mexico City on March 29. Waterfield writes the Inessa-Ethingtons and the two children then flew from Mérida, Mexico, to Havana on April 1.
The 10-year-old child called her biological mother on March 28 after they arrived in Canada. The custody agreement, according to the affidavit, required Rose Inessa-Ethington to return the child to her former spouse on April 3.
“Interviews of MV [Minor Victim] 1’s family members provided significant concerns for MV 1’s well-being, as MV 1 was born a male, however, identifies as a female child, which is largely believed to be due to manipulation by Rose Inessa-Ethington,” reads the affidavit. “Concerns exist that MV 1 was transported to Cuba for gender reassignment surgery prior to puberty.”
The affidavit indicates authorities found a note in the Inessa-Ethingtons’ home with “instruction from a mental health therapist located in Washington, D.C., including instruction to send the therapist the $10,000.00 and instructions on gender-affirming medical care for children.”
The affidavit does not identify the specific “mental health therapist” in D.C.
A Utah judge on April 13 ordered Rose Inessa-Ethington to “immediately” return the child to her former spouse. The former spouse also received sole custody.
“Your affiant believes that due to the extensive planning and preparation exhibited by both Rose Inessa-Ethington and Blue Inessa-Ethington to isolate MV 1 and take MV 1 to Havana, Cuba, without notifying or requesting permission from MV 1’s mother indicates they are likely not planning to return to the United States,” wrote Waterfield.
The affidavit notes Cuban authorities found the Inessa-Ethingtons and the child.
A press release the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah issued notes the Inessa-Ethingtons “were deported from Cuba” on Monday “with the assistance of the FBI.”
The couple has been charged with International Parental Kidnapping. The Inessa-Ethingtons were arraigned in Richmond, Va., on Monday. The press release notes a federal court in Salt Lake City will soon handle the case.
The New York Times reported the child is now back with their biological mother.
“We are grateful to law enforcement for working swiftly to return the child to the biological mother,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah in the press release.
The case is unfolding against the backdrop of increased tensions between Washington and Havana after U.S. forces on Jan. 3 seized now former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January 2025 issued an executive order that directed the federal government to only recognize two genders: male and female. A second White House directive banned federally-funded gender-affirming care for anyone under 19.
The U.S. Supreme Court last year in the Skrmetti decision upheld a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming care for minors.
Cuba’s national health care system has offered free sex-reassignment surgeries since 2008.
Activists who are critical of Mariela Castro, the daughter of former President Raúl Castro who spearheads LGBTQ issues as director of Cuba’s National Center for Sexual Education, have previously told the Washington Blade that access to these procedures is limited. The Blade on Wednesday asked a contact in Havana to clarify whether Cuban law currently allows minors to undergo sex-reassignment surgery.
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