Local
Gray names new GLBT Affairs head
Stein Club’s Richardson lands job
Mayor Vincent Gray and new Office of GLBT Affairs director Jeffrey Richardson (Blade photo by Michael Key)
D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray today named the president of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, Jeffrey Richardson, as his new director of the mayor’s Office of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Affairs.
At a news conference at the mayor’s office Friday morning, Gray called Richardson “a respected and credible voice for the GLBT community,” and noted that he played a key role in efforts, which Gray supported, to help pass the city’s same-sex marriage law.
“The District of Columbia has one of the largest and most diverse GLBT communities in the nation,” Gray said. “And in the spirit of one city, Mr. Richardson will lead collaborative efforts with these constituents, the community at-large, and the government.”
The City Council created the Office of GLBT Affairs through legislation signed by former Mayor Anthony Williams. The legislation established the office’s director as a cabinet-level position.
Richardson replaces Christopher Dyer, who served as director of the GLBT Affairs Office under Mayor Adrian Fenty.
The Stein Club is the city’s largest LGBT political organization. It endorsed Gray for mayor over Fenty last August following a club candidates’ forum in which Gray and Fenty talked about their plans for addressing LGBT issues.
Gray was asked at Friday’s news conference if he plans to meet from time to time with Richardson in light of the disclosure by Dyer in an interview with the Blade earlier this month that he never had a face-to-face, sit-down meeting with Fenty. Dyer said he communicated often with Fenty through a “chain of command” comprised of high-level mayoral assistants.
“I have spent a lot of time with the GLBT community in the city and have lots of folks I work closely with, lots of friends,” Gray said. “And Jeff is one of those people…So I don’t think there’s any question that I will spend a lot of time with Jeff. We know each other. We have a great relationship. And I want to be a part of helping to support his efforts.”
At the same news conference, Gray announced the appointment of two other high-level city officials – Victor Hoskins as Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development and Phillip Lattimore III as director of the Office of Risk Management.
Richardson currently serves as director of national programs for the Center for Progressive Leadership, where he manages programs aimed at developing progressive leaders to work in national politics, policy-making, and advocacy roles, according to information released by the mayor’s office.
Richardson previously served as a program officer with the D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation, where he managed the awarding of grants to help fund anti-truancy, drop-out prevention, and family related initiatives.
He received a master’s degree in social work from Howard University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
“The District is gaining a true public servant and the Stein Club is excited about Jeffrey’s ability to ensure that LGBT residents have a voice at the highest levels of city government,” said a statement released by the club.
“As a social worker, non-profit professional, and community activist, Jeffrey has experience working with all segments of the District’s population,” the club statement says. “His experience will enable him to bring diverse groups together and to effectively advocate for all constituencies within the LGBT community.”
“Jeff Richardson will make a great director of the mayor’s Office of LGBT Affairs,” said gay Democratic activist and Stein Club member Peter Rosenstein. “His knowledge of D.C. and our issues, and the trust that Mayor Gray has in him, will allow him to work with the diverse segments of the LGBT community and make progress on the issues we care about.”
Rick Rosendall, vice president of the Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance, characterized as “good news” Richardson’s appointment to the GLBT Affairs post.
“He has been a pleasure to work with in his capacity as president of the Gertrude Stein Democratic club, during which he was an excellent coalition partner in our community’s final push for civil marriage equality,” Rosendall said. “He continued a commendable trend among recent Stein Club presidents of amicable cooperation with GLAA on a range of LGBT issues.”
Rehoboth Beach
Former CAMP Rehoboth official sentenced to nine months in prison
Salvator Seeley pleaded guilty to felony theft charge for embezzlement
Salvator “Sal” Seeley, who served as an official with the Rehoboth Beach, Del., CAMP Rehoboth LGBTQ community center for 20 years, was sentenced on April 5 by a Sussex County Superior Court judge to nine months in prison and to pay $176,000 in restitution to the organization.
The sentencing took place about five weeks after Seeley pleaded guilty to a charge of Theft in Excess of $50,000 for allegedly embezzling funds from CAMP Rehoboth, a spokesperson for the Delaware Department of Justice told the Washington Blade.
Seeley’s guilty plea came shortly after a grand jury, at the request of prosecutors, indicted him on the felony theft charge following an investigation that found he had embezzled at least $176,000 from the nonprofit LGBTQ organization.
“Salvatore C. Seeley, between the 27th day of February 2019 and the 7th day of September 2021, in the County of Sussex, State of Delaware, did take property belonging to CAMP Rehoboth, Inc., consisting of United States currency and other miscellaneous property valued at more than $50,000, intending to appropriate the same,” the indictment states.
“The State recommended a sentence of two years of incarceration based on the large-scale theft and the impact to the non-profit organization,” Delaware Department of Justice spokesperson Caroline Harrison told the Blade in a statement.
“The defense cited Seeley’s lack of a record and gambling addiction in arguing for a probationary sentence,” the statement says. “Seeley was sentenced in Superior Court to a nine-month prison term and to pay a total of $176,000 in restitution for the stolen funds,” Harrison says in the statement.
Neither Seeley nor his attorney could immediately be reached for comment.
At the time of Seeley’s indictment in February, CAMP Rehoboth released a statement saying it first discovered “financial irregularities” within the organization on Sept. 7, 2021, “and took immediate action and notified state authorities.” The statement says this resulted in the investigation of Seeley by the state Department of Justice as well as an internal investigation by CAMP Rehoboth to review its “financial control policies” that led to an updating of those policies.
“As we have communicated from day one, CAMP Rehoboth has fully cooperated with law enforcement,” the statement continues. “At its request, we did not speak publicly about the investigation while it was ongoing for fear it would jeopardize its integrity,” according to the statement. “This was extremely difficult given our commitment to transparency with the community about day-to-day operations during the recent leadership transition.”
The statement was referring to Kim Leisey, who began her job as CAMP Rehoboth’s new executive director in July of 2023, while the Seeley investigation had yet to be completed, following the organization’s process of searching for a new director. It says Seeley left his job as Health and Wellness Director of CAMP Rehoboth in September of 2021 after working for the organization for more than 20 years.
“Mr. Seeley’s actions are a deep betrayal to not only CAMP Rehoboth but also the entire community we serve,” the statement says.
Maryland
Christian Siriano to serve as grand marshal of Annapolis Pride Parade
Fashion designer is an Annapolis native
BY JOHN-JOHN WILLIAMS IV | He’s conquered fashion week. His designs have slayed the red carpet during award season. And now Christian Siriano is coming home.
The Annapolis native will serve as grand marshal and keynote speaker June 1 for the annual Annapolis Pride Parade and Festival, which is a major coup as the event enters its fourth year.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
As You Are bar closes temporarily, citing problems with building
Shutdown comes two months after fundraising appeal brought in $170,000
As You Are, the LGBTQ café and bar located in the Barracks Row section of Capitol Hill near the Eastern Market Metro station, has announced on its Instagram page that problems associated with its building at 500 8th St., S.E., forced it to “temporarily” close on April 8.
“As you may be aware, As You Are’s location in Eastern Market has been closed since April 8, when we began to have concerns about the physical condition of the building,” the Instagram message states. “We worked quickly to alert our landlord, and they have assessed the building with their engineers,” the message says.
“We understand that certain repairs need to be made to ensure the safety of our staff, patrons, and community,” the message concludes.
In one of two more recent videos posted on Instagram on April 17 and 26, As You Are co-owners Jo McDaniel and Rachel Pike said they did not have any update on when they can reopen. “The engineers and contractors have all come into the space, and we’re just waiting on a plan and a timeline from our landlord,” McDaniel said in the video.
Pike mentioned in one of the videos that As You Are has a Venmo app set up, and said they appreciate the support they have been receiving from the community. McDaniel added, “We’re really interested in supporting our team through this, as this is an unexpected loss of income for all of us.”
McDaniel didn’t immediately respond to a request from the Washington Blade for a further update on where things stand with the building repair project and the specific nature of the problems with the building. An earlier message posted on the As You Are website said, “Heavy rain damaged the back wall of our building, and we are closed to assess and repair.”
The message added, “Regular updates and ways to support can be found on our Instagram page @asyouaredc.”
The April 8 shutdown came a little over two months after As You Are issued a GoFundMe appeal on Feb. 5 seeking emergency financial support to prevent it from closing in February due to a $150,000 debt. In a display of strong community support, its $150,000 fundraising goal was reached in less than a week. By the following week, the GoFundMe appeal had pulled in more than $170,000 from more than 3,000 individual donations.
Many of the donors left messages on the GoFundMe page for As You Are expressing their strong support for the bar and café, saying it served as a uniquely supportive space for all members of the LGBTQ community.
In the GoFundMe message, McDaniel and Pike said their goal in opening their business in March 2022 was to offer community center type programming beyond just a bar and café.
“AYA is a café, bar and dance floor that hosts diverse programming nearly every night of the week, including social sport leagues, Queer youth socials, weekly karaoke, book clubs, open mics, Queer author events, dance parties, and much more,” the two said in their message.
The building’s owner and the As You Are landlord, Rueben Bajaj, who is the principal operator of the Bethesda, Md., based real estate firm White Star Investments, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. The Washington Post reported that he contributed $500 to the As You Are GoFundMe appeal, saying, “I personally want to see As You Are succeed.”
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Republican state AGs challenge Biden administration’s revised Title IX policies
University students have a right to protest
Former CAMP Rehoboth official sentenced to nine months in prison
Christian Siriano to serve as grand marshal of Annapolis Pride Parade
Md. governor signs Freedom to Read Act
HHS reverses Trump-era anti-LGBTQ rule
4th Circuit rules gender identity is a protected characteristic
PHOTOS: Capital Pride Pageant
