Local
Pannell trailing in D.C. school board race
Phil Pannell (Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Gay Democratic and Ward 8 civic activist Phil Pannell was running second in a nine-candidate race for a seat on the D.C. Board of Education representing Ward 8 in the city’s special election on Tuesday.
Unofficial returns from the Board of Elections and Ethics showed Pannell with 716 votes, or 27.8 percent, trailing political newcomer and community activist Trayon White, who had 885 votes with 33.2 percent of the total.
D.C. voting rights advocate and LGBT rights supporter Eugene Dewitt Kinlow was running third, with 434 votes and 16.3 percent of the total.
An election board spokesperson said it would take another 10 days for the board to count absentee ballots cast by mail, curbside ballots cast by senior citizens or voters with disabilities, and special or provisional ballots cast by those who register to vote on the same day as the election.
Spokesperson Alysoun McLaughlin said the board sent out 3,953 absentee ballots by mail and had received only 785 back as of earlier this week. She could not predict how many more would come back. They must be postmarked no later than Election Day, April 26, to be considered valid, she said. It could not be determined at press time how many ballots cast in Ward 8 remained uncounted.
Pannell said he contacted White by phone on election night to congratulate him on his apparent victory. Pannell’s campaign workers and supporters gathered at the Player’s Lounge restaurant on Martin Luther King Ave., S.E., on Tuesday night to await the election returns.
“I think I ran a good campaign and did everything I possibly could have done,” Pannell said. “Obviously I’m disappointed.”
Michael Sainte-Andress, a longtime friend of Pannell’s who served as the Pannell campaign treasurer, called Pannell a highly skilled and “tireless” advocate for the Ward 8 community over a period of at least 30 years.
Sainte-Andress said he believes Pannell was the most qualified among the candidates running in the Ward 8 race but was concerned that some conservative voters in the majority black ward would be reluctant to vote for an openly gay man.
“They know all of the good things Phillip has done in this community for so long,” said Sainte-Andress. “They acknowledge that he has helped many of them over the years. But for some in this community – they just can’t bring themselves to vote for him.”
Others familiar with the Ward 8 race said Pannell was placed at a disadvantage to at least some degree over the circumstance that resulted in the Ward 8 seat becoming vacant. Longtime community advocate, teacher and Ward 8 school board member William Lockridge, 63, who was well known and liked in the community, died suddenly in January of complications from a stroke.
Lockridge’s widow, Wanda Lockridge, played a key role in recruiting Trayon White, 26, a family friend, to run for her husband’s seat, according to sources familiar with the race. Although most political observers in Ward 8 who know White consider him a bright and enthusiastic community advocate, some feel he lacks the experience and knowledge of others who competed for the seat, including Pannell.
White won the endorsement of Ward 8 D.C. Council member Marion Barry, who many view as one of the lead power brokers in the ward. The Washington Teachers Union also endorsed White, who recently graduated from the University of Maryland.
The Washington Post endorsed Pannell, citing his many years of community service in the ward and involvement in Ward 8 school issues.
Pannell also won the endorsement of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest LGBT political group.
Unofficial returns from the election board show the following results for the Ward 8 school board race: Trayon White Sr., 33.2 percent; Phillip Pannell, 26.8 percent; Eugene Dewitt Kinlow, 16.3 percent; Anthony Muhammad, 8.7 percent; Sandra S.V. Williams, 6.9 percent; W. Cardell Shelton, 2.8 percent; Tijwanna Phillips, 1.8 percent; R. Joyce Scott, 1.5 percent; Larry Pretlow, 1.4 percent.
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
