National
Hundreds expected at NBJC’s annual “Out on the Hill” summit
The conference will take place in D.C. from Sept. 19-22
Sharon Lettman-Hicks (Photo courtesy of the National Black Justice Coalition)
More than 200 people from across the country are expected to attend the National Black Justice Coalition’s third annual Out on the Hill Black LGBT Leadership Summit in D.C. from Sept. 19-22.
The Obama administration will host black LGBT leaders at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on Sept. 20, while the Human Rights Campaign will hold a networking reception for conference delegates later that day. Other events will include a Capitol Hill lobby day and a roundtable of LGBT black older people.
NBJC executive director Sharon Lettman-Hicks pointed out to the Blade that her organization deliberately chose “Own Your Power” as this year’s theme.
“The mantra ‘Own Your Power’ is fundamental to the work we do at the National Black Justice Coalition. NBJC is committed to building informed and empowered black lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender leadership — a community of victors, not victims. Progress on LGBT social, employment, and marriage equality issues grows as LGBT people feel empowered to be out and open in their families and communities,” she said. “Increasing acceptance and respect for black LGBT people within their families, churches and communities is essential to increasing that openness within the African American community and gaining support for LGBT equality. With the upcoming election and all the momentum the LGBT equality movement has gained, this is a critical time to take our seat at the table and own our power.”
Openly gay ESPN and CNN columnist LZ Granderson is the conference’s national chair. MSNBC anchor Melissa Harris Perry will also host a town hall on voting rights and discrimination during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference that will coincide with “Out on the Hill.”
NBJC will host its own town hall on the increasing homicide rates among trans women of color at the Washington Marriot Wardman Park Hotel on Sept. 21.
In addition to this issue, Lettman-Hicks said fighting anti-LGBT employment discrimination and securing economic security for LGBT people of color remain her organization’s top priorities. “Out on the Hill” will also examine health disparities that persist among this community.
“In addition to ensuring black LGBT people have the means to care for themselves and their families, it is important that we also address the health disparities that exist,” said Lettman-Hicks. “Stratified risk factors and a lack of access to culturally competent health care services have left black LGBT people particularly vulnerable to health disparities. A panel of black LGBT health experts will address the rise in HIV/AIDS infection rates amongst young black men who have sex with men; challenges to accessing competent health care; and the unique health concerns of black lesbians, including breast/cervical cancer.”
The conference will take place less than two months before the presidential election.
Polls continue to indicate that the vast majority of black voters support President Obama’s re-election campaign. Lettman-Hicks acknowledged that the outcome of the election will have what she described as implications for the LGBT community as a whole.
“This impact will be tenfold for LGBT people of color,” she added.
Lettman-Hicks further stressed that any president has an obligation to “protect all Americans and their families under the law.”
“Thousands of LGBT couples are raising children and have marriages rooted in love and lifelong commitment — you don’t get more traditional than that. The U.S. Census shows that these couples are also more likely to be people of color, especially African American,” she said. “Governor Romney has pledged to represent Americans of ‘every race, creed and sexual orientation’ and has been vocal about his support for ‘traditional marriage.’ Well, that includes loving and committed LGBT couples and the families they are providing for and protecting. Anything short of recognizing our committed relationships and our families is unacceptable.”
Lettman-Hicks further pointed to the current White House’s record on LGBT-specific issues.
“The Obama Administration has certainly made tremendous strides in terms of LGBT equality, from the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ to health care reform to endorsing marriage equality,” she said. “During ‘OUT on the Hill,’ NBJC will be distributing our Obama Report Card, where we grade the president on different issues such as family recognition and safe schools.”
Federal Government
UPenn erases Lia Thomas’s records as part of settlement with White House
University agreed to ban trans women from women’s sports teams
In a settlement with the Trump-Vance administration announced on Tuesday, the University of Pennsylvania will ban transgender athletes from competing and erase swimming records set by transgender former student Lia Thomas.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found the university in violation of Title IX, the federal rights law barring sex based discrimination in educational institutions, by “permitting males to compete in women’s intercollegiate athletics and to occupy women-only intimate facilities.”
The statement issued by University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson highlighted how the law’s interpretation was changed substantially under President Donald Trump’s second term.
“The Department of Education OCR investigated the participation of one transgender athlete on the women’s swimming team three years ago, during the 2021-2022 swim season,” he wrote. “At that time, Penn was in compliance with NCAA eligibility rules and Title IX as then interpreted.”
Jameson continued, “Penn has always followed — and continues to follow — Title IX and the applicable policy of the NCAA regarding transgender athletes. NCAA eligibility rules changed in February 2025 with Executive Orders 14168 and 14201 and Penn will continue to adhere to these new rules.”
Writing that “we acknowledge that some student-athletes were disadvantaged by these rules” in place while Thomas was allowed to compete, the university president added, “We recognize this and will apologize to those who experienced a competitive disadvantage or experienced anxiety because of the policies in effect at the time.”
“Today’s resolution agreement with UPenn is yet another example of the Trump effect in action,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, UPenn has agreed both to apologize for its past Title IX violations and to ensure that women’s sports are protected at the university for future generations of female athletes.”
Under former President Joe Biden, the department’s Office of Civil Rights sought to protect against anti-LGBTQ discrimination in education, bringing investigations and enforcement actions in cases where school officials might, for example, require trans students to use restrooms and facilities consistent with their birth sex or fail to respond to peer harassment over their gender identity.
Much of the legal reasoning behind the Biden-Harris administration’s positions extended from the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County, which found that sex-based discrimination includes that which is based on sexual orientation or gender identity under Title VII rules covering employment practices.
The Trump-Vance administration last week put the state of California on notice that its trans athlete policies were, or once were, in violation of Title IX, which comes amid the ongoing battle with Maine over the same issue.
New York
Two teens shot steps from Stonewall Inn after NYC Pride parade
One of the victims remains in critical condition
On Sunday night, following the annual NYC Pride March, two girls were shot in Sheridan Square, feet away from the historic Stonewall Inn.
According to an NYPD report, the two girls, aged 16 and 17, were shot around 10:15 p.m. as Pride festivities began to wind down. The 16-year-old was struck in the head and, according to police sources, is said to be in critical condition, while the 17-year-old was said to be in stable condition.
The Washington Blade confirmed with the NYPD the details from the police reports and learned no arrests had been made as of noon Monday.
The shooting took place in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, mere feet away from the most famous gay bar in the city — if not the world — the Stonewall Inn. Earlier that day, hundreds of thousands of people marched down Christopher Street to celebrate 55 years of LGBTQ people standing up for their rights.
In June 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn, members of the LGBTQ community pushed back, sparking what became known as the Stonewall riots. Over the course of two days, LGBTQ New Yorkers protested the discriminatory policing of queer spaces across the city and mobilized to speak out — and throw bottles if need be — at officers attempting to suppress their existence.
The following year, LGBTQ people returned to the Stonewall Inn and marched through the same streets where queer New Yorkers had been arrested, marking the first “Gay Pride March” in history and declaring that LGBTQ people were not going anywhere.
New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, whose district includes Greenwich Village, took to social media to comment on the shooting.
“After decades of peaceful Pride celebrations — this year gun fire and two people shot near the Stonewall Inn is a reminder that gun violence is everywhere,” the lesbian lawmaker said on X. “Guns are a problem despite the NRA BS.”
New York
Zohran Mamdani participates in NYC Pride parade
Mayoral candidate has detailed LGBTQ rights platform
Zohran Mamdani, the candidate for mayor of New York City who pulled a surprise victory in the primary contest last week, walked in the city’s Pride parade on Sunday.
The Democratic Socialist and New York State Assembly member published photos on social media with New York Attorney General Letitia James, telling followers it was “a joy to march in NYC Pride with the people’s champ” and to “see so many friends on this gorgeous day.”
“Happy Pride NYC,” he wrote, adding a rainbow emoji.
Mamdani’s platform includes a detailed plan for LGBTQ people who “across the United States are facing an increasingly hostile political environment.”
His campaign website explains: “New York City must be a refuge for LGBTQIA+ people, but private institutions in our own city have already started capitulating to Trump’s assault on trans rights.
“Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis confronting working class people across the city hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard, with higher rates of unemployment and homelessness than the rest of the city.”
“The Mamdani administration will protect LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers by expanding and protecting gender-affirming care citywide, making NYC an LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city, and creating the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.”
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