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Gansler dodges impeachment attempt & more
Gansler dodges impeachment attempt
Saber-rattling from Maryland Republicans against Attorney General Douglas Gansler’s same-sex marriage ruling, including calls for impeachment and state funding cuts for agencies that recognize out-of-state marriage licenses, have so far amounted to nothing.
Del. Don Dwyer (R-Anne Arundel) demanded a House floor vote on his resolution to impeach Gansler, but was denied by Speaker Michael Busch, who acted on advice from the parliamentarian that any resolution should be referred to the House Judiciary Committee first.
Only delegates were permitted to speak at a hastily arranged hearing at 3 p.m. March 31, but Dwyer declined to speak to the substance of the impeachment charges, saying to do so would legitimize what he labeled a “kangaroo court.”
Dwyer, a Judiciary Committee member, instead used his allotted time to declare that he would bring charges against Busch.
Gansler did not attend the hearing, but Democratic delegates on the committee defended him and his marriage opinion during their allotted times.
The committee voted 17-5 that there was insufficient evidence to proceed with impeachment. A second vote was held to dismiss the resolution.
Later that day, Equality Maryland operated a phone bank to persuade delegates to oppose Dwyer’s announced state budget amendment to cut funding for recognition of out-of-state same-sex marriage licenses. Ultimately, no such amendment was presented before either legislative chamber.
“We’re pretty confident this is over for now,” said Morgan Meneses-Sheets, Equality Maryland’s executive director.
A committee hearing on House Bill 462, which would add LGBT non-discrimination protections for teachers in public schools, was scheduled for Wednesday, after DC Agenda deadline. To become law, the bill must pass the Senate before April 12.
HARLEY DENNETT
Hearing set for suspect in gay man’s murder
More information surrounding the murder of a gay man inside his car in Southeast D.C. is expected to surface during a court hearing this month for the 20-year-old man arrested in the case.
Police on March 12 charged Antwan Holcomb of D.C. with first-degree murder while armed in connection with the shooting death of Anthony Perkins, 29, on the 2900 block of Fourth Street, S.E.
Police said Perkins was pronounced dead on the scene around 5:15 a.m. Dec. 27 after neighbors reported hearing gunshots. Officers found Perkins unconscious inside his car, which had steam billowing from its engine.
A friend of Perkins said the man might have been the target of a thug who had been “terrorizing” the Congress Heights neighborhood. Rev. Anthony Motley, a D.C. minister running for an at-large seat on the D.C. City Council and a longtime friend of Perkins, said a mutual friend told him that the killing might be linked to a man believed to be responsible for a string of robberies that Perkins learned about.
“It is said that the individual Anthony knew who was robbing people had become paranoid that Anthony would talk [to police],” Motley told DC Agenda in January. “It’s assumed that is why he was shot.”
Police said Holcomb was being held at the D.C. Jail on an unrelated matter when he was charged with Perkins’ murder. Police have not said whether Holcomb is the person Perkins’ friend believes was robbing people in the neighborhood where Perkins was killed.
Holcomb, who is being held without bond, is scheduled to appear in D.C. Superior Court on April 21. Prosecutors could at that time outline the evidence that police obtained linking him to the murder.
LOU CHIBBARO JR.
Md. group steps up gay marriage support
The Maryland Black Family Alliance is taking a more public profile in the fight for same-sex marriage.
“We wanted to make sure that people know who we are what we stand for,” said Lea Gilmore, one of the group’s founders. “We want it known that there is significant and organized support in Maryland’s black communities for marriage equality and LGBT civil justice.”
Gilmore said to counter the perception that there are no visible straight black allies in the LGBT civil rights movement, MBFA recently conducted a photo shoot outside Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church in Baltimore.
“The images will be included in ads that will appear in our very respected African-American local and regional media,” Gilmore said. “We will do a broader campaign in the near future.”
The ads, funded by the Human Rights Campaign, are intended to illustrate black support for same-sex marriage and LGBT civil rights issues.
“As African Americans, we more than most know the pain that injustice causes,” Gilmore said, “so we hope with these ads to galvanize even more organized support for equality.”
STEVE CHARING/BALTIMORE OUTLoud
District of Columbia
Campaign launched to elect more LGBTQ candidates to ANC seats
Capital Stonewall Democrats behind Queering ANCs effort
The Capital Stonewall Democrats, D.C.’s largest local LGBTQ political group, announced on July 7 it has launched a campaign to help elect large numbers of LGBTQ candidates to the city’s Advisory Neighborhood Commissions.
The D.C. local government is believed to be unique among U.S. cities in currently having 46 Advisory Neighborhood Commissions consisting of 345 single-member districts in neighborhoods throughout the city in which unpaid Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners are elected for two-year terms.
The commissions are charged with considering a wide range of policies and programs impacting their neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, liquor licenses, zoning, economic development, police protection, sanitation and trash collection, and D.C.’s annual budget, according to the ANC website.
Although the ANCs do not have authority to set or reject policies or proposals, such as applications for liquor licenses, city agencies are required to give “great weight” to ANC recommendations, according to the law creating the ANCs.
Kent Boese, a gay former ANC commissioner, currently serves as executive director of the D.C. Office of ANCs.
“We are launching the most ambitious hyperlocal LGBTQ+ candidate pipeline initiative in the country,” said Stevie McCarty, the Capital Stonewall Democrats president, in a July 7 statement that announced the Queering ANCs campaign.
“As an ANC member, I know firsthand how these seats shape our neighborhoods, from housing and public safety to sanitation,” McCarty says in the statement. “I’m proud to lead this effort to ensure more LGBTQ+ Washingtonians see themselves as leaders in their communities,” he said.
The ANC Rainbow Caucus, which was created by LGBTQ ANC members, shows on its website that there are currently 38 caucus members consisting of elected LGBTQ ANC commissioners serving in the current 2025-2026 two-year term.
The website shows there are LGBTQ commissioners who are caucus members in each of the city’s eight wards, with six in Ward 1, eight in Ward 2, one in Ward 3, six in Ward 4, five in Ward 5, three in Ward 6, eight in Ward 7, and one in Ward 8.
The Washington Blade couldn’t immediately determine how many of them will be running for re-election in D.C.’s general election in November. But McCarty said Capital Stonewall Democrats hopes to recruit many more LGBTQ candidates to run for ANC seats.
The D.C. Board of Elections website shows the deadline for filing 25 required petition signatures to be placed on the ballot is Aug. 5.
A Queering ANCs website launched this week by Capital Stonewall Democrats provides details on how to run for an ANC seat and offers help for those interested in running.
“Think of someone in your building, neighborhood, friend group, community organization, or professional network who cares deeply about D.C. and would make a strong leader,” McCarty says in his statement. “Send them QueeringANCs.org and personally ask them to consider running,” he said.
The website can be accessed at QueeringANCs.org.
Baltimore
Ron Singer, owner of popular Mount Vernon gay bar Leon’s, dies
66-year-old’s funeral to take place Friday
By CAYLA HARRIS | Ron Singer, the owner of Baltimore’s popular gay bar Leon’s Backroom, died Tuesday, the venue announced in a social media post. He was 66.
“For more than 20 years, Ron made Leon’s a place so many people were proud to call home,” the post reads. “He will be deeply missed.”
The Mount Vernon bar, typically open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily, is still open Thursday, but doors will close at midnight so staff can attend his funeral Friday morning. Services are scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at Sol Levinson’s Chapel.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
Mary’s House founder, CEO retires
Dr. Imani Woody played leading role in opening DC’s first home for LGBTQ seniors
The board of directors for Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC’s first official home dedicated to providing affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors, announced on July 7 that its founding president and CEO, Dr. Imani Woody, has retired.
Woody, who holds a PhD in Human Services, is credited with playing a leading role over many years in arranging both city and private funding needed to construct and operate the Mary’s House three-story building located at 401 Anacostia Road, S.E., in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood.
The house, which opened in March 2025, with a grand opening ceremony held in May 2025, includes 15 single-occupancy residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of shared communal living space.
“It is with profound gratitude and hearts full of celebration that the board of directors of Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC (MHFOA) announces the retirement of our visionary founder, Dr. Imani Woody, from her role as president and CEO,” the Mary’s House board says in a statement.
“Dr. Woody’s journey with Mary’s House began with her vision and a kitchen table gathering of women with a bold, urgent, and loving vision: to create safe, affirming, affordable housing for LGBTQ/SGL older adults in Washington, DC,” the statement says.
It adds, “What started as a dream has grown into DC’s first affordable LGBTQ+/SGL affirming communal living space for adults 60 and over, a 15-room community residence at 401 Anacostia Road in Southeast Washington.”
The statement says Woody will continue to serve on Mary’s House board.
“The board will be sharing information about the leadership transition process in the coming weeks,” the statement continues. “We are committed to honoring Dr. Woody’s legacy by ensuring Mary’s House continues to thrive and grow in faithful service to LGBTQ/SGL elders experiencing housing insecurity and isolation.”
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