News
HRC hits campaign trail for Democrats
‘We are at a critical juncture in our fight for full equality’
Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin is set to hit the campaign trail for Democratic U.S. Senate candidates. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
With only a few days remaining before Election Day, the Human Rights Campaign is set to hit the campaign trail in a few competitive races on behalf of Democrats.
Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, plans to make personal appearances in four states for the campaigns of Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate at a time when the party is struggling to maintain control of the chamber.
“We are at a critical juncture in our fight for full equality,” Griffin said in a statement Tuesday. “The outcome of this election will impact whether or not we move forward or backward with fair-minded policies and legislation, and that’s why mobilizing LGBT voters and allies to get out and vote for equality-minded candidates is a key priority.”
Griffin has repeatedly refused Blade interview requests since he took over as HRC president.
The four states to which Griffin will travel are Oregon, Colorado, Georgia and New Hampshire. He’s set to take part in a phone bank on Tuesday for Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), on Wednesday for Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), on Thursday for U.S. Senate candidate Michelle Nunn and on Saturday for Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).
Merkley is relatively safe in his prospects for re-election, but the remaining three candidates are in more competitive races. Still, Udall has been consistently behind in the polls as he faces a re-election challenge from Republican candidate Cory Gardner.
In addition to traveling to four states, Griffin is set to take part in a telephone town hall for U.S. Senate candidate in Iowa Bruce Braley, who’s in a competitive race with Republican candidate Joni Ernst.
The Human Rights Campaign also on Tuesday unveiled new online ads promoting the candidacies of Udall and Merkley based on their LGBT work, which includes support for marriage equality, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal.
HRC points to polling conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research in 2012 that found support for LGBT rights helped candidates with voters.
Other efforts initiated by HRC to support these candidates include sending election-related action alerts to HRC members, deploying 24 staff members to work in campaigns and co-ordinating volunteer phone banks at HRC headquarters.
HRC bills itself as a non-partisan LGBT organization, but all of the candidates it supports in this effort are Democrats. One Republican candidate endorsed by HRC, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), isn’t among those that will receive help as part of this latest push by Griffin.
Gregory Angelo, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, said he’s not surprised Griffin would back Democratic candidates for office, but declined to criticize him.
“My interactions with Chad Griffin have always shown him to be an advocate who understands the importance of Republicans in the fight for equality, but he also makes no bones about being a liberal Democrat,” Angelo said. “It’s election season, so I can’t say I’m fazed or surprised.”
But Angelo said Log Cabin is also helping to make a push in the days before Election Day. Staff will be deployed to Massachusetts’ 6th congressional district, where gay Republican U.S. House candidate Richard Tisei is seeking office, and California’s 52nd congressional district, where Carl DeMaio, who’s gay, is running.
Angelo said he’s making the trek himself to California to assist the campaign of DeMaio, who’s running against pro-LGBT incumbent Rep. Scott Peters (R-Calif.)
Not to be outdone, anti-gay groups also undertaking efforts to ensure opponents of LGBT rights win at the polls. Brian Brown, president of the anti-gay National Organization for Marriage, said in a statement Tuesday TV ads have been purchased and are set to air this week in North Carolina and Arkansas.
In North Carolina, Sen. Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), a supporter of marriage equality, is fending off a challenge from Republican Thom Tillis, who is seeking to overturn a court decision in favor of same-sex marriage in his state. In Arkansas, Republican Tom Cotton is running ahead of incumbent Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), although neither supports marriage equality.
“The National Organization for Marriage Victory Fund will spend $200,000 this week in just the North Carolina and Arkansas Senate contests,” Brown said. “Today we’re announcing the launch of a powerful new television ad that puts marriage front and center in the race, contrasting the leadership of Thom Tillis in getting the North Carolina marriage amendment on the ballot with Kay Hagan’s opposition to it. Moreover, Hagan was the person who hand-picked the federal judge who invalidated the North Carolina marriage amendment without so much as giving voters a day in court.”
The ad in North Carolina, “Kay Hagan’s Judge,” criticizes Hagan for recommending the appointment to the bench of U.S. District Judge Max Cogburn, who was responsible for overturning the state’s ban on same-sex marriage.
Additionally, NOM says automated phone calls have been made in California, Massachusetts and Oregon. In each of the states, Republican hopefuls — U.S. Senate candidate Monica Wehby, gay U.S. House candidate Richard Tisei and DeMaio — are considered supporters of marriage equality, but anti-gay groups have pledged to block their candidacy.
The organization says mailers have been sent out in North Carolina and are being sent out in California.
The leader of another pro-LGBT group, Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund CEO Chuck Wolfe, is set to travel to Maine to assist with the campaign of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Michaud.
Michaud is in a tight race with incumbent Republican Gov. Paul LePage, but could could be the first openly gay person elected to the office of governor.
Denis Dison, spokesperson for the Victory Fund, said Wolfe plans to be in Maine on Election Day.
“He typically participates in get-out-the-vote efforts on Election Day, places calls to thank donors, attends (hopefully!) victory celebrations and speaks to media about the results and the impact of a victory,” Dison said.
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.
Rehoboth Beach
Rehoboth Summer Kickoff Party set for May 15 with Ashley Biden
The Washington Blade’s 19th annual Summer Kickoff Party is scheduled for Friday, May 15 in Rehoboth Beach, Del.
Ashley Biden, daughter of President Joe Biden, has joined the list of speakers, the Blade announced. She will accept an award on behalf of her brother Beau Biden for his LGBTQ advocacy work as Delaware attorney general. (Her appearance was rescheduled from last year.)
The event, to be held this year at Diego’s (37298 Rehoboth Ave. Ext.) from 5-7 p.m., is a fundraiser for the Blade Foundation’s Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship in Journalism, which funds a summer position reporting on LGBTQ news in Delaware. This year’s recipient will be introduced at the event.
The event will also feature remarks from state Rep. Claire Snyder-Hall. New CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Dr. Robin Brennan and Blade editor Kevin Naff will also speak. The event is generously sponsored by Realtor Justin Noble, The Avenue Inn & Spa, and Diego’s.
A suggested donation of $25 is partially tax deductible and includes a drink ticket and light appetizers. Tickets are available in advance at bladefoundation.org/rehoboth or at the door.
District of Columbia
Curve magazine honors Washington Blade publisher
Lynne Brown named to 2026 Power List
Washington Blade Publisher Lynne Brown has been named to the 2026 Curve Power List celebrating LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary individuals in North America who are blazing trails in their chosen fields.
“From sports and entertainment icons to corporate leaders and lawmakers, these individuals are breaking barriers, challenging norms, and shaping the future,” Curve Foundation/Curve magazine said in announcing this year’s list, which includes ABC newscaster Robin Roberts, comedian/actress Hannah Einbinder, and singer/actress Renee Rapp, among others.
Brown has worked for the Washington Blade for nearly 40 years. She was named publisher in 2007 before becoming a co-owner in 2010.
“I am honored to be recognized by Curve magazine during Lesbian Visibility Week,” Brown said. “Receiving this Curve honor is twofold. I was an early subscriber to Curve. I enjoy the product and know its history. Its journalism, layout and humorous features have inspired me.
“As an owner/publisher, receiving recognition from a similar source acknowledges my work and efforts, with a sincerity I truly appreciate. Franco Stevens, the publisher of Curve, is a business person of duration, experience, and purpose. The fact that they are in the media business, and honoring me and my publication makes it a tiny bit sweeter.”
Nominations for the Curve Power List come from the community: peers, mentors, fans, and employers.
Curve explained the significance of the list in its announcement: “An annual, publicly nominated list of impactful LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary changemakers is crucial in current times to counter discrimination, legislative rollbacks, hostility, and the invisibility of queer women within mainstream and marginal spaces and endeavors. Such a list also fosters encouragement and solidarity, and elevates voices and achievements—from high-profile roles to under appreciated areas of life.”
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