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GLAA honors local leaders & more
Eleven individuals and one organization were recognized Tuesday at the Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance Distinguished Service Awards. The recipients included DC Agenda senior news reporter Lou Chibbaro Jr. GLAA described Chibbaro as “the standard-bearer for gay-focused journalism” in D.C. who has spent more than 30 years “chasing down leads to get to the bottom of all manner of stories related to the LGBT community.” Awards also went to Joan Biren, Sean Bugg, Michael Crawford, Rev. Monique Ellison, Brian Flowers, Mark Levine, David Mariner, Nick McCoy, Brian Moore and Sultan Shakir. D.C. Clergy United for Marriage Equality, co-chaired by pastors Dennis Wiley, Christine Wiley and Rob Hardies, also won recognition. (DC Agenda photo by Michael Key)
Armed robbers steal cash from Nellie’s bar
A gun wielding male suspect and a man accompanying him forced the owner of Nellie’s Sports Bar at 900 U St., N.W., to turn over several hundred dollars in cash Monday afternoon while the bar was closed to the public, according to owner Douglas Schantz.
Schantz said the two suspects fled the premises after grabbing a container he was carrying bearing the cash, which was to be used to make change for customers’ purchases of drinks and food and which he believes was under $500. He said the suspects entered the bar between noon and 1 p.m. through an unlocked rear door that construction workers had used to enter the bar earlier in the day to do renovation work.
According to Schantz, the entire incident was captured by the bar’s video surveillance system and D.C. police have a “very good” image of the two suspects. Police planned to release photos made from the video this week. Schantz said he would send copies to the news media, including DC Agenda, for publication, with a request that anyone recognizing the suspects contact police.
The police’s Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit was assisting in the investigation of the incident. Schantz said all officers responding to the scene were cooperative and helpful, and did a “thorough job” of searching for evidence, including a hat that one of the suspects left behind as he fled the bar.
LOU CHIBBARO JR.
GLLU probes domestic violence, carjacking incidents
Officers assigned to the D.C. police Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit provided assistance to regular patrol officers in two separate incidents on April 16 — a reported carjacking at 3rd and K St., N.W., and an alleged domestic violence assault on the 2300 block of 24th St., S.E.
According to GLLU supervisor Sgt. Carlos Mejia, both incidents involve members of the transgender community. He said officers with the Seventh Police District arrested a man identified as the boyfriend of a transgender woman, who reported that the man punched and pushed her.
Mejia said the second incident involves a police investigation into an alleged armed carjacking that took place in the early morning hours of April 16 in a location known as a place where transgender prostitutes congregate.
“The complainant reports that he was approached by four individuals who assaulted him and took his vehicle,” Mejia said in a statement. “GLLU officers and affiliate officers were called to the scene. The suspects are possible members of the transgender community.”
Mejia’s statement, which he sent by e-mail to activists on the GLLU’s e-mail list, did not provide additional details, and he could not immediately be reached for comment.
LOU CHIBBARO JR.
District of Columbia
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade
WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.
The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.
Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.
Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.
Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”
“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”
“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.
The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.
2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
a&e features
Looking back at 50 years of Pride in D.C
Washington Blade’s unique archives chronicle highs, lows of our movement
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of LGBTQ Pride in Washington, D.C., the Washington Blade team combed our archives and put together a glossy magazine showcasing five decades of celebrations in the city. Below is a sampling of images from the magazine but be sure to find a print copy starting this week.
The magazine is being distributed now and is complimentary. You can find copies at LGBTQ bars and restaurants across the city. Or visit the Blade booth at the Pride festival on June 7 and 8 where we will distribute copies.
Thank you to our advertisers and sponsors, whose support has enabled us to distribute the magazine free of charge. And thanks to our dedicated team at the Blade, especially Photo Editor Michael Key, who spent many hours searching the archives for the best images, many of which are unique to the Blade and cannot be found elsewhere. And thanks to our dynamic production team of Meaghan Juba, who designed the magazine, and Phil Rockstroh who managed the process. Stephen Rutgers and Brian Pitts handled sales and marketing and staff writers Lou Chibbaro Jr., Christopher Kane, Michael K. Lavers, Joe Reberkenny along with freelancer and former Blade staffer Joey DiGuglielmo wrote the essays.
The magazine represents more than 50 years of hard work by countless reporters, editors, advertising sales reps, photographers, and other media professionals who have brought you the Washington Blade since 1969.
We hope you enjoy the magazine and keep it as a reminder of all the many ups and downs our local LGBTQ community has experienced over the past 50 years.
I hope you will consider supporting our vital mission by becoming a Blade member today. At a time when reliable, accurate LGBTQ news is more essential than ever, your contribution helps make it possible. With a monthly gift starting at just $7, you’ll ensure that the Blade remains a trusted, free resource for the community — now and for years to come. Click here to help fund LGBTQ journalism.
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
House passes reconciliation with gender-affirming care funding ban
PHOTOS: D.C. Trans Pride
Men convicted of murdering two men in NYC gay bar drugging scheme sentenced
Looking back at 50 years of Pride in D.C
Looking back at 50 years of Pride in D.C
WorldPride events round-up
Pope Leo XIV: Family based on ‘stable union between a man and a woman’
Marjorie Taylor Greene’s bill to criminalize gender affirming care advances
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a&e features5 hours agoLooking back at 50 years of Pride in D.C
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World Pride 20253 days agoWorldPride events round-up
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The Vatican4 days agoPope Leo XIV: Family based on ‘stable union between a man and a woman’
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Congress2 days agoMarjorie Taylor Greene’s bill to criminalize gender affirming care advances