National
LGBT groups take part in D.C. immigration rally
Rea Carey of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force addressed crowd


Rea Carey of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force speaks during a rally for immigration reform at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. (Photo by Kathy Plate)
Rev. Sarah Lamming of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church in Annapolis, Md., moved to the United States from England nearly four years ago. She and her American-born wife married in Maryland in January, but she cannot obtain a spousal green card because the Defense of Marriage Act prevents the federal government from recognizing their marriage for immigration purposes.
Lamming added during an interview at Immigration Equality’s office in Northwest D.C. on Wednesday that the work visas that she had until 18 months ago did not reference her relationship. She even removed her wedding rings each time she went to a U.S. embassy or tried to re-enter the country.
“That’s frustrating because that’s not how I’ve lived my life — we’ve lived our life in the last four years,” Lamming said.
Lamming and her wife were among the tens of thousands of people who attended a rally in support of comprehensive immigration reform on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday.
Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, addressed the crowd as Immigration Equality Executive Director Rachel Tiven and representatives from the Human Rights Campaign and other LGBT and allied organizations joined her on stage. Freedom to Marry, GLAAD, GetEQUAL, the National Black Justice Coalition, the National Center for Transgender Equality, the Trans-Latin@ Coalition and the Queer Undocumented Immigrant Project are among the 26 LGBT advocacy groups that issued a statement earlier in the day that urged Congress to pass a “fair and comprehensive” immigration reform bill.
“Immigration is a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and human rights issue,” Carey said.
Carey referenced a trans Mexican woman whom she said suffered “horrific abuse” while at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility. She also noted during her speech that bi-national same-sex couples are threatened with “forced separation” because they cannot sponsor their partner for immigration purposes.
“It is cruel and unfair to force loving couples and families to live apart …to make them choose between family and country,” Carey said.
Members of the Latino GLBT History Project and Casa Ruby were among those who also took part in the rally.
Jim Bolas of Brooklyn, N.Y., attended the rally with his partner of five years, Christophe Lepage, who returned to France after he lost his work visa because his company laid him off during the 2008 financial crisis. They told the Blade as they and other Immigration Equality supporters prepared to leave for the Capitol they felt it was important to participate in the event.
“We really want to make sure that LGBTQ families and couples are represented in the immigration arguments,” Bolas said.
The rally took place as a bi-partisan group of U.S. senators appear poised to introduce a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the coming days.
“The ‘Gang of 8’ senators of which I am one — Democrats and Republicans — have come to an agreement on all the major issues,” U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) said as he addressed the crowd. “We are writing the bill as we speak.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to begin considering the proposal next week. Tiven and New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler told the Blade on Monday it is unlikely to contain any LGBT-specific language.
Neither Menendez nor U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.,) who addressed the march as several of his congressional colleagues stood on stage with him, referenced bi-national same-sex couples during the event.
“There is success only when there is a consistent and persistent demand from the people,” the Illinois congressman told reporters from Spanish-language media outlets during an impromptu press conference after he spoke. “They have once again shown with their cries today that they will be consistent and persistent. And if Congress does not act, you will see the mobilization of our community on every street corner, in every neighborhood, in every house, in every city and in every state in the United States. We will not rest.”
Carey told the Blade during the rally her organization will continue to work to ensure lawmakers include the Uniting American Families Act that would allow gays and lesbians to sponsor their partners for immigration purposes into any final measure.
“We would be very disappointed if it’s not included in the base bill, but we’ve got a long road to go on this bill,” she said. “There are a lot of stops along this train ride and we intend to push for the inclusion of bi-national couples every step of the way.”
President Obama in January unveiled his immigration reform proposal that includes bi-national couples. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano in February told the Senate Judiciary Committee the White House supports a provision that would allow gays and lesbians to sponsor their foreign-born partners for immigration purposes.
Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy is expected to add UAFA as an amendment to the ‘Gang of 8’ bill once the Senate Judiciary Committee begins to consider it next week.
“We will then be pushing our allies on the Hill strongly to protect the language on the Senate floor,” HRC spokesperson Michael Cole-Schwartz said in response to the Blade’s question about whether the organization would publicly endorse an immigration reform measure that does not include bi-national same-sex couples.
Lamming and others who attended the rally said they hope Congress will support an LGBT-inclusive bill.
“This bill does not treat a section of the population with dignity,” she said. “This law precludes me from becoming part of the United States and my family is suffering from that.”
D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray appeared to agree as he spoke at the march.
“We want a law that protects the most vulnerable among us: our women, our children and our LGBT communities,” he said.
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.”
-
U.S. Supreme Court4 days ago
Supreme Court upholds ACA rule that makes PrEP, other preventative care free
-
U.S. Supreme Court4 days ago
Supreme Court rules parents must have option to opt children out of LGBTQ-specific lessons
-
Television5 days ago
‘White Lotus,’ ‘Severance,’ ‘Andor’ lead Dorian TV Awards noms
-
Music & Concerts5 days ago
Berkshire Choral to commemorate Matthew Shepard’s life