News
Area sports teams adopt gay-inclusive policies
DC United player Dwayne De Rosario appears in anti-discrimination campaign

Nationals Stadium on opening day (Photo by Michael Myers via Wikimedia Commons)
Local professional sports teams continue to make strides towards protecting their gay employees from discrimination and harassment in the workplace.
A spokesperson for the Washington Nationals noted to the Washington Blade the team’s policies and procedures “are designed to support the provisions” of the D.C. Human Rights Act that ban discrimination based on more than a dozen factors that include sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. The Baltimore Orioles have a zero-tolerance policy for anti-gay harassment and discrimination as outlined in Major League Baseball’s Workplace Code of Conduct.
“Harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation are against MLB’s values and will not be tolerated anywhere in the major or minor leagues,” the policy reads.
FIND MORE OF THE WASHINGTON BLADE SPORTS ISSUE HERE.
The Baltimore Ravens have also adopted a policy that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.
The franchise repeatedly defended then-linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo’s advocacy for marriage rights for same-sex couples after state Del. Emmett Burns (D-Baltimore County) urged Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti that Ayanbadejo “should concentrate on football and steer clear of dividing the fan base” after he learned he had donated two Ravens tickets as part of a Marylanders for Marriage Equality fundraiser.
“Brendon is permitted to express his viewpoints,” team spokesperson Patrick Gleason told the Blade before the Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers in this year’s Super Bowl. “The Ravens have always supported his right to free speech.”
The Washington Wizards did not respond to the Blade’s request for comment, but the collective bargaining agreement the NBA reached in 2011 includes sexual orientation in its anti-discrimination policies. The league also has those protections in place for its employees.
Both NBA Commissioner David Stern and Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld applauded Jason Collins after he came out as gay in an op-ed published to Sports Illustrated’s website in April.
“We are extremely proud of Jason and support his decision to live his life proudly and openly,” Grunfeld said. “He’s been a leader on and off the court and an outstanding teammate throughout his NBA career. Those qualities will continue to serve him both as a player and as a positive role model for others of all sexual orientations.”
The Washington Capitals did not respond to the Blade’s request for comment, but the National Hockey League’s anti-discrimination policy has included sexual orientation since 2005. The National Football League’s handbook states harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation “are contrary to our values.”
National Center for Lesbian Rights Sports Director Helen Carroll told the Blade that more fans are asking professional sports teams to adopt LGBT-inclusive policies.
She said she feels Ayanbadejo, Chris Kluwe of the Oakland Raiders and other athletes who back marriage rights for same-sex couples have contributed to this increased support. Carroll added societal shifts in support of LGBT rights are also a factor.
“It has put everything front and center in a brand new light,” she said.
Teams host LGBT fan nights, support anti-discrimination campaigns

Last year’s Night Out at the Nationals was sponsored by Team D.C. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
Team D.C. organizes LGBT fan nights that take place during Wizards, Nationals and Washington Mystic games and Washington Kastles matches. Ayanbadejo and the Orioles each made a video for the “It Gets Better” project against bullying.
The San Francisco Giants, the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and Seattle’s four professional sports teams are among those that have also made their own “It Gets Better” video.
Dwayne De Rosario of DC United, Landon Donovan of the Los Angeles Galaxy and Kyle Beckerman of Real Salt Lake appear in a gay-inclusive anti-discrimination campaign that Major League Soccer launched last year. AS Roma in July backed the “Don’t Cross the Line” initiative that also seeks to combat racism in professional soccer before they played against each other during the MLS All-Star Game that took place in Kansas City, Kan., on July 31.
“The response has been really well received from the soccer community,” de Rosario told the Blade during a recent interview. “A lot of people are on board and want to see certain things that are involved in sports out of sports.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHmTvpmLFKA
District of Columbia
Gay ANC member announces candidacy for Ward 1 D.C. Council seat
Community leader Brian Footer seeking seat held by Brianne Nadeau

Gay Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Brian Footer, a community activist who has been involved for many years in local and national government affairs, has announced his candidacy for the Ward 1 D.C. Council seat up for election in 2026.
Footer, a Democrat, will be running in the city’s June 2, 2026, Democratic primary for the Ward 1 Council seat, but it is uncertain whether he will be running against incumbent Ward 1 Council member Brianne Nadeau (D). Nadeau has not yet announced if she plans to run for re-election for a fourth term following her 12 years on the Council.
Nadeau has been a longtime vocal supporter of the LGBTQ community.
If Footer were to win the primary and the November 2026 general election, he would become the Council’s second openly gay member. Ward 5 Council member Zachary Parker (D) is currently the 13-member Council’s only gay member.
Footer is a three-term ANC commissioner who currently serves as Chair of ANC 1E, which represents the city’s Adams Morgan neighborhood.
“Brian has worked at every level of government — federal, state, and local — building a career rooted in public service, aging policy, and inclusive urban planning,” a statement on his campaign website says.
“I’m running for Council because too many people in Ward 1 are doing everything right and still feel ignored by the city they call home,” Footer states on his website.
“I’m running because we can do better,” his statement continues. “That means making housing more affordable, addressing homelessness with real solutions, and keeping our neighborhoods safe with smart, community focused strategies.”
When contacted by the Washington Blade for comment, Nadeau said she was not ready at this time to discuss her plans about running again or about Footer’s candidacy.
“The primary is a ways away, and I’m very focused right now on the budget and the stadium deal and all the work that we’re doing at the Council,” she told the Blade. “So, I really haven’t had time to turn to my plans. So, as a result, I’m also not going to be commenting on anybody else who is determined that they’re running at this time.”
She first won election to the Council in 2014 after she defeated four-term gay Ward 1 Council member Jim Graham in the Democratic primary after Graham became embroiled in an ethics controversy.
In the 2022 Democratic primary Nadeau defeated gay challenger Salah Czapary in a three-candidate race, by a margin of 48.5% of the vote compared to Czapary’s 30.9%.
With the third candidate, Sabel Harris, receiving 20.4%, the outcome showed that the two challengers had a combined total vote count higher than Nadeau.
Further details of Footer’s candidacy can be accessed from his campaign website, brianfooterdc.com.
Spain
Spanish women detail abuses suffered in Franco-era institutions
Barcelona-based photographer Luca Gaetano Pira created ‘Las Descarriadas’ exhibit

A Barcelona-based photographer, audiovisual artist, and activist has created an exhibit that profiles Spanish women who suffered abuse in institutions that Gen. Francisco Franco’s dictatorship established.
Luca Gaetano Pira, who is originally from Italy, spoke with women who the regime, which governed Spain from 1936-1975, sent to Women’s Protection Board institutions.
The regime in 1941 created the board the country’s Justice Ministry oversaw.
Franco named his wife, Carmen Polo, as the board’s honorary president. Then-Prime Minister Felipe González fully dissolved the board in 1985, a decade after Franco’s death.
Gaetano’s exhibit is called “Las Descarriadas” or “The Misguided Women” in English.
“These are women who were detained between 1941 and 1985 for reasons that are unthinkable today: being lesbian, poor, pregnant out of wedlock, rebellious, politically active … or simply considered ‘morally suspect,'” Gaetano noted to the Washington Blade.
Groups affiliated with the Spanish Catholic Church ran these institutions. Gaetano pointed out they were “presented as social assistance centers.”
“In reality, they were spaces of punishment and forced reeducation, where isolation, unpaid work, and psychological violence were the norm,” he said. “Many of the survivors are still alive. Their testimonies are powerful, urgent, and of extraordinary current relevance.”
The regime sent more than 40,000 women to Women’s Protection Board institutions.
“Despite its seemingly benevolent name, it was in fact one of the most powerful instruments of moral and social control over women during and after the dictatorship,” notes the exhibit. “Under the guise of care and re-education, this institution functioned as a repressive apparatus that punished women who deviated from the ideal feminine model imposed by Franco’s regime: submissive, obedient, married, and dedicated to motherhood within the Catholic family structure.”
The Spanish Catholic Church last month issued a public apology, but Gaetano described it as “very soft” and noted “the women did not accept it.” Gaetano also compared the Women’s Protection Board institutions to Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries.
The Associated Press notes tens of thousands of “fallen” women were sent to the laundries that Catholic nuns operated in Ireland from the 18th century until the mid-1990s. Then-Irish Prime Minister Edna Kenny in 2013 issued a formal apology for the abuses that women suffered in the laundries and announced the government would compensate them.
The Spanish government has yet to offer compensation to the women abused in Women’s Protection Board institutions.
“My work focuses on recovering the historical memory of marginalized communities, particularly through the portrayal of survivors of institutional violence and the use of archival materials,” Gaetano told the Blade, noting he has also sought to highlight the repression that LGBTQ people suffered during dictatorships in Portugal and Latin America.
Gaetano’s exhibit can be found here:
District of Columbia
Gay GOP group hosts Ernst, 3 House members — all of whom oppose Equality Act
Log Cabin, congressional guest speakers mum on June 25 event

U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and three women Republican members of the U.S. House appeared as guest speakers at the June 25 meeting of Log Cabin Republicans of D.C., the local chapter of the national LGBTQ Republican group with that same name.
The U.S. House members who joined Ernst as guest speakers at the Log Cabin meeting were Celeste Maloy (R-Utah), Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), and Julia Letlow (R-La.).
Neither D.C. Log Cabin Republicans President Andrew Minik nor spokespersons for Ernst or the three congresswomen immediately responded to a request by the Washington Blade for comment on the GOP lawmakers’ appearance at an LGBTQ GOP group’s meeting.
“Please join us for an inspiring evening as we celebrate and recognize the bold leadership and accomplishments of Republican women in Congress,” a D.C Log Cabin announcement sent to its members states.
“This month’s meeting will highlight the efforts of the Republican Women’s Caucus and explore key issues such as the Protection of Women and Girls In Sports Act and the broader fight to preserve women’s spaces in society,” the message says.
It was referring to legislation pending in Congress calling for banning transgender women from participating in women’s sports events.
According to media reports, Ernst and the three congresswomen have expressed opposition to the Equality Act, the longstanding bill pending in Congress calling for prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations.
The Log Cabin announcement says the meeting was scheduled to take place at the Royal Sands Social Club, which is a restaurant and bar at 26 N St., S.E. in the city’s Navy Yard area.
D.C. Log Cabin member Stuart West, who attended the meeting, confirmed that Ernst and the three congresswomen showed up and spoke at the event.
“It was a good turnout,” he said. “I would definitely say probably 30 or 40 people attended.” West added, “Four women came to talk to a group of mostly gay men. That’s something you don’t see very often.”
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