Washingtonblade.com, Volume 52, Issue 51, December 17, 2021

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Men charged in D.C. trans murder sentenced to 8 years Activist blasts sentence as ‘miscarriage of justice’

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. | lchibbaro@washblade.com

DEENIQUIA ‘DEE DEE’ DODDS was murdered in 2016.

(Photo courtesy Facebook)

A D.C. Superior Court Judge on Friday sentenced two of four men originally charged with first degree murder while armed for the July 4, 2016, shooting death of transgender woman Deeniquia “Dee Dee” Dodds on a street in Northeast Washington to eight years in jail and five years of supervised probation upon their release.

The sentence by Judge Milton C. Lee came a little over two months after Jalonta Little, 31, and Monte T. Johnson, 26, agreed through their attorneys to a plea bargain offer by prosecutors allowing them to plead guilty to a single count of voluntary manslaughter in exchange for the murder charge and related gun violation charges

to be dropped.

The plea agreement included a promise by prosecutors with the Office of the United States Attorney for D.C. to ask the judge for a sentence of eight years incarceration. Under D.C. law, a conviction on a charge of voluntary manslaughter carries a possible maximum sentence of 30 years.

As expected by court observers, Lee gave Little and Johnson full credit for the time they have already served in jail since their arrest. Johnson has been held without bond for four years and 10 months since his arrest in the Dodds case in February 2017. Little has been held for five years and two months since the time of his arrest in September 2016.

Lee also agreed to a request by prosecutors to issue a court stay away order prohibiting Johnson and Little from going to the areas where they targeted Dodds and other transgender women for armed robberies on the night of Dodds’ murder. Their targeting of trans women, some of whom were sex workers, prompted D.C. police to list the Dodds murder as a hate crime, a designation that was dropped by Lee during the 2019 trial on ground of insufficient evidence.

Lee sentenced Johnson to an additional 150 days in jail for an unrelated charge, to which he pled guilty, of Attempted Unlawful Possession of Contraband Into a Penal Institution. Court records show that Johnson and another inmate at the D.C. Jail were charged in September of this year with actual possession of the illegal contraband after the two stabbed each other with make-shift, knife-like objects while fighting.

Court records show Johnson was treated at a hospital for multiple, nonlife threatening stab wounds in connection with the incident. Prosecutors agreed to lower the charge to attempted possession of unlawful contraband in exchange for Johnson’s agreement to plead guilty.

Judge Lee ordered that the additional sentence for Johnson of 150 days must be carried out consecutively to the eight-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter.

Both Lee and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharon Donovan, the lead prosecutor in the case, pointed out that the Dec. 10 sentencing followed a March 2019 trial for Little and Johnson on the first-degree murder charges in the Dodds case that ended in a mistrial after the jury was unable to reach a verdict on the murder charges.

At the request of prosecutors, another trial for Little and Johnson on the murder was scheduled a short time later, but for reasons not disclosed in the public court records, the second trial was postponed several times and eventually cancelled after the plea bargain agreement was reached in September of this year.

The two other men charged in the Dodds murder, Shareem Hall, 28, and his brother, Cyheme Hall, 26, accepted a separate plea bargain offer by prosecutors shortly before the start of the 2019 trial for Johnson and Little in which they pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. They each testified as government witnesses at Johnson and Little’s trial, with Cyheme Hall testifying that it was Johnson who fatally shot Dodds in the neck at point blank range after she attempted to fight back when he and Johnson attempted to rob her.

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of their arrests. They are scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 20.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has not publicly disclosed why they chose to offer the plea deal rather than bring Little and Johnson to trial again on the murder charge. Attorneys familiar with criminal cases have said prosecutors sometimes offer a plea deal after determining that going to trial a second time could result in a not-guilty verdict based on the circumstances of the case.

Judge Lee raised this issue in Friday’s sentencing hearing when he asked prosecutor Donovan to explain the recommendation of an eight-year prison sentence rather than a longer one.

“Obviously, an individual lost their life during the circumstances that gave rise to the charge here in the first trial that we had,” Lee told Donovan. “Can you tell me why, from the government’s perspective, do you think this particular sentence here agreed upon by the parties – eight years – do you think it’s an appropriate sentence under the circumstances that we’re aware of?” Lee asked.

“Your honor, we believe that this takes into consideration the first trial and the evidentiary difficulties that were highlighted during the first trial and other incidents that occurred during the first trial,” Donovan told Lee. “And that taking everything into consideration and considering the goal of sentencing obviously is to address the family and the community by trying to cross the sentence against the facts and circumstances in a particular case,” Donovan said. “And we believe that taking all of that into consideration that it is an appropriate sentence.”

Prior to handing down his sentence, Lee also mentioned that he received a community impact statement on the Dodds murder from the D.C. Center for the LGBT Community’s Anti-Violence Project. The attorneys representing Little and Johnson said their clients saw the community impact statement. Neither of them raised any objections to the statement. The statement was not read or released at the hearing.

The statement, which the Anti-Violence Project released to the Blade, called on Judge Lee to issue the maximum sentence for Little and Johnson.

“We adamantly request that the court impose the maximum sentences allowed, reinforcing respectful and impactful consequences to these defendants for their violent crimes,” the AntiViolence Project’s statement says. “Additionally, we ask that you take into consideration the perceived vulnerability of the victim of the defendants’ violent crimes as a transgender woman of color whose rights and life were targeted in a way that confirms they did not matter to the defendants,” the statement says.

“This victim’s attempt to defend herself from their violence was answered with lethal brutality,” the statement continues. “Her voice is silenced, but the grief and outcry for justice from the LGBTQ+ community rises to honor her death and demand effective and responsive protection for the lives of all LGBTQ+ people targeted by future criminals.”

In a separate statement provided to the Blade last week, Anti-Violence Project Chair Stephania Mahdi expressed strong objections to the terms of the plea bargain offered by prosecutors.

“A plea bargain from first-degree murder to voluntary manslaughter as well as a reduction of years in sentencing from 30 to 8 communicates not only a miscarriage of justice, but a message of penalization for victims who attempt to protect themselves during a violent assault,” Mahdi said. “The continual impact of reducing the culpability of perpetrators who target members of specifically identified communities sends a malicious message to criminals that certain groups of people are easier targets with lenient consequences,” she said.

Prior to handing down his sentence, Lee asked prosecutor Donovan if a member of Dodds’ family would be providing him a statement or recommendation related to the sentencing.

Donovan said one of Dodd’s aunts, who raised Dodds and who was unable to attend the sentencing hearing, relayed her views on the case to prosecutors.

“She wanted us to convey to the court that she believes that these men took someone special from the world and someone very dear to her,” Donovan said. “[She] said she cannot hold hate in her heart for these men because that is not who she is or how she chooses to live her life. She hopes these young men know right from wrong and realize these actions were wrong,” Donovan told the court.

“She says she knows that life is often difficult for young people,” Donovan continued. “But she hopes these men learn that actions have consequences. And she hopes they take this time to learn something important and do something better with their lives…”

Johnson and Little also spoke briefly just before Lee handed down his sentence. Little said he regretted having made “mistakes” during his life, which he said resulted in him spending most of his adult life in prison. Court records show Little has several prior criminal convictions.

“I did wrong because I was with the wrong people,” he said. “I will try to lead my life to the best of my ability.”

Johnson thanked Lee for accepting the terms of his plea. He said he wanted to send his “condolences’ to the Dodds family, adding, “I’m sorry for their loss.”

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Comings & Goings

Rouse takes senior role at Victory Fund

By PETER ROSENSTEIN

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at: comingsandgoings@washblade.com.

Congratulations to Martin Rouse on being chosen to serve as Victory Fund’s Senior Director of Political Programs. On accepting the position, he said, “Thanks to a solicitation from Victory Fund, I wrote my first check to a queer candidate running for office near my hometown on Long Island over 20 years ago. It is an honor to be a part of their team and help them continue to build and flex the political muscle of LGBTQ people.”

Rouse has more than 20 years of experience as a respected practitioner of civil society leadership resulting in landmark public policy victories for oppressed minorities.

He works with Catamount Consulting in North Bethesda. He served in a number of different positions with the Human Rights Campaign, including: Senior Adviser and National Field Director, Policy & Political Affairs; and as National Field Director. Prior to that he worked as Campaign Director with MassEquality. He has also served as Director of Scheduling and Advance for Secretary Donna E. Shalala at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and in a number of other political positions including Director of the Office of Gay and Lesbian Affairs, City of New York, under Mayor David Dinkins.

Congratulations also to Frederick Appel Isasi, named one of the top lobbyists of 2021 by The Hill. Isasi is the lead author of the new report “Patients, Families, and Communities COVID-19 Impact Assessment: Lessons Learned and Compelling Needs” reported in Politico, which wrote, “Life expectancy in the U.S. has fallen partly because of Covid-19, but drops were significantly greater for Black and Latinx populations than white people, according to a National Academy of Medicine report co-authored by

MARTY ROUSE

FREDERICK ISASI

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Families USA Executive Director Frederick Isasi.”

Isasi said, “I am proud to lead Families USA as we work to achieve our vision for a nation where the best health and health care are equally accessible and affordable to all. As someone who was raised in an activist, Catholic and Cuban family, it is an honor to represent so many different people like the LGBTQ+, communities of color, and lowincome communities.”

Congratulations also to Justin Nelson, co-founder and President of the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, on his reappointment to the Council on Underserved Communities in the Small Business Administration. Initially established in 2010, the Council on Underserved Communities provides advice, ideas, and opinions on SBA programs, services, and issues of interest to small businesses in underserved communities. The 20-member federal advisory committee serves as an essential connection between the SBA and underserved small businesses to work toward creating new initiatives to spur economic growth, job creation, competitiveness, and sustainability across all communities.

On his appointment, Nelson said, “I am honored to be reappointed to the SBA’s Council on the Underserved Communities to ensure that America’s 1.4 million job creating, industry innovating entrepreneurs are well-represented during this critical time for small business investment. Working in close collaboration with our diverse business partners is at the core of who we are at NGLCC.”

U.S. Attorney’s Office declines to prosecute anti-gay assault case D.C. police report says man beaten by neighbors in Northeast

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. | lchibbaro@washblade.com

The U.S. Attorney’s Office has declined to prosecute two women and a man who, according to a D.C. police report, assaulted a gay man after one of the women called him a “Jewish faggot” during an Oct. 13 incident on the grounds of a Northeast Washington apartment building where the victim and the two women live.

The victim, Antonio Zephir, 51, said one of the women, her daughter, and a man he believes to be the daughter’s father repeatedly punched him ANTONIO ZEPHIR was beaten by in the face after he shouted back at the mother in neighbors. (Photo courtesy of Zephir) response to the anti-gay and anti-Jewish slur he says she hurled at him.

The incident took place outside the Northwood Gardens Apartments at 4870 Fort Totten Dr., N.E. at about 12:40 p.m. the police report says.

Zephir told the Blade last week that an official with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which prosecutes crimes committed by adults in D.C., informed him in a phone call that the office decided not to prosecute the case after police and prosecutors viewed a surveillance camera video that reportedly captured the entire incident.

He said the official, Crystal Flournoy, Deputy Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Early Case Assessment Section, told him the video showed that he was the “aggressor” in the incident.

Zephir says he strongly disputes that characterization and believes the camera angle from the video may not have captured the full altercation in which he was assaulted first before attempting to defend himself.

A D.C. police spokesperson said police opened an investigation into the incident after Zephir called police immediately after the altercation. A police report lists the incident as a suspected anti-gay hate crime and lists the offense as a misdemeanor simple assault.

Zephir, who was treated and released from the Washington Hospital Center the day after the incident, suffered a fractured nose, a fractured bone surrounding one of his eyes, and other facial injuries, according to a hospital report he provided to the Blade. He said his doctor told him he may need facial surgery to treat ongoing effects from the injuries.

In a Dec. 7 email, a copy of which Zephir sent to the Blade, D.C. Police Lt. Scott Dowling 0 8 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • LO CA L NE WS

informed Zephir that the U.S Attorney’s Office declined to process an affidavit submitted by police requesting the case be prosecuted. “[T]he affidavit submitted to the United States Attorney’s Office was declined, meaning that their office is not willing to move forward with criminal charges,” Dowling told Zephir in his email message. “As a result, there will be no arrests relating to the offense you reported,” Dowling said. “As the Affidavit was declined, our investigation is closed,” Dowling wrote in the message.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to prosecute this matter after reviewing the evidence,” William Miller, a spokesperson for the office, told the Blade in a statement on Wednesday.

“Beyond that, we typically do not comment on charging decisions and have no further comment,” Miller said.

Zephir said he doesn’t think the video, which he hasn’t seen, shows that one of the two women involved in the altercation was the first to assault him. He identified her in court papers he filed seeking a stay away protection order as Aurlora Ellis.

Court records show that a D.C. Superior Court judge on Nov. 30 issued a “Consent Stay Away Order” requiring Ellis and her daughter, identified as Latera Cox, and a woman who Zephir says lives at Ellis’s apartment, to “stay at least 100 feet away from Plaintiffs Zephir or Johnson.”

Steve Johnson, who is cited in the stay away order, is Zephir’s roommate who the police report says attempted to stop the Oct. 13 altercation in which Zephir says he was assaulted.

The court order further states that the three women “shall not contact Plaintiffs Zephir or Johnson in any manner, including but not limited to by telephone, in writing, and in any manner directly or indirectly through another person, including social media,” and that the order will remain in effect for one year.

“Ms. Ellis was the person who made those threats and slurs against me,” Zephir said.

“I responded with not-so-kind words. She ran towards me and assaulted me with hard punches toward my face,” Zephir recounted. “I punched back in an attempt to defend myself,” he said.

According to Zephir, during the altercation Ellis told him, “Call the police, you bitch faggot.

They’re not going to do anything. This isn’t over yet.” He said he continues to worry that Ellis’s comment that the matter “isn’t over yet” was a threat and that she may try to harm him again.

Ellis couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

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Shooting of gay man highlights concern over rising D.C. gun violence ‘A sense of growing lawlessness, increasing crime’

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. | lchibbaro@washblade.com

A gay man was shot twice in the hip and upper leg on Saturday morning, Dec. 11, while standing in front of a store next to the Georgia AvenuePetworth Metro station in a development that his boyfriend says A D.C. police report says Larry makes him yet another Henderson was shot by an victim of an alarming unidentified suspect outside the Petworth Market at 3715 rise in gun violence in Georgia Ave., N.W. the nation’s capital.

(Blade photo by Lou Chibbaro Jr.) A D.C. police incident report says Larry Darnell Henderson, 36, was “hit twice in the lower extremities” by shots fired by an unidentified male suspect who fired nine shots into a crowd where Henderson was standing on Georgia Avenue, N.W., just before 10 a.m. on Dec. 11.

“Suspect 1 fled the scene northbound on the 3700 block of Georgia Ave. N.W., then turning eastbound into the 6700 block of Quincy St., N.W. where he was last seen,” the police report says.

Kevin McDonnell, who said he and Henderson are a couple, told the Blade that Henderson told him the male shooter initially pointed his gun at Henderson’s groin, prompting Henderson to turn his body around, which resulted in his being struck by bullets in the hip and leg.

According to McDonnell, Henderson told him the shooter did not say anything and did not attempt to rob him. But because the two men frequently patronize the stores and shops surrounding that Metro station and sometimes exhibit affection toward one another, McDonnell said he believes the shooter may have perceived Henderson to be a partner in a gay relationship and targeted him for a hate crime.

“It’s no accident that that guy pointed his gun at his genitalia,” McDonnell said. “And had LD not pivoted it would be a different story,” said McDonnell, who refers to Henderson by his nickname LD. The police report specifically says the incident is not listed as a suspected hate crime. McDonnell disputes that designation.

When asked by the Blade if police investigators were looking for a possible video of the shooting incident from nearby surveillance cameras, a police spokesperson said if a photo of the suspect is obtained from a video camera and if police seek the public’s help in identifying and locating the suspect “we will release it.”

McDonnell said Henderson was taken by ambulance to MedStar Washington Hospital Center, where he underwent surgery. He remained at the hospital under treatment as of late Tuesday.

LGBTQ activists, meanwhile, have said they are not aware of any information to indicate that LGBTQ people are being singled out for gun violence or other types of crime to a degree greater than the general public.

A D.C. police spokesperson and the supervisor of the department’s LGBT Liaison Unit, Sgt. Nicole Brown, didn’t immediately respond to a message from the Blade asking whether officers assigned to the LGBT Liaison Unit have noticed an increase in crimes against LGBTQ people in the District during the past two years compared to previous years.

A police source familiar with the LGBT Liaison Unit, who spoke on condition of not being identified because the source was not authorized to speak to the media, said there

was no “clear indication that LGBT people are being targeted any more than anyone else.”

D.C. police statistics for hate crimes posted on the police website show that for 2021, as of Sept. 30, there were a total of 29 reported hate crimes based on the victim’s sexual orientation and eight hate crimes reported based on the victim’s gender identity or expression.

Those figures compare to a total of 38 sexual orientation or anti-gay hate crimes reported in the full year of 2020 and 60 in 2019. The police data show that in 2020 there were 27 reported hate crimes based on the victim’s gender identity or status as a transgender person and the same number of 27 for that category reported in 2019.

Law enforcement observers have pointed out that the rise in violent crime in most of the nation’s large cities, including D.C., has occurred during the COVID pandemic and the COVID-related public health restrictions placed on many businesses and citizens across the country.

D.C. police data show that there was a 19 percent increase in homicides in the District in 2020 compared to 2019 – a jump from 166 to 198. As of Dec. 14, of this year, the D.C. police data show homicides rose so far in 2021 by 9 percent to a total of 212 cases as of Dec. 14.

This year’s homicide total of 212 as of Dec. 14 marked the first time the number of murders in the city has surpassed 200 since 2003, a development that has alarmed city officials and prompted D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser last week to announce the city will expand its violence prevention and migration programs. Earlier this year, the mayor declared gun violence in the city a “public health crisis.”

As of that same Dec. 14, 2021, date, the D.C. police data show the crime of assault with a dangerous weapon rose by 3 percent over 2020 – from 1,581 to 1,605, robberies rose by 1 percent – 1,913 to 1,930, and the combined number of “violent crime” rose by 2 percent over 2020 from 3,855 to 3,919.

The 2021 data show that the number of burglaries declined by 4 percent so far in 2021 compared to 2020 from 1,136 to 1,094. The number of motor vehicle thefts rose by 9 percent from 3,068 in 2020 to 3,348 as of Dec. 14, 2021. The crime of “theft from auto” rose by 5 percent so far this year, from 7,897 to 8,307.

And the crime listed by D.C. police as “Theft/Other,” which is the second highest category of crime in the city, remained statistically the same but rose slightly from 10,409 in 2020 to 10,430 in 2021.

The police data show that the combined total of “property crime” in the city rose by 3 percent from 22,523 in 2020 to 23,182 as of Dec. 14, 2021.

The combined total of all instances of crime, the police data show, rose by 3 percent from 26,378 to 27,101 in 2021.

Although D.C.’s overall crime rate has not increased as much as it has in other cities, several high-profile incidents in parts of the city not accustomed to the shootings that residents of other parts of the city say they are accustomed to have alarmed businesses and nearby residents.

In July, two men were shot and wounded outside the popular strip of restaurants on 14th Street, N.W., where offices for Whitman-Walker Health are located and close to the Washington Blade’s former office. A short time later, a shooting outside Washington Nationals Stadium prompted fans inside the stadium to duck for cover and prompted demands for police and the city to do more to address gun violence.

The two high-profile shootings also drew attention to disagreements between Bowser and several members of the D.C. Council over whether or how much the fiscal year 2022 budget for the police department should be

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increased. Bowser and many community activists, including those in Wards 7 and 8, where the murder rate is highest, expressed concern that the number of police officers in the city is currently the lowest it has been in nearly 20 years due to retirements and attrition.

The Council in August voted to raise the police budget by $5 million, a little less than half of the $11 million that Bowser requested. The mayor has said the additional funds were needed to hire more officers to address the gun violence “crisis.”

Representatives of many of the city’s nightlife businesses, including restaurants and bars, have also expressed concern that legislation approved by the D.C. Council in recent years to place restrictions on how police make arrests of juveniles and people suffering from mental health problems have resulted in small businesses receiving less police protection against crimes targeting their customers and employees.

One law that some have objected to is the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results Amendment, or NEAR Act, of 2016. The law, among other things, requires that D.C. police coordinate with the city’s Department of Behavioral Health and Department of Human Services to arrange for civilian mental health clinicians and outreach specialists to join police officers in responding to crimes or disturbances caused by individuals identified as having mental illness, being homeless, or having substance abuse issues.

Although those raising concerns over the NEAR Act say they fully support providing mental health services for people who need those services, they say police in some cases have declined to respond to calls for “less serious” crimes such as “snatch-and-grab” purse and cell phone snatchings from people seated in outdoor dining areas at restaurants.

Some of the businesses have said police have expressed reluctance to respond if the suspected perpetrator has a mental health problem during evening hours when the civilian mental health experts from the Department of Behavioral Health or other city agencies are not working evening hours.

“A sense of growing lawlessness, increasing crime, and random violence is a much-discussed concern among local small business restaurant, bar, and retail store operators and workers throughout the city,” said Mark Lee, coordinator of the D.C. Nightlife Council, a local trade association representing nightlife, hospitality, and entertainment businesses in D.C. Lee said representatives of these businesses have met recently with D.C. Council members and D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee to inform them that safety concerns by employees have begun to harm businesses and negatively impact commercial sections of the city.

“MPD leadership and rank-and-file officers, I think it’s fair to say, are as frustrated as many city residents and local enterprises have become about a D.C. Council majority that pretends it is reassigning parts of public safety and law enforcement to other government entities that are understaffed, undertrained, and largely unavailable to respond to incidents and problems,” Lee said.

He noted that because the D.C. police force is the smallest it has been in 20 years, despite population increases, “officers are stretched thin working overtime shifts.”

D.C. Council member Robert White (D-At-Large), who is running for mayor in the 2022 Democratic primary, is among the Council members who have said addressing the underlying causes of crime in the city is the only way the city can succeed in ending gun violence and other serious crimes.

CONTINUED AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

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Wendy Rieger to retire from NBC4 Longtime anchor champions LGBTQ rights

By MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Longtime NBC4 anchor Wendy Rieger on Dec. 10 announced she will retire after 33 years with the television station.

Rieger in an email to colleagues said her last day will be Dec. 21, which coincides with the Winter Solstice.

“There is an elegance to the universe if you let it reveal itself,” she wrote. “As a Celtic Pagan, the 21st of December is a high holiday. The Solstice. When I saw two years ago that my contract would be ending on 12/21/2021, there was a perfection to those numbers. It felt like a good time to pull a fresh page from the stack and start writing a new story. Then COVID, and COVID and COVID and the whirl of events that have kept everything swirling around the room these past years.”

She talked about her pending retirement with coanchor Jim Handly later that day.

“At a certain point, as I used to say to some of my dates, how can I miss you if you won’t leave,” said Rieger as Handly began to laugh. “There’s a certain point where we need new chapters in our lives and we can’t get too attached to something that we’ve done, that we know, that’s become second nature, no matter how much we love it.”

Rieger, who is originally from Norfolk, Va., joined NBC4 in 1988 as a general assignment reporter. She began to anchor the station’s weekend evening newscasts in 1996 and the 5 p.m. broadcasts in 2001.

“When I was here 33 years ago, this was the Land of the Giants in that Jim Vance was here. George Michael was here. Bob Ryan,” Rieger told the Washington Blade on Monday during a telephone interview from NBC4’s Northwest D.C. studios. “You sat on the set with those three and it was like working in a redwood forest, and that was the Era of the Giants.”

Rieger throughout her career has championed the LGBTQ community.

She participated in a number of D.C. AIDS Rides and emceed several SMYAL Fall Brunches.

Rieger in 2017 made a cameo in the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington’s adaptation of the musical “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” The Blade in 2015 named Rieger “Best Local TV Personality” for that year’s “Best of Gay D.C.” issue, which featured a cover photo of Rieger straddling a drag queen as she applied lipstick.

Rieger joked that “people at work said we would have liked to have had a heads up that you were going to be straddling the guy.”

“I said, well that was my idea,” she told the Blade. “And when they said they weren’t going to care and I said, you know, in this business, especially dealing with TV news and an organization, they said, you always ask for forgiveness, not permission. They’re never going to give it to you. I said, let’s just do it if we like it.”

Rieger credited Patrick Bruyere, a longtime volunteer

Rieger diagnosed with brain cancer in June

WENDY RIEGER

(Washington Blade photo by Jonathan Ellis)

for LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS service organizations who passed away from cancer in 2017, with introducing her to the LGBTQ community in D.C. She said that Bruyere in 1999 asked her to host a fundraiser for One in Ten, a group that once ran the Reel Affirmations LGBTQ film festival, at the Lincoln Theater.

“I said, ‘I’d be glad to do that,’” said Rieger, recalling the conversation she had with Bruyere. “But you know, I’m just Wendy Rieger, I just anchor the news, you know.

Don’t you have someone bigger? And he said, he actually said this, ‘I need a straight person because no one’s going to listen to us.’ And I said, ‘Are you kidding me?’”

“I saw so many people in the gay community moving into neighborhoods and using this vast creative spirit to renovate. And this renaissance that was happening all throughout our city, it was because of gay creativity,” Rieger told the Blade, referring to her reaction to the lack of support that the One in Ten fundraiser had received.

“I was stunned that this was still going on. This bullshit was still going on. This crap is still going on,” she said.

Rieger said discrimination cannot “occur anywhere.”

“Enough with this shit,” she said. “I’m so tired of bigotry and ignorance. It is exhausting. It is just exhausting. I’m just sick of it.”

Rieger also expressed her gratitude to her LGBTQ viewers who “let me into your family.”

“That meant so much to me because now I had a tribe,” she said. “My ancestors, when they came over from various parts of Europe, we just didn’t do anything, but become sort of, you know, WASPs in suburbia, What the fuck is that? I’m sorry. What the fuck is that? It’s just like something my mother would say; we were just colorless, odorless and sexless.”

“You guys really gave me something to attach to and a kind of family to belong to,” added Rieger. “I still feel like I have a community simply because my gay friends are just so warm. And I’m sorry, y’all are still the most fun people around ever, ever, ever.”

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WENDY RIEGER served as the emcee at the 18th annual SMYAL Fall Brunch on Nov. 15, 2015.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Rieger had open heart surgery in October 2020. She announced her retirement less than six months after doctors diagnosed her with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.

“I knew there was something in my head,” Rieger told the Blade. “So, I was an advocate for myself in the bitchiest way, and I got into an MRI really fast.”

A friend referred Rieger to the Hillman Cancer Center at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Her doctor, Pascal Zinn, removed the tumor within 10 days of having the MRI that found it. Rieger underwent radiation for six weeks and is now participating in a cancer vaccine trial at Duke University.

“It says on my file, life expectancy 14 months,” she said.

“Odds are meant to be defied and she said the people who survive this the most are the ones that say fuck you to this cancer and they go live their lives and there’s nothing wrong with them.”

Rieger last month married Dan Buckley, a retired NBC4 cameraman who worked at the station for 37 years, at their home in Rappahannock County, Va. Rieger during the Dec. 10 broadcast joked her husband is “having coffee and toast and taking walks while I’m coming to work” and she wants to “go hang out with him and do other things.” Rieger also hinted that she would like to learn how to play the cello or even the tuba.

She said she and her husband have yet to decide whether they will live full-time at their home in Rappahannock County or at their apartment in Chevy Chase. Rieger told the Blade that her husband’s parents are originally from Ireland, and he would like to travel there on the Queen Mary 2.

“Sometimes you have to get off the trail to see the trail, and so that’s what we’re going to let ourselves do,” said Rieger.

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Smollett found guilty of staging hate crime attack store purchasing the rope and other items used to stage the attack that Chicago police The jury in the case of actor Jussie Smollett reached a guilty verdict in his trial on five determined the actor paid for. felony charges that he faked a hate crime and was responsible for orchestrating it in On Wednesday, special prosecutor Dan Webb told the jury that Smollett caused January 2019.

Chicago police to spend enormous resources investigating what they believe was a fake The jury deliberated for just over nine hours last Wednesday and Thursday after the crime the Associated Press reported. one week trial saw closing testimony and arguments Wednesday afternoon.

“Besides being against the law, it is just plain wrong to outright denigrate something Smollett, 39, convicted on five counts of disorderly conduct, a class 4 felony, is facing as serious as a real hate crime and then make sure potential sentencing of up to three years in prison. it involved words and symbols that have such According to a Chicago criminal defense attorney historical significance in our country,” Webb said. speaking on background, he contended that Webb also cast doubts on Smollett’s integrity based on his experience with the legal system in and credibility in his testimony telling jurors that the the Chicago court system, that the actor will likely surveillance video from before the alleged attack be placed on probation and ordered to perform and that later night contradicts key moments of community service.

Smollett’s account of the events.

Smollett testifying in his own defense told the Smollett’s defense attorney Nenye Uche disputed court that he was physically attacked around 2:30 the Osundairo brothers testimony labeling them a.m. on Jan. 29 by two men who hurled homophobic “sophisticated liars” who may have been motivated and racist slurs at him including the phrase “MAGA to attack the actor because of homophobia or country,” a reference to former President Trump’s because they wanted to be hired to work as his presidential campaign slogan. security. “These guys want to make money,” he told The former “Empire” star was previously indicted the court.

by Cook County prosecutors in February 2019 The special prosecutor during the trial also took after law enforcement authorities alleged he had aim at the actor’s refusal to turn over his cellphone to conspired with two Black friends to stage the attack investigators or give them a DNA sample or access because he was dissatisfied with his salary from to his medical records to help with the investigation. the Fox series and wanted to generate publicity JUSSIE SMOLLETT faces possible jail time after his conviction last week.

(Blade screenshot via YouTube) Smollett testified he doesn’t trust Chicago police, to boost his career. In March, the charges against and that he was concerned about his privacy. him were dropped, with little explanation from “If he was a true victim of a crime he would not be withholding evidence,” Webb said. prosecutors – though at the time, presiding Judge Michael Toomin suggested that he Smollett’s defense attorney told the court that it was “nonsense” for police to ask could be charged again. the actor for his DNA when he was still considered the victim of a crime. He also noted The second indictment comes from special prosecutor Dan Webb, who was appointed Smollett later provided DNA to the FBI for a separate investigation into hate mail he had to the case by Toomin after the initial charges were dropped. In a statement, Webb said received at the studio for the ‘Empire’ shortly before the alleged attack. “He wasn’t hiding that Smollett was charged with six felony counts of disorderly conduct, connected to four anything,” Uche said. separate false reports that he gave to police in which he claimed to be a victim of a hate The Chicago Tribune reported that Smollett remained stoic as the verdict was crime “knowing that he was not the victim of a crime.” announced. He was found guilty on five of six counts. The first five counts related to After initially investigating the incident as a hate crime, Chicago detectives in their Smollett’s conduct on the day of the incident, while the sixth related to his conversation sworn affidavits and testimony noted that their investigation uncovered that Smollett with a police detective. paid brothers Olabinjo “Ola” and Abimbola “Abel” Osundairo, who are from Nigeria to Cook County Circuit Judge James Linn set a Jan. 27 hearing date for motions in the stage the attack. case prior to the actor’s sentencing.

During their testimony last week, the Osundairo brothers told the court that the actor The actor’s lawyers said after the today’s verdict that they are set to file an appeal but had recruited them to fake the attack near his home in downtown Chicago. They testified his legal problems also extend to the city of Chicago’s civil lawsuit against the “Empire” that Smollett who is openly gay and Black instructed them to put a noose around his star demanding he repay the city $130,000 — the cost of the police investigation into the neck, yell racist and homophobic slurs, and rough him up in view of a nearby surveillance incident he reported as an alleged hate crime. camera.

BRODY LEVESQUE Evidence presented by the prospectors showed the two brothers in a local retail

LGBTQ adult population reaches 20 million: study In an analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation released its “We Are Here: Understanding the Size of the LGBTQ+ Community,” report last week.

According to HRC’s report, based on data from respondents in the Household Pulse Survey, a national household probability survey of adults in the United States, at least 20 million adults in the United States could be lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender – nearly 8% of the total adult population, almost double prior estimates for the LGBTQ+ community’s size.

It also suggests that more than 1% of people in the United States identify as transgender, higher than any prior estimates. Additionally, it confirms prior research showing that bisexual people represent the largest single contingent of LGBTQ+ people, at about 4% of respondents.

HRC noted in its findings that while many attempts have been made to document the size and demographics of the LGBTQ+ community in America, they have faced significant challenges. Sampling is difficult and bias also plays a role in respondents’ answers.

In the most comprehensive and often-cited study of the LGBTQ+ community prior to this report, the Public Religious Research Institute’s (PRRI’s) American Values Atlas suggested that 4.4% of Americans identified as LGBTQ+. Today’s estimates nearly 1 4 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • NAT I O NA L NE WS

double that number – and may still be an undercount.

“LGBTQ+ people are here – in every town, in every city, in each and every ZIP code. This data shows what we’ve suspected: our community is larger and more widespread than we could have known up to this point,” said Joni Madison, Human Rights Campaign interim president. “We’re proud to bring this data to light and set the stage for a future where all the millions of LGBTQ+ people in America enjoy full legal and lived equality.

I commend the Biden administration and the U.S. Census Bureau for finally allowing researchers to count us, and look forward to seeing the LGBTQ+ community counted in further studies.”

“While this represents tremendous progress in ensuring quality data collection about the LGBTQ+ community in the United States, much more can be done,” HRC said on its website. “As detailed in HRC’s “Blueprint for Positive Change,” the Census Bureau’s two largest surveys – the American Community Survey and the decennial U.S. Census – still do not ask questions about respondents’ sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI).

Data from these surveys is used to allocate hundreds of billions of dollars of federal funding each year, and the absence of SOGI questions negatively impacts support for the LGBTQ+ community.”

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New Zealand passes self-ID bill for trans people

Aotearoa’s history”.

New Zealand’s parliament last week passed a bill, She paid tribute to trans New Zealanders who first introduced in 2018, that will allow transgender had been “hurt, mocked, belittled and discriminated New Zealanders to self-ID. The legislation removes against.” the statutory legal requirement for a determination “A lot of discussion was aimed at trans women. As a of gender identity/gender marker to be backed cis woman I am proud to stand alongside my sisters,” by documentation from a medical professional she said adding “Trans misogyny is still misogyny. … for changing birth certificates and other official We are changing legislation that is truly a step closer documents. to an inclusive Aotearoa New Zealand. Keep proudly Dr. Elizabeth Kerekere, an MP and an out lesbian and being you.” trans ally, told the NZ Herald; The legislation will take affect in 18 months after “This bill recognizes that those who need to amend the New Zealand government consults with the trans their birth certificate can do so, that the courts do community and others to ensure the legislation works not have the right to make that choice for them, that to support those it concerns. parents do not have that right, that cisgender people Trans Health Care Now march at Wellington International Pride Consultation will begin next year on the regulations who don’t even know them or care about them do not Parade in 2018 in New Zealand. (Photo courtesy of Trans Health Care Now NZ) which will determine who is a suitably qualified third have that right.” party to support applications for young people; find a “As a takatāpui, cis-lesbian fem ally to our takatāpui, way to make sure the sex markers available for the birth certificate include non-binary trans and intersex non-binary whānau, I am very proud to commend this bill to the and cultural options; and determine any additional requirements for anyone seeking to house,” she added. amend their registered sex more than once, the Herald reported.

The Herald also reported that MP Jan Tinetti, minister of internal affairs, minister for BRODY LEVESQUE women, and associate minister of education noted that it was a “a proud day in

Chilean president signs marriage law

Latin America.

A law that allows same-sex couples to enter into civil unions took effect in Chile in 2015.

The government of former President Michelle Bachelet — who is now the U.N. high commissioner for human rights — in 2016 said it would introduce bills to extend marriage and adoption rights to same-sex couples as part of an agreement between it, Movilh and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Movilh in 2020 withdrew from the agreement after it accused Piñera of not doing enough to advance marriage equality in Chile.

Piñera in June announced his support of the issue.

“I celebrate marriage equality in Chile, which ensures recognition and protection for all families, without discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity,” tweeted Bachelet on Wednesday. “It’s an important step for the country and I hope others will follow this example.”

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Chilean President Sebastián Piñera last week signed a law that extends marriage rights to same-sex couples in the South American country.

“Freedom, true freedom is always built when we recognize ourselves as equal in dignity and in rights and above all under the law,” he said during a signing ceremony that took place at the Presidential Palace in Santiago, the Chilean capital.

The signing ceremony took place two days after the marriage equality law passed in the country’s Congress.

Movilh, a Chilean LGBTQ rights group, in 2012 filed a lawsuit with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on behalf of three same-sex couples who were seeking marriage rights.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in 2012 ruled in favor of Karen Atala, a Chilean judge who lost custody of her three daughters to her ex-husband because she is a lesbian. The landmark decision established a legal precedent that has been used to advance marriage rights for same-sex couples throughout

State Dept. launches global LGBTQ rights fund

The State Department has launched a fund that seeks to bolster LGBTQ rights around the world.

A press release the State Department released last week says the Global LGBTQI+ Inclusive Democracy and Empowerment (GLIDE) Fund will “provide up to $5 million … to facilitate the participation and leadership of LGBTQI+ community members in democratic institutions.”

The GLIDE Fund is a program under the Global Equality Fund, a public-private partnership the U.S. helped launched in 2011 that seeks to promote LGBTQ rights around the world. A State Department spokesperson earlier this week told the Washington Blade the Swedish International Development Agency and the U.S. provided the GLIDE Fund’s initial funding.

Friday’s announcement coincides with International Human Rights Day, which commemorates the U.N. General Assembly’s ratification of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec. 10, 1948. It also took place on the last day of the White House’s Summit for Democracy.

The U.S. and other members of the Equal Rights Coalition, which seeks to promote LGBTQ rights around the world, on Friday issued a statement to “affirm that the revitalization of democracy within our own nations and around the world is essential to promoting and protecting human rights, especially for those in the most vulnerable situations including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) persons.”

“Threats to the rule of law, rising levels of inequality, authoritarianism and corruption are eroding democracy in every region, with grave consequences for the LGBTI community, among others,” reads the statement. “Persistent criminalization of LGBTI status and ongoing violence and discrimination undermine the possibility of LGBTI persons to fully participate in democratic and political processes.”

Albania, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Cabo Verde, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Serbia, Sweden, the U.K. and Uruguay signed the Equal Rights Coalition statement alongside the U.S. “Members of this coalition affirm our interest to work together over the coming year to support and empower the participation of LGBTI persons in the full range of democratic processes, including elections; political campaigns; civil society advocacy and oversight; journalism and independent reporting; and political leadership,” it reads.

The Biden administration in February issued a memorandum that committed the U.S. to promoting LGBTQ rights abroad.

The Council for Global Equality and F&M Global Barometers earlier this week released a series of report cards that rank countries on their LGBTQ rights records. The report cards indicate the U.S. continues to lag behind other countries in terms of protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

1 6 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • I NT E R NAT I O NA L NE WS

KEVIN NAFF

is editor of the Washington Blade.

Reach him at knaff@washblade.com

Gay Games should boycott Hong Kong over Peng Shuai

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Join with others in holding China accountable

There are many reasons to boycott China, not least of which is its treatment of the Uyghurs; an unofficial U.K. tribunal this week said Chinese President Xi Jinping is responsible for “genocide, crimes against humanity and torture” of minorities in Xinjiang.

Add to the list the mysterious and alarming case of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, who disappeared for two weeks after publicly accusing Zhang Gaoli, a member of China’s ruling committee, of sexual assault. Within 20 minutes of her post on China’s equivalent of Twitter, government censors scrambled to scrub any mention of it from the Internet, as the New York Times reported Friday. China’s efforts to deny anything was amiss by posting photos and videos of Peng were clumsy and ineffective and quickly ridiculed by the twitterverse.

Earlier this month, the Women’s Tennis Association took the brave step of suspending all tournaments in China in protest of her obvious detention and censoring.

“While we now know where Peng is, I have serious doubts that she is free, safe and not subject to censorship, coercion and intimidation,” Steve Simon, chief executive of the Women’s Tennis Association, said in a statement as reported by the New York Times.

“If powerful people can suppress the voices of women and sweep allegations of sexual assault under the rug, then the basis on which the WTA was founded — equality for women — would suffer an immense setback. I will not and cannot let that happen to the WTA and its players.”

So far, the WTA is the only major sports organization to announce a boycott of China, but the organizers of Gay Games 11, scheduled for 2023 in Hong Kong, should be next.

Gay Games organizers excitedly announced a new logo for the 2023 Games two weeks ago, adding the colors of the Progress Pride flag to recognize communities of color. But so far those same organizers are silent on the plight of Peng, a woman of color herself, and a fellow athlete who was targeted by China for making an accusation of assault.

When asked by the Blade if the Federation of Gay Games would consider a boycott of China, it issued a cowardly statement that ignored the central question of Peng’s plight and well being.

“The Federation of Gay Games continues to monitor the situation in Hong Kong regarding COVID-19, the National Security Law and all other aspects that affect the safety and security of our event,” Sean Fitzgerald, co-president of the Federation of Gay Games, told the Blade in a statement. “We are committed to hosting Gay Games 11 in Hong Kong in November 2023.”

The Federation of Gay Games’s claims of supporting people of color and athletes of color ring hollow when its leaders won’t even mention Peng’s name in response to a direct question about her plight.

The Federation should reconsider its posture, denounce China’s treatment and censorship of Peng, and move Gay Games 11 to another locale in protest.

Boycotts are divisive tactics and one Hong Kong LGBTQ activist this week told the Blade she doesn’t support the idea. “In Hong Kong, the team behind Gay Games has really worked tirelessly to bring it to Hong Kong and it will be a very good opportunity to showcase diversity and people working together and the human spirit at its best,” Gigi Chao told the Blade.

But what does it say about the queer community if we fail to take a stand even after the WTA has acted so boldly and decisively in its own boycott? The Biden administration on Monday announced a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics that are slated to take place in Beijing in February. A Gay Games boycott would be consistent with our own government’s efforts to hold China accountable for Peng, the Uyghurs, and other human rights abuses.

The Federation of Gay Games has an opportunity to stand in solidarity with the WTA and Peng and send a powerful message that the LGBTQ community will not reward a regime that engages in overt censorship while covering up allegations of sexual assault by sending hundreds of athletes and millions of dollars to Hong Kong in 2023.

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PETER ROSENSTEIN

is a longtime LGBTQ rights and Democratic Party activist. He writes regularly for the Blade.

A second family in Dupont Circle

Morning coffee ritual fostered deep friendships The holiday season brings home how lucky I am to have what I consider my second family, which is what I have come to think of my morning coffee group in Dupont Circle.

Some of us have been meeting every morning for more than 25 years. It began with four of us talking about the morning headlines over coffee before heading off to work or graduate school. The group has since grown to more than 20 and is open to all who enjoy early morning good conversation — at least sometimes it’s good — and want to share a bit of themselves.

Any member of the group who is in town knows they can always find others there seven days a week. Over the years, as the group has grown, it hasn’t changed all that much. Being in D.C. and in Dupont, we like to kid there is a great diversity of political views held by the members of the group; it ranges from A to C. While many of us have friends who are Republicans, I don’t remember any conservative Republican being a member of the group. They may find the conversation hard to take but of course would be welcome. We do have some very progressive members and others more moderate, but we tend to agree on the outcomes we want. Some strongly supported Bernie Sanders and others like me were die-hard Hillary supporters.

Today, quite a few members of the group are mostly retired, me being one of them. But years ago, before retirement, we were offended by a review of the coffee house posted on Yelp, which read: “I love my morning coffee place except for that loud group of Peter Rosenstein’s bloviating pensioners.” We took offense at that only because we weren’t yet pensioners when that was written; we accepted the bloviating appellation and have laughed about it for years.

The group today includes a college dean who joined the group while still a graduate student, a couple of retired members of Congress, a former solicitor general and former Cabinet member. This being D.C. we have our fair share of lawyers and some who work in the non-profit or association fields. While maybe half the group is retired those who still work do so in a variety of settings, including the State Department or other federal agency, law firms, and some for the District of Columbia. Among the members of the group there is a broad range of expertise in areas, including business, politics, finance, foreign policy, climate change, and healthcare. We even have a celebrated pastry chef as part of the group. Using that expertise and our connections we have often helped each other and friends advance in their careers.

We were concerned when the pandemic began our group would disband. We were not going to sit at the coffee house in the morning though some would walk there to get coffee and take it back home. Then one of our group offered to set up a Zoom call each day and for a year and a half, seven days a week, there would be between 10 and 20 people on the call at 8 a.m. each day. It was great as it included someone living in Mexico, he actually set up the call, another in North Carolina, another who was spending some during the pandemic in Hawaii and others in Vermont. As the pandemic eased and we all got vaccinated we began to return to the coffee shop and the Zoom calls ended.

As I said, it really is like a second family. Some of us go out to eat together regularly, we have traveled together, we have had theater parties and celebrate birthdays and births of kids and grandkids. A number of years ago 13 of us flew to Mexico to attend the destination wedding of two members of the group. If someone is ill you know there are people who will call and offer help. I was the recipient of that generosity and care a couple of years ago when I had surgery. Many years ago we even held a memorial service at the coffee shop for one of our members. It was the site of the kick-off for the political campaign for one of the early participants in the group.

I write this after being at our group’s holiday cookie party and then going to hear one of our group sing in his church choir. I can only wish that for everyone.

1 8 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • V I E WP O I NT

KATHI WOLFE

a writer and a poet, is a regular contributor to the Blade.

Dole’s complicated legacy — anti-LGBTQ but ADA champion

It’s unfair to write him off as a homophobic politico I’ve been thinking about Bob Dole, since he died at 98 on Dec. 5.

As a lesbian, it’s painful to reflect on Dole’s often anti-gay voting record. But, as a disabled person (I’m legally blind), I mourn the loss of a disability civil rights hero.

Dole was of the “greatest generation.” He became disabled (spending three years in the hospital) while fighting in World War II. That war was our, great-grandparents,’ grandparents’ and parents’ war. It sometimes seems remote to younger generations.

Yet, without sentimentalizing the “greatest generation,” Dole’s death is a reminder: the fight against Hitler was essential for democracy. Life would be terrifying if Hitler had won.

Yet, there’s no way to forget that, as the Blade reported, Dole’s anti-gay record is part of his legacy.

Like many of his time, whether Democrat or Republican, I suspect, he was uncomfortable with queerness.

In 1996, trying to win props from conservatives, Dole became the first co-sponsor of the Senate version of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Until it was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2013, DOMA prohibited same-sex married couples from receiving federal benefits, and allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages from states where same-sex marriages were legal.

Dole’s legacy is complex. It’s unfair to write him off as a homophobic politico.

Dole voted for the Civil Rights Act in 1964 and for the Voting Rights Act in 1965.

Legions of disabled people, queer and non-queer, remember Dole not only as a disability rights hero, but as a member of our tribe.

One afternoon in the early 1990s, I visited the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Walking through the lobby, white cane in hand, I heard a voice say “hello.”

I realized that U.S. Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.), then Senate Minority Leader, was saying “hi” to me.

Dole wasn’t greeting me because I was important. I’m not a movie star, world-class athlete, politician. Dole wasn’t running for office. This was before he ran unsuccessfully for president against Bill Clinton.

Dole spoke to me because he saw that I’m disabled.

Sometimes, non-disabled people, queer and non-queer, will chat with me out of pity, discomfort, fear or, out of a “savior” mentality.

“It’s so sad that you have to live like that,” they’ll say.

“Let me help you!” the “saviors” insist, holding my shoulder, grabbing my cane, when I’m crossing the street. (I know how to get around safely. Their “help” endangers my safety.)

Dole chatted with me because he felt a kinship with and interest in the lives of people with disabilities.

Dole knew what it was like to adapt to a disability. He’d hold a pen in his fist to discourage people from shaking his hand and stay away from political dinners because he couldn’t cut his meat due to his disability, The New York Times reported.

Like many with disabilities, he knew what it was to be scorned for being disabled.

Years after I met him at the museum, I interviewed Dole for “Independence Today,” a (now defunct) disability paper. He remembered, he told me, when in the years following World War II, “people would cross to the other side of the street if they saw me walking around.”

Decades later, Dole, motivated by his personal experience, was instrumental in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

There is still much disability-based discrimination in everything from employment to accommodations (libraries, courts, etc.).

It’s hard for many to imagine what it was like to be disabled in America before the ADA. If you weren’t hired because of your disability or excluded from a restaurant or hospital if you were disabled, you had no legal recourse.

Words can’t express how the ADA (from wheelchair ramps to sign language interpreters to Braille menus) has changed our country.

This landmark civil rights law has benefitted everyone from breast cancer survivors to people with AIDS to schoolchildren.

For the “ADA generation,” those born after 1990, the law has established expectations of equality for disabled people.

For this we owe a large debt to Dole! R.I.P., Bob Dole.

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Need a list-minute gift idea?

Books, non-profit donations make thoughtful choices

By TERRI SCHLICHENMEYER

You knew this was coming.

You knew that you were going to have to finish your holiday shopping soon but it snuck up on you, didn’t it? And even if you’re close to being done, there are always those three or five people who are impossible to buy for, right?

Remember this, though: books are easy to wrap and easy to give, and they last a while, too. So why not head to the bookstore with your Christmas List and look for these gifts.

And if you still have people to shop for, why not make a donation to a local non-profit in their name? A list of D.C.area suggestions follows.

BOOKS: NONFICTION If there’s about to be a new addition to your family, wrapping up “Queer Stepfamilies: The path to Social and Legal Recognition” by Katie L. Acosta would be a good thing. In this book, the author followed forty LGBTQ families to understand the joys, pitfalls, and legalities of forming a new union together. It can’t replace a lawyer, but it’s a good overview.

For the parent who wants to ensure that their child grows up with a lack of bias, “Raising LGBTQ Allies” by Chris Tompkins is a great book to give. It’s filled with methods to stop bullying in its tracks, to be proactive in having That Conversation, and how to be sure that the next generation you’re responsible for becomes responsible in turn. Wrap it up with “The Healing Otherness Handbook” by Stacee L. Reicherzer, Ph.D., a book that helps readers to deal with bullying by finding confidence and empowerment.

If there’s someone on your gift list who’s determined to get “fit” in the coming year, then give “The Secret to Superhuman Strength” by Alison Bechdel this holiday.

Told in graphic-novel format (comics, basically), it’s the story of searching for self-improvement and finding it in a surprising place.

So why not give a little nostalgia this year by wrapping up “A Night at the Sweet Gum Head” by Martin Padgett?

It’s the tale of disco, drag, and drugs in the 1970s (of course!) in Atlanta, with appearances by activists, politics, and people who were there at that fabulous time. Wrap it up with “After Francesco” by Brian Malloy, a novel set a little later - in the mid-1980s in New York City and Minneapolis at the beginning of the AIDS crisis.

The LGBTQ activist on your gift list will want to read “The Case for Gay Reparations” by Omar G. Encarnacion. It’s

a book about acknowledgment, obligation on the part of cis citizens, and fixing the pain that homophobia and violence has caused. Wrap it up with “Trans Medicine: The Emergence and Practice of Treating Gender” by Stef M. Shuster, a look at trans history that may also make your giftee growl.

FICTION Young readers who have recently transitioned will enjoy reading “Both Sides Now” by Peyton Thomas. It’s a novel about a high school boy with gigantic dreams and the means to accomplish them all. Can he overcome the barriers that life gives him? It’s debatable... Pair it with “Can’t Take That Away” by Steven Salvatore, a book about two nonbinary students and the troubles they face as they fall in love.

The thriller fan on your list will be overjoyed to unwrap “Yes, Daddy” by Jonathan Parks-Ramage. It’s the story of a young man with dying dreams of fame and fortune, who schemes to meet an older, more accomplished man with the hopes of sparking his failing career. But the older man isn’t who the younger thinks he is, and that’s not good. Wrap it up with “Lies with Man” by Michael Nava, a book about a lawyer who agrees to be counsel for a group of activists. Good so far, right? Until one of them is accused of being involved in a deadly bombing.

For the fan of Southern fiction, you can’t go wrong when you wrap up “The Tender Grave” by Sheri Reynolds. It’s the tale of two sisters, one homophobic, the other lesbian, and how they learn to forgive and re-connect.

NON-PROFIT GIVING Like nonprofit organizations throughout the country, D.C.-area LGBTQ supportive nonprofit groups have told the Blade they continue to rebuild amid the coronavirus pandemic, which disrupted their fundraising efforts while increasing expenses, at least in part by prompting more people to come to them for help.

This holiday season, if you’re looking for a thoughtful gift, consider making a donation to one of our local LGBTQ nonprofit organizations in someone else’s name. This list is by no means exhaustive, but a good place to start your research.

Contributions to the LGBTQ supportive nonprofit organizations can be made via the websites of these local organizations: • Blade Foundation, which funds local scholarships and

The Symbol

The Ring

‘Yes, Daddy’ by Jonathan Parks-Ramage is the story of a young man with dying dreams of fame and fortune, who schemes to meet an older man.

fellowships for queer student journalists, bladefoundation. org • DC Center, our local community center that operates a wide range of programming, thedccenter.org/donate • Food & Friends, which delivers meals to homebound patients, foodandfriends.org • HIPS, which advances the health rights and dignity of those impacted by sex work and drugs, hips.org • SMYAL, which advocates for queer youth, smyal.org • Wanda Alston Foundation, which offers shelter and support for LGBTQ youth, wandaalstonfoundation.org • Whitman-Walker Health, the city’s longtime LGBTQinclusive health care provider, whitmanwalkerimpact.org • Casa Ruby, which provides shelter and services to youth in need, casaruby.org • Us Helping Us, which helps improve the health of communities of color and works to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS on the Black community, ushelpingus.org/donate

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As You Are Bar and the importance of queer gathering spaces New bar/restaurant poised to open in 2022

By EVAN CAPLAN

More than just a watering hole: As You Are Bar is set to be the city’s newest queer gathering place where patrons can spill tea over late-morning cappuccinos as easily as they can over late-night vodka-sodas.

Co-owners and founders Jo McDaniel and Rachel Pike built on their extensive experience in the hospitality industry – including stints at several gay bars – to sign a lease for their new concept in Barracks Row, replacing what was previously District Soul Food and Banana Café. In a prime corner spot, they are seeking to bring together the disparate colors of the LGBTQ rainbow – but first must navigate the approval process (more on that later).

The duo decided on this Southeast neighborhood locale to increase accessibility for “the marginalized parts of our community,” they say, “bringing out the intersectionality inherent in the queer space.”

Northwest D.C., they explain, not only already has many gay bar options, but is also more difficult to get to for those who don’t live within walking distance.

The Barracks Row location is right by a Metro stop, “reducing pay walls.” Plus, there, “we are able to find a neighborhood to bring in a queer presence that doesn’t exist today.”

McDaniel points out that the area has a deep queer bar history. Western bar Remington’s was once located in the area, and it’s a mere block from the former Phase I, the longest-running lesbian bar, which was open from 1971-2015.

McDaniel and Pike hope that As You Are Bar will be an inclusive space that “welcomes anyone of any walk of life that will support, love, and celebrate the mission of queer culture. We want people of all ages, gender, sexual identity, as well as drinkers and non-drinkers, to

RACHEL PIKE and JO MCDANIEL signed a lease for their new concept in Barracks Row. (Photo courtesy Pike and McDaniel)

have space.”

McDaniel (she/her) began her career at Apex in 2005 and was most recently the opening manager of ALOHO. Pike (she/they) was behind the bar and worked as security at ALOHO, where the two met.

Since leaving ALOHO earlier this year, they have pursued the As You Are Bar project, first by hosting virtual events during the pandemic, and now in this brick-andmortar space. They expressed concern that receiving

As You Are Bar owners and staff at their pop-up event for Capital Pride’s “Colorful Fest” on October 17, 2021 (Blade photo by Michael Key)

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the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) liquor license approval and the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission, or ANC, approval will be a long and expensive process. They have already received notice that some neighbors intend to protest any eventual approval of the “tavern” liquor license that ABRA grants to serve alcohol and allow for live entertainment (e.g. drag shows). They applied for the license on Nov. 12, and have no anticipated opening date, estimating at least six months. Once ABRA gives the green light, the local ANC 6B must still provide final approval.

Until then, they continue physical buildout (including soundproofing) and planning their offerings.

In the kitchen, the duo snagged Chef Nina Love to develop the menu. Love will oversee café-style fare; look out for breakfast sandwiches making an appearance all the way until close. They will also have baked goods during the day.

McDaniel and Pike themselves will craft the bar menu.

Importantly, they note, the coffee bar will also serve until close. There will be a full bar as well as a list of zero-proof cocktails. As with their sourcing, they hope to work with queer-, minority-, and women-owned businesses for everything not made in-house.

Flexible conceptually, they seek to grow with their customer base, allowing patrons to create the culture that they seek.

Their goal is to move the queer space away from a focus on alcohol consumption. From book clubs, to letter-writing, to shared workspaces, to dance parties, they seek an all-day, morning-to-night rhythm of youth, families, and adults to find a niche. “We want to shift the narrative of a furtive, secretive, dark gay space and hold it up to the light,” they say. “It’s a little like The Planet from the original L Word show,” they joke.

Pike notes that they plan on working closely with SMYAL, for example, to promote programming for youth. Weekend potential activities include lunchand-learn sessions on Saturdays and festive Sunday brunches.

The café space, to be located on the first floor, will have coffeehouse-style sofas as well as workstations. A slim patio on 8th Street will hold about six tables.

Even as other queer bars have closed, they reinforce that the need is still present. “Yes, we can visit a café or bar, but we always need to have a place where we are 100 percent certain that we are safe, and that our security is paramount. Even as queer acceptance continues to grow, a dedicated queer space will always be necessary,” they say.

To get there, they continue to rally support of friends, neighbors, and leaders in ANC6B district; the ANC6B officials butted heads with District Soul Food, the previous restaurant in the space, over late-night noise and other complaints. McDaniel and Pike hope that once nearby residents and businesses understand the important contribution that As You Are Bar can make to the neighborhood, they will extend their support and allow the bar to open.

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LGBTQ-affirming holiday events and religious services

By TINASHE CHINGARANDE

The Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs will host the “LGBTQ+ Holiday Mixer” on Tuesday, Dec. 21 at 6 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co. Guests are encouraged to come and get to know the mayor’s office, meet other LGBTQ members in the District and enjoy refreshments.

This event is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Go Gay DC will host “LGBTQ+ Community Brunch” on Saturday, Dec. 18 at 10 p.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. This event is ideal for those who want a good deal on brunch and conversation with other LGBTQ+ folk. Admission is free and more event details are available on Eventbrite.

Uncuffed Bmore will host “Jingle & Mingle LGBTQ+ Holiday Party” on Thursday, Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. at Friends Grille. There will be giveaways and sounds by DJ Kotic Couture.

Tickets are $7 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.

Hotel Zena will host “Holiday Pride in the Sky: RuPaul’s Drag Race Ra’Jah O’Hara”on Friday, Dec. 17 at 8 p.m. at Hotel Zena, a Viceroy Urban Retreat. The event will be hosted

by DC’s Crystal Edge, with additional performances by Druex Sidora, Katrina Colby, and Sasha Adams Sanchez. Tunes will be provided by DJ Tezrah. Tickets are available on Eventbrite.

Clarendon Presbytarian Church (1305 N Jackson St., Arlington, VA) will host a free “Trans and Queer Holiday Gathering/Potluck on Sunday, Dec. 19 at 12 p.m. Guests are encouraged to come make art, participate in open mic/karaoke, a photo booth and enjoy a meal with the community members and allies! Meals will be provided. For more information, visit Eventbrite.

Wunder Garten will host “A Christmas Kiki”on Thursday, Dec. 16 at 7:30 p.m. The lineup includes Capital Pride Alliance in the house with Vida Fitness. There will also be live performances by Katrina Colby, Nubia Love Jackson, and Alexa Shontelle, and choreographed productions by Pelonkey with DJ Tezrah providing the beats. This event is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Foundry United Methodist Church (1500 16th St. NW) will have ‘Christmas Eve Lessons & Candlelight’ at 8 p.m.

(Blade photo by Michael Key)

Christmas Eve Services Foundry United Methodist Church (1500 16th St. NW)

will have “Christmas Eve Lessons & Candlelight” at 8 p.m. in-person at the sanctuary and online on Facebook and YouTube. Links to the livestream are available on the church’s website.

Christ Church Washington Parish (620 G St. SE)

will have four services. The Christmas Eve children’s service at 11 a.m. on the church front lawn. The Christmas Eve Service with Pageant will be at 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. The day will round out with a final Christmas Eve service at 10:30 p.m. For more information, visit the church’s website.

Washington National Cathedral (3101 Wisconsin Ave. NW)

will host “Christmas Eve Holy Eucharist” at 10 p.m. There will be readings from Holy Scripture, singing of hymns, seasonal choral and instrumental music, and preaching by the Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Washington. For more details, visit the cathedral’s website.

National City Christian Church (5 Thomas Circle NW)

will host “Candlelight Communion Worship) at 7 p.m. More details are available on the church’s website.

St. Johns Episcopal Church (3240 O St. NW)

will have “Family Christmas Service ‘’ at 4 p.m. and “Choral Prelude” at 7:30 p.m.

There will also be a traditional Christmas service at 8 p.m. More details are available on the church’s website.

Church of the Pilgrims (2201 P St. NW)

will host “Christmas Eve Worship” at 7 p.m. in person and on Zoom. The Zoom link is available on the church’s website.

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With masterful remake, Spielberg tells a whole new ‘Story’

A skillfully constructed work of art that engages emotions at every level

By JOHN PAUL KING

American classic continues to be.

If you had reservations about the news that Steven Spielberg was remaking “West Side Similarly, the supremely talented cast is instrumental in reframing the story for a more Story,” you aren’t alone. After all, with Hollywood’s track record for producing abysmal evolved age – and not just because all the Latino roles are played by Latino performers remakes of classic movies, it’s probably wise to be skeptical when a new one comes along. this time around. Each of the young stars gives a heartbreakingly authentic performance, That said, you can now rest assured that your skepticism is unfounded. with DeBose’s Anita a particular standout who commands the screen in every scene she’s From its very first shot, in which Spielberg pays unabashed homage to the opening in (as she should!), and Zegler, a screen newcomer, providing a Maria who is as bold and moments of “Citizen Kane” while establishing almost everything we need to know about self-possessed as she is luminous and delicate. But perhaps the film’s most magnificent the setting of the story we are about to see, “West Side Story” immediately dissipates any performance comes from Rita Moreno, the original movie’s Anita, who here takes on the concern about the master director’s ability to deliver the blend of theatrical and cinematic rewritten (and re-gendered) role of a neighborhood shopkeeper who serves as Tony’s artistry it deserves. With unparalleled fluency in the visual language of storytelling, he surrogate parent; she imbues the character with a combination of warmth and hardpulls us briskly into the conflict between the Jets and the Sharks – two teen street gangs, won wisdom, and her presence brings an element of having come full circle, a touch of white and Puerto Rican, respectively, at war over territory in a Manhattan slum – and sets nostalgia that links the film to its heritage and lingers with us long after the credits roll. the stage for a retelling of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” in which a family feud is The same can be said exchanged for racism as the of the much-revered score basis for a tale of young love

by Leonard Bernstein and thwarted by ancient hate.

Stephen Sondheim (RIP, For those unfamiliar, the genius), which is here plot centers on the romance preserved and performed of Tony (Ansel Elgort) and almost completely intact.

Maria (Rachel Zegler) – which Some of the songs are is a problem because Tony is reordered within the story, and best friend to Riff (Mike Faist), some of the singing is done leader of the Jets, and Maria is by different characters than the sister of Bernardo (David the ones we’re used to, but Alvarez), leader of the Sharks. arranger David Newman and Despite the concerns of those conductor Gustavo Dudamel around them – including succeed in delivering a Bernardo’s shrewd and rousing and passionate strong-willed girlfriend, Anita rendering of the show’s (Ariana DeBose) – the couple’s classic music – bolstered by forbidden love endures even the outstanding vocals of its as the rival gangs plan to wipe cast, none of whom required each other out once and for the kind of dubbing that was all, setting into motion a tragic standard practice when “West chain of events that will shatter Side Story” graced the screen the entire community. the first time around.

Spielberg’s reverent As for Spielberg, it’s hard to remounting of the classic The Jets and The Sharks face off in ‘West Side Story.’ (Photo courtesy 20th Century Fox) imagine another director who musical drama – conceived could pull this off. He pulls for Broadway in 1957 and first from his vast sea of cinematic influences to create a larger-than-life, skillfully constructed translated to film in an Oscar-winning classic directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise work of visual art that handles the spectacular and the intimate with equal deftness and – achieves what doubters assumed would be impossible: a new rendering that succeeds engages our emotions at every level. He frequently references the classic films he loves, in bringing a deeper, more contemporary sensibility to the material while leaving it weaving nods to them into a tapestry that acknowledges his debt to the great filmmakers essentially unchanged. A substantial amount of the credit for this goes to Pulitzer-winner who came before him yet firmly asserts his own mastery of the medium. He even asserts Tony Kushner, whose literate and pitch-perfect adaptation of Arthur Laurents’ stage script his self-assuredness by invoking fond memories of the classic 1961 version, from the fills in some of the story’s blank spots and expands its scope to illuminate the complicated subtle but unmistakable emulation of its color palette and lighting choices in key scenes economic and social issues that lie at its core. to the more obvious echoes of Jerome Robbins’ original choreography in the dancing – Characters are fleshed out with more detailed back stories that bestow them with brilliantly restaged by Spielberg and choreographer Justin Peck in a style that emulates greater dimension and humanity; Tony, for instance, is on parole after a stint in prison for the athletic movement of the original’s dance sequences while leaping to heights of its nearly killing a rival gang member in a fight, and we find out that Riff’s dad was as much own. of a hoodlum as he is. Additionally, the minor role of “Anybodys,” a female Jet originally Yet despite all this deference to the past, Spielberg’s rendition of “West Side Story” depicted as a “tomboy” who is ridiculed and excluded by her gang mates for being a girl, excels and excites because it feels so firmly rooted in the here and now. His intention is is here given an embellished presence, which, aided by a powerful performance from Iris to learn from the past, not dwell in it, and he challenges us at every turn to see the story Menas, leaves little doubt she is struggling with gender identity at a time when there were with a contemporary – and sometimes uncomfortable – perspective. Most provocative, no words for such things. perhaps, is his choice not to use subtitles when characters are speaking Spanish; with that In a similar expansion, we find out that the neighborhood is set to be demolished one, simple touch, he aims straight at the heart of the divisive turmoil in our culture today, ahead of the construction of Lincoln Center and the high-dollar housing that surrounds it, thereby using a 64-year-old musical written by three gay men as it was always meant to be definitively planting the film in the same period as the original work while bringing forward used – as a powerful condemnation of bigotry and hatred in a world that has seen enough the impact of urban upheaval and gentrification on the low-income and marginalized killing. communities they continually displace.

Spielberg’s vision honors, even celebrates the beloved original film, yet simultaneously With flourishes like these, Kushner’s screenplay brings “West Side Story” into the reiterates it into something thrillingly new. Even the most rigid purist can’t present day without removing it from the world that gave birth to it, emphasizing the ask for a more faithful adaptation than that. connections and parallels between the two eras and reminding us just how relevant this 2 8 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1

Candlelight Service 4pm December 24 16th & O We gather on Christmas Eve to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, the light of the world. Join us for this beautiful hour of worship featuring special elements for children, a reading of the Christmas story, the music of pipe organ and choir, and a Christmas Eve meditation. We conclude the service with the lighting of congregational candles.

The First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, D.C. • 1328 16th Street NW Washington, D.C. 20036 In-person and streaming @ firstbaptistdc.org

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‘A Strange Loop’ cast: ANTWAYN HOPPER, LMORGAN LEE, JASONVEASEY, JAQUEL SPIVEY (Usher), JAMES JACKSON, JR., JOHNMICHAEL LYLES, JOHN-ANDREW MORRISON. (Photo by Teresa Castracane)

Don’t miss this ‘big, Black, queer-ass American Broadway show’

Raves for ‘A Strange Loop’ at Woolly Mammoth

By PATRICK FOLLIARD

“Usher! It’s your Daily Self Loathing here! Just reminding you to never forget how fat and ugly you are!”

That’s just one of many punishing thoughts repeating in the head of Usher, an aspiring musical theater writer in Michael R. Jackson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical “A Strange Loop,” now running to rave reviews at Woolly Mammoth Theatre.

Usher is a Black queer writer working a dreary day job while writing his original musical - about a Black queer writer working a dreary day job while writing his original musical. And that pretty much describes the author’s 20-something self. Yet, Jackson, 40, labels his astonishingly real musical as an emotional rather than exactly factual autobiography. “It’s about a young person dealing with a lot of self-hatred. I’ve felt everything Usher has felt.

I like to call it self-referential.”

At 18, Jackson was burning to get away from small-town, middle-class Black life in Michigan: “I wanted to be in the city and experience what I thought would be exciting things. Of course, I’d always been told the minute I got to New York I’d find lots of glorious gay sex, but that wasn’t remotely the truth.”

Instead, when he wasn’t busy earning undergrad and graduate degrees in playwrighting and musical theater writing, respectively, at New York University or ushering on Broadway, he spent long brooding nights walking the streets listening to the music of potty-mouthed rock icon Liz Phair.

“A Strange Loop” began as thinly veiled monologue first performed in 2004. “At the time, I was interested in audience response. There was no trajectory attached so I was going to do what the fuck I wanted with it.”

He included his disdain for billionaire Tyler Perry’s product (“his plays are worse for Black people than dia-fuckin-betes!”), and some starkly authentic depictions of less-than-romantic sexual liaisons. As the piece evolved into a musical, his storytelling remained gloriously unabashed: “By the time anyone expressed any interest, it was inextricably linked to the fact that it was that it was. It would have been foolish to ask me to tame it down.”

After some tweaking, his show premiered off-Broadway at Playwright Horizons in 2019. Woolly Mammoth’s version is its only regional production to date. And next stop is Broadway if

all goes as planned, says Jackson.

Jackson never really imagined Broadway was for him until he was invited to watch a Tony Award ceremony rehearsal: “I had a paradigm shift. Broadway is scale and real estate. So, if it’s just that more than anything, I could rock with that. And I was like I would like to be on Broadway on the terms of what I bring to it.”

And hence, his “big, Black and queer-ass American Broadway show” was on its way.

Before emerging as the prize-winning librettist/lyricist/ composer, Jackson kicked around New York for a while. His first public concert at Ars Nova in 2008. He remembers, “People slowly began to take notice of my music. When the play happened, they knew me as a songwriter and not a book writer.

Seeing those things come together surprised some folks” At Woolly Mammoth, Jaquel Spivey is making his professional theater debut as Usher. Jackson explains, “This creates another loop – ‘A Strange Loop’ was my professional debut too, and his casting imbues the piece with authenticity, rebel sprit, and individual identity. It harkens back to the old tradition in musical theater where people get their big break.”

Along with Spivey are original cast members Antwayn Hopper, L Morgan Lee, John-Michael Lyles, James Jackson, Jr., John-Andrew Morrison and Jason Veasey who play Usher’s wildly uncontained Thoughts.

Since its conception, the piece has always been about a young Black gay man trying to understand himself, says Jackson.

“It took him many years of writing and creating more material, songs, and thoughts to get some objectivity, to be able to see the problem Usher’s grappling with, and of course, that’s himself.”

Eventually, Jackson realized his own worth. “My situation hadn’t changed a lot but I was able to live in the world. Not without struggle, self-doubt. I do have days when I feel some of the same feeling Usher feels but I’m also able to step away from that and say nothing’s wrong with you.”

The musical’s title comes from the same-titled Liz Phair song.

Its first line is “the fire you like so much in me is the mark of someone so adamantly free.”

“That really sums it up. That’s the draw,” Jackson says.

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Garbo: ubiquitous yet mysterious

An illuminating biography of screen icon and her time

By KATHI WOLFE Few icons are more ubiquitous in the cultural landscape, yet more mysterious than queer icon Greta Garbo.

Even if you’ve never seen “Grand Hotel,” you likely know that in this 1932 film, Garbo famously said, “I want to be alone.”

Even the most fervent teetotaler would savor watching Garbo say, in the 1930 movie “Anna Christie,” “Gimme a whiskey, ginger ale on the side, and don’t be stingy, baby!”

Decades before Cher, Garbo became known by just her last name. “Garbo Talks!” said the ads for her first talking picture “Anna Christie.” “Garbo Laughs!” shouted the ads for her 1939 comedy “Ninotchka.”

Yet, 31 years after her death in 1990, Garbo, remains, as she was during her life, enveloped in mystery.

“Garbo,” by Robert Gottlieb, a former editor of The New Yorker, is a fascinating biography of the movie legend.

Gottlieb, a critic, understands that much of Garbo’s life (her sexuality, her inner thoughts) remains mysterious.

Yet Gottlieb, a former Simon & Schuster editor-in-chief and former head of Alfred A. Knopf, pens an illuminating portrait of Garbo and her time.

An extensive array of photos and movie stills add to the beauty of the book. A selection of articles by critics and contemporaries enhances our picture of Garbo.

Garbo was born (with the name Greta Lovisa Gustafsson) in 1905 in a poor neighborhood in Stockholm, Sweden.

Garbo was only in Hollywood for 16 years, and 24 movies, Gottlieb writes.

At just 36 years old, and still adored by her fans, Garbo suddenly retired from Hollywood. She didn’t give her public a very insightful reason for why she stopped making movies.

“I have made enough faces,” Garbo told actor David Niven when he asked her about it, Gottlieb reports.

After leaving Tinseltown, Garbo lived for nearly half a century, mainly in New York City, until she died in 1990.

Garbo wasn’t as popular as Charlie Chaplin or Mary Pickford, Gottlieb tells us in “Why Garbo,” his lively introduction to the bio, “yet the impact she had on the world was as great as theirs.”

The mystery of why Garbo lived in “self-imposed seclusion” after retiring from Hollywood was irresistible, but “almost a distraction,” Gottlieb writes.

Many of her movies were “cliched or worse,” Gottlieb points out. At first, MGM presented Garbo as a vamp, “luring men on with her vampish ways,” Gottlieb reports, “but she hated that.”

Eventually, Garbo became an icon. “But none of that goes to explain,” Gottlieb writes, “why more than any other star she invaded the subconscious of the audience:” Wherever you look in the period between 1925 and 1941, Gottlieb adds, “Garbo is in people’s minds, hearts, and dreams.”

Garbo is referenced in Ernest Hemingway’s novel “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and in the letters of poet Marianne Moore. More recently, allusions of Garbo have appeared in the song “Bette Davis Eyes” and even in “The Simpsons.”

‘Garbo’

By Robert Gottlieb C.2021, Farrar, Straus & Giroux $40 | 448 pages

Her Hollywood peers loved Garbo as much as movie audiences. “Other Hollywood stars ... were as eager to meet her,” Gottlieb writes, “or just get a glimpse of her as your ordinary fan.”

Her work is “pure witchcraft,” Bette Davis said of Garbo. “I cannot analyze this woman’s acting.”

While Gottlieb is respectful of and fascinated by Garbo, his biography isn’t hagiography.

Garbo, who grew up in poverty as a child, could be cheap.

In New York, she was known for being stingy with tips and salaries for people who worked for her and shopkeepers.

Perhaps, due to shyness or to her lack of education (she had to leave school at 14 to help support her family), she wasn’t a great conversationalist.

She had relationships with men and women – from actor John Gilbert to queer fashion photographer Cecil Beaton to writer Mercedes de Acosta. But the extent to which (or if) these relationships were sexual isn’t known, Gottlieb reports.

It is known that Garbo, offscreen, dressed in men’s pants, shirts, and shoes. “How ironic if ‘the Most Beautiful Woman in the World’ really would rather have been a man,” Gottlieb writes.

Reading “Garbo” is like sipping whiskey (or ginger ale) with the iconic star. Drink up!

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‘And Just Like That’ is clunky, but shows promise SATC reboot suffers without Samantha’s irreverence

By KATHI WOLFE

Just in time for the holidays, “And Just Like That,” the 10part “Sex and the City” (SATC) revival has premiered on HBO Max. The first two episodes of “And Just Like That” aired on Dec. 9. One episode will air weekly until the show’s Feb. 3 season finale.

I have only seen the first two episodes of “And Just Like That.”

The reboot has its awkward, clunky, annoying moments, but shows glimmers of tenderness, wit, and promise.

It’s not a lump of coal in your stocking. Yet, it’s too soon to tell whether it’s a gift from your loving, but clueless aunt or an awesome present from your BFF. But, it’s definitely worth putting under your tree.

How I miss “funky spunk” “Father Fuck” and “The Rabbit!”

If you’re an SATC aficionado, you’ll know that while Samantha couldn’t abide “funky spunk,” she longed to canoodle with a hot priest. (Naturally, he was “Father Fuck” in Samantha’s fantasies.) And, you’ll remember how much pleasure “the Rabbit” (a vibrator) gave Charlotte and Miranda.

Those are just a few moments that “Sex and The City” fans have missed since the arch, fashion-trend maker, sexualtaboo-breaker, HBO show’s 2004 finale.

What we’ve pined for wasn’t just the sex. It was the wit and friendship of the four bright, badass, professional, witty and, it can’t be denied, privileged women, who were the stars of SATC: writer and sex columnist Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah

Jessica Parker), lawyer Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), art dealer Charlotte York (Kristin Davis) and public relations pro Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall).

We missed hearing the ladies talk openly, and wittily, sometimes tenderly or thoughtfully, about everything from “funky spunk” to “shortcomings” to their affairs with married men to threesomes to their abortions.

After the SATC finale, there were two “Sex and the City” movies. The first, released in 2008, was mediocre. The second, released in 2010, was beyond horrible.

After all these years, it’s lovely to see Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte (along with their husbands: Big, Steve and Harry respectively).

But, there’s a gaping hole! There’s no Samantha!

It’s no secret that Cattrall and Parker weren’t getting along off-screen. Cattrall didn’t want to be in “And Just Like That.”

You can’t blame the SATC folks for forging ahead with “And Just Like That.” Interest in the SATC characters has remained high, and shows with female characters in their 50s are few and far between.

Now that Miranda, Carrie and Charlotte are in their midfifties, “And Just Like That” could become “The Golden Girls” of our era.

But that’s not likely without Samantha, who was the essential queer sensibility of SATC. Samantha’s irreverent, she loves sex, quiets babies down with vibrators, and though she’d never cop to it, has the proverbial heart of gold.

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‘And Just Like That’ reunites three of the original four from ‘Sex and the City.’ (Screenshot via HBO Max)

“And Just Like That” needs an infusion of irreverence.

SATC had problems of representation. Its characters were too white and too privileged. For its time, it had a queer quotient. Carrie’s best friend Stanford Blatch (the late Willie Garson) was gay, as was Charlotte’s best friend Anthony Marantino (Mario Cantone). But its depictions of bisexuals, lesbians, and trans people were stereotyped at best – bi and transphobic at worst.

“And Just Like That” works hard to correct those problems.

There are several characters who are people of color — from a law school professor to an upper-class mom.

Stanford and Anthony are now a bickering married couple.

And there is Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez) a “queer, nonbinary, Mexican-Irish diva,” a podcaster, who is Carrie’s boss.

It’s great that the show is trying to do better with representation, but it’s trying too hard.

We face serious issues – from parenting to grief – as we age. But, as any “Golden Girls” disciple knows, you don’t lose your sense of humor or lustiness as you grow older.

If “And Just Like That,” learns that, then it’ll be a great show.

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Merry motoring

These rides will bring miles of smiles along the way

By JOE PHILLIPS

KIA CARNIVAL SX PRESTIGE $46,000 Mpg: 19 city/26 highway 0 to 60 mph: 7 seconds

LINCOLN BLACK LABEL NAUTILUS $65,000 Mpg: 19 city/25 highway 0 to 60 mph: 5.9 seconds

MERCEDES E450 S4 WAGON $68,400 Mpg: 21 city/28 highway 0 to 60 mph: 4.4 seconds

The all-new Kia Carnival is an apt name for this comfy cruiser, a fun ride with room for eight passengers. This ultramodern minivan—Kia calls it a multipurpose vehicle— has the same rugged profile as a rough-and-tumble Land Rover Discovery. While you won’t be taking the Carnival on any off-road adventures, it does deliver a wellbalanced ride. There’s no body sway when tackling sharp corners nor is there any of the annoying bounciness found in other minivans.

Surprisingly, there’s also no all-wheel-drive option, which is offered by many competitors. But acceleration is peppy, and braking feels solid. Standard features include LED headlights, power-sliding doors, push-button start, smartphone integration and nine USB ports. I drove the top-of-the-line SX Prestige, which comes with larger 19-inch wheels, hands-free power tailgate and heated steering wheel. It also costs $15,000 more than the base model. But the list of safety features is impressive, including lane-departure warning, drowsy-driver alert, collision-avoidance warnings (for both the front and rear) and side cameras that show you an image of vehicles in your blind spot. While drivers will appreciate the two 12.3-inch digital displays—one for vehicle gauges and the other for navigation and audio—it’s the rear-seat passengers who get some extra thrills. This includes a robust entertainment system, dual sunroof, in-vehicle intercom and VIP lounge seats—luxe-like captain’s chairs that fully recline, are nicely heated/ventilated and come with power footrests. Who knew a minivan could be such an adventure. Add in some cotton candy, and you could almost be at a real carnival.

Long known for its land yachts, Lincoln sent the iconic Continental into the sunset in 2020. But though sedans are no longer in its lineup, the automaker offers a crop of comely crossovers that still exude plenty of old-school luxury. Such is the case with the midsize Lincoln Nautilus, a refreshing antidote to crossovers that try too hard to be sports cars but end up being a real pain in the butt— literally. The comfy ride and handling in the Nautilus are more akin to a Lexus RX 350 rather than some glorified go-kart racer.

With soft-touch surfaces, tasteful wood and snazzy chrome accents, the cabin is refined yet modern. It’s also quiet, almost too quiet. I drove the premium Black Label trim level, featuring 22-way powered seats with massage functions and a 19-speaker premium stereo. With the stereo turned up at the end of a quiet tune, I didn’t expect the next song to start with a rimshot so staggeringly loud it is still ringing in my ears. That’s how crystal clear the acoustics are in this anechoic chamber. There’s a choice of two engines: turbo four-cylinder or twin-turbo V6.

Along with the latest tech and safety features, there’s also an automated parking system and evasive steering assist, which quickens the vehicle’s response time when you try to avoid a collision. Other amenities include a simulated suede headliner, panoramic sunroof and the ability to use your smartphone as the vehicle key. While the base model starts at $44,000, opting for the Black Label does add $20,000. But all those extras will be hard to resist.

Yes, you read that right. The Mercedes E450 wagon explodes from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds. It also gets decent gas mileage for a 4,585-pound hauler, thanks to a 48-volt hybrid system that assists the 362-horsepower V6. I’ve always had a fondness for station wagons, ever since I drove a hulking Pontiac Bonneville Grand Safari across the country many times in my early twenties. But the Mercedes E450 is like piloting a rocket ship, with speed-of-light performance and spaceage electronics.

Despite a slightly firmer suspension this year, the E-Class wagon feels like it’s floating on air. Everything here is upscale, from the handsome exterior styling to the first-rate fit and finish inside. And there is so much room, even in the backseat for tall passengers with long legs. Cargo space is also huge at 35 cubic feet—which, in case you were wondering, means it could hold about 90 basketballs. Along with two 12.3-inch screens for driver info and the entertainment system, there’s a “Hey Mercedes” digital assistant that responds to voice commands. It’s extremely effective and doesn’t require you to keep repeating yourself, as with other systems. If only it could have joined my partner Robert and me in some holiday karaoke.

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Front Runners holiday party

LGBTQ social, activity group holds end-of-year gathering at All Souls Episcopal Washington Blade photos by Michael Key

The LGBTQ running, walking and social group D.C. Front Runners held a holiday party at All Souls Episcopal Church on Saturday.

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How to choose your real estate agent Tips to ensure the best home buying experience

By JUSTIN NOBLE

STYLE: Is your agent more of a casual or business casual dresser? Just kidding — but really. If you are a more formal individual then you should align yourself with someone similar in style. Likewise, if you are a more informal and casual person.

Take a look at yourself and your circle of friends. Do you tend to be the leader or the follower? Do you want to be pushed or do you easily accept facts as such and move forward? I would suggest finding an agent that suits your needs to a “T” and the following questions will help you in doing just that.

AREAS OF EXPERTISE: Ask your prospective agent what they sell more of: condos or single-family homes. In the D.C. market, this is important because there are nuances that apply to the D.C. condo market and it’s important to ensure that the agent you work with truly understands the ins and outs. Ask them in which jurisdictions they do a majority of their business. If you are looking for a D.C. condo in Logan Circle, yet the agent you’re interviewing does a bulk of their business in Montgomery County with single family homes, then I would suggest you keep looking. I am by no means saying that this agent in question cannot assist you in the purchase of a condo in D.C., I am suggesting that in order to ensure you are properly equipped with all the tools necessary to make you a homeowner in a competitive market that it might be best to look for another agent more suited to your needs.

Be sure to interview prospective agents before hiring one.

WHO ELSE WOULD YOU RECOMMEND SPEAKING WITH: After meeting with some prospective clients I will recommend speaking with other agents. If they don’t have other agents in mind, I provide a list of agents with varying levels of expertise, areas of market service and experience. This way they can get a feel for what else is out there and what makes me different. Oftentimes other agents feel this is foolish, however as agents we are here to properly inform clients and coach them with our best ability in order to buy or sell a home which is exactly what this last tip does.

VENDOR LIST: It takes a village. Literally. Ensure that your real estate agent has a list of vendors that they recommend. Always ask for a few options of each vendor you are looking for but a baseline should include the following: a mortgage lender (again three options as a minimum), home inspector, plumber, electrician, painter, handyman, landscaper, cleaning person and often forgotten, an accountant. One of the most overlooked vendors is an accountant to help you ensure that you are filing your taxes properly at the end of your first year of home ownership. Similar to when you get married or have children, purchasing a home often changes your taxes.

This is by no means a comprehensive list of questions that you should be asking but perhaps a more generalized and “above board” list. You can always ask things like, what

4 4 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • DECEMBER 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • B US I NE S S

is the percentage of offers written to offers won with transactions, how long has an agent been in the business and the list goes on. At the end of the day I truly hope that you take away one thing from this article and that is this: Interview your prospective real estate agent. We are here for you. We don’t get paid until you find a home or we sell your current home. It is important to enjoy the process as much as possible and meet someone that you know, like, and trust. You might not be able to say that about family members but I hope that you will say that about your real estate agent.

Justin Noble

is a Realtor with Sotheby’s International Realty licensed in D.C., Maryland, and Delaware for your DMV and Delaware Beach needs. Specializing in first-time homebuyers, development and new construction as well as estate sales, Justin is a well versed agent, highly regarded, and provides white glove service at every price point. Reach him at 202-503-4243 or Justin.Noble@SothebysRealty.com.

DE C E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • WA S H I N GTO N B L A D E.CO M • 4 5

for your life EMPLOYMENT

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Contact the Human Resources Department @ 202-832-8787 for information.

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No fees, donation requested.

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Phone 202-554-2471.

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240-863- 2441, JFairfax@Jenniferfairfax.com.

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for men

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Email: VillageHearthCohousing@gmail.com or call 561-714-8009.

USE BLADE ADVERTISERS! and tell them,

“I saw your ad in the Blade!”

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REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. Proof will be considered final and will be submitted for publication if revision is not submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users can link through the advertisement. Advertiser represents that its advertisement will not violate any criminal laws or any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation of anti-discrimination law or regulation, or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations and warranties.

Handsome GWM, 58

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DOMINANT, HORNY, GUY, 6’ 3”,

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS from the Blade! Thanks for reading!

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2022

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DE C E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 2 1 • WA S H I N GTO N B L A D E.CO M • 4 7