Washington Blade, Volume 53, Issue 06, February 11, 2022

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

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VOLUME 53 ISSUE 06 ADDRESS PO Box 53352 Washington DC 20009 PHONE 202-747-2077 E-MAIL news@washblade.com INTERNET washingtonblade.com PUBLISHED BY Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. PUBLISHER LYNNE J. BROWN lbrown@washblade.com ext. 8075 EDITORIAL EDITOR KEVIN NAFF knaff@washblade.com ext. 8088 SR. NEWS REPORTER LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com ext. 8079 NEWS REPORTER CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com ext. 8083 REPORTER & INTERNATIONAL NEWS EDITOR MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com POP CULTURE REPORTER JOHN PAUL KING PHOTO EDITOR MICHAEL KEY mkey@washblade.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS TINASHE CHINGARANDE, DUNIA ORELLANA, REPORTAR SIN MIEDO, PARKER PURIFOY, PETER ROSENSTEIN, MARK LEE, LATEEFAH WILLIAMS, KATE CLINTON, KATHI WOLFE, ERNESTO VALLE, YARIEL VALDÉS GONZÁLEZ, LYNARE ROBBINS, PHILIP VAN SLOOTEN, KATLEGO K. KOLANYANE-KESUPILE, KAELA ROEDER, TREMENDA NOTA, ALBERTO J. VALENTÍN, MAYKEL GONZÁLEZ VIVERO, ORGULLO LGBT. CO, ESTEBAN GUZMAN CREATIVE DESIGN/PRODUCTION AZERCREATIVE.COM SALES & ADMINISTRATION DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING STEPHEN RUTGERS srutgers@washblade.com ext. 8077 SR. ACCT. EXECUTIVE BRIAN PITTS bpitts@washblade.com ext. 8089 ACCT. EXECUTIVE JOE HICKLING jhickling@washblade.com ext. 8094 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION PHILLIP G. ROCKSTROH prockstroh@washblade.com ext. 8092 NATIONAL ADVERTISING RIVENDELL MEDIA 212-242-6863; sales@rivendellmedia.com For distribution, contact Lynne Brown ext. 8075. Distributed by MediaPoint, LLC

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Rehoboth man arrested for desecrating Pride flag at B&B

The gay owners of a Rehoboth Beach guest house and the LGBTQ group CAMP Rehoboth have praised the Rehoboth Beach Police Department for quickly arresting a male suspect one day after he allegedly removed an LGBTQ rainbow Pride flag hanging from the porch of the guest house and stepping on it before burying it in snow.

But in a joint statement released Feb. 4, the Rehoboth Guest House and David Mariner, executive director of CAMP Rehoboth, expressed concern that Rehoboth police did not classify the Feb. 1 rainbow flag incident as a hate crime.

“While the quick action of the police is greatly appreciated, we respectfully disagree with their decision not to classify this activity as a hate crime or hate bias incident,” the statement says.

A Rehoboth police spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment. The Blade will update this story if Rehoboth police provide an explanation for why they chose not to classify the incident as a hate or bias related incident.

The joint statement by the guest house, which bills itself as an LGBTQ-friendly bed and breakfast, and CAMP Rehoboth does not mention something that some LGBTQ activists may find surprising – that a Feb. 3 Rehoboth police press release announcing the arrest in connection with the flag incident does not identify the flag as a rainbow Pride flag or that it was removed from a gay guest house.

“Jordan Reed, 23, of Rehoboth, Del., was arrested Wednesday afternoon [Feb. 2] following an investigation by police into two separate incidents of trespassing and criminal mischief,” the police press release says.

“On Tuesday, February 1st, 2022, at around 2:30 pm, Rehoboth Beach Police were called to the second block of Maryland Avenue for a disorderly subject who entered onto a residential property, removed a flag from the front porch and buried it in the snow,” the release continues.

“While on the scene at the residence, at around 3:15 pm, the responding officer was

contacted by a separate victim who reported that the tire to his trailer had been slashed,” the release says, adding that the trailer was parked on the same block as the “residential property.”

The police press release says that through “investigative means, witness interviews, JORDAN REED (Photo courtesy of the Rehoboth Beach Police Department) and the use of various sources of video surveillance, police were able to develop Reed as a suspect.” It says police observed Reed the following day walking on Rehoboth Avenue near the Rehoboth traffic circle and took him into custody without incident.

The release concludes by saying Reed was arrested and charged with one count of criminal mischief of under $1,000; one count of third-degree criminal trespass; and one count of disorderly conduct. It says he was released on $1,500 unsecured bail.

In their own joint statement released to the press, the Rehoboth Guest House and CAMP Rehoboth provide details they say can be seen in some of the surveillance video that captured Reed’s actions that the police did not publicly disclose.

The events associated with Reed’s action “included the desecration of a Pride Flag hanging outside the Rehoboth Guest House, a LGBT owned and operated business and a popular destination for the LGBTQ community,” the statement says.

“In video supplied to the police, Jordan Reed removes the flag, steps on the flag, and buries the flag in snow,” the statement continues. “In the high-resolution version of the video, you can also see Reed spit on his hands and rub the spit into the flag before he buries it,” the statement says.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

Howard Univ. National Black HIV/AIDS Day forum tackles LGBTQ issues White House officials join experts in discussion on ‘policy & care’

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. | lchibbaro@washblade.com

The director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy and the White House Senior Advisor on LGBTQ+ Engagement joined two Howard University deans and three professors specializing in public health in a panel discussion on Monday in connection with National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The Feb. 7 event, called “A Dialogue on Wellness, HIV Policy & Care for the Black Community,” was held on the Howard University campus at its Interdisciplinary Research Building.

Ravi Perry, professor and chair of the Howard University Department of Political Science, served as moderator of the panel session.

Perry opened the session by giving an overview of Howard University’s decades long involvement in HIV/AIDS research and medical care as well as in public policy studies related to HIV/AIDS. “As a political scientist, I always argue that the importance of HIV care should not be limited to medical care alone,” he said. “We have to engage in policies that will ultimately lead to the changes we want to see. And that is why we are here today, to talk about those things together.”

The first two participants to speak were Harold Phillips, the current director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, and Reggie Greer, who holds the dual title of director of Priority Placement and Senior Advisor on LGBTQ+ Engagement at the White House.

The other panelists included Dr. Celia Maxwell, Associate Dean for Research at the Howard University College of Medicine; Dr. Goulda Downer, Associate Professor and Director of Howard’s National HIV Integration Project; Dr. Sandra Crewe, Dean of Howard’s School of Social Work; and Dr. Evaristus Nwulia, professor at Howard’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences in the College of Medicine and a practicing psychiatrist with a specialty in HIVrelated mental health.

Phillips and Greer said the White House, under the administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President

Kamala Harris, has been monitoring and focusing its attention on the latest developments in the fight against HIV/ AIDS being conducted by federal agencies as well as the communities impacted by HIV/AIDS, including the AfricanAmerican and LGBTQ communities.

Phillips, who appeared virtually on a large video screen, announced he was unable to attend in person because he had just tested positive for COVID and was still in his social isolation period. He said he was thankful that his vaccinations “were doing what they are supposed to do” and his symptoms were limited to that of a “mild cold.”

He praised Howard University for hosting the panel session and the panelists from Howard, who he noted have been involved in HIV work for many years.

“HIV remains a disproportionate risk to African Americans, and young African-American gay and bisexual men account for more new HIV infections than any other group,” Phillips told the gathering. “And HIV affects African-American heterosexual women more than women of any other race or ethnicity,” he said.

“So, while we have seen an 8 percent decrease in new HIV infections since 2015, that is not true for the Black community,” he said. “That’s why this day is still an important day so that we can work to ensure African Americans are aware of their HIV status, of the care and treatment options that will help them live longer and healthier lives and get to an undetectable viral load.”

Greer, who’s gay and who attended the event in person, said the White House staff has worked hard in the first year of the Biden-Harris administration, “to really make sure that marginalized voices, people from all parts of our communities,” including the LGBTQ and African-American communities and people with HIV, have a voice at the White House.

“This is also Black History Month, so we’re thrilled to be here not only on National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day but at the beginning of Black History Month in which the Biden-

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Howard University hosted ‘A Dialogue on Wellness, HIV Policy & Care for the Black Community’ on Feb. 7.

(Blade photo by Lou Chibbaro Jr.)

Harris administration has made Black health and wellness a theme of this Black History Month,” he said.

Greer also noted that among those attending the panel session in person was Hannah Bristol, associate director of the White House Office of Public Engagement.

Among the topics discussed at the event, in response to questions asked by Perry, were the reasons the panelists, including the Howard University professors and doctors, believe African Americans currently make up the highest number of new HIV infections in recent years; the best ways to address HIV/AIDS in the African-American LGBTQ community; and the impact of criminalization of HIV transmission that’s part of the laws of many states in the U.S. on efforts to curtail HIV transmission.

Crewe, the dean of Howard’s School of Social Work, said the “lack of equity” in the U.S. healthcare system in past years has played a role in African Americans being disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS. Phillips appeared to sum up some of the concerns raised by the moderator Perry when he pointed out that only 8 percent of African Americans, according to studies, have been accessing the HIV prevention medication known as PrEP. “So, we still have a lot of work to do in our community,” he said. “And I’m glad we are having this dialogue here and that Howard University continues to be at the forefront in trying to ensure that these messages get out to our community.”

A recording of the National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day panel discussion can be accessed on Facebook.

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Catholic Univ. LGBTQ student group remains unrecognized CUAllies, formed in 2009, still operates ‘underground’

By MEGHAN BRINK

The only on-campus queer student organization at the Catholic University of America, CUAllies, is still fighting for official recognition.

Despite operating “underground,” the club’s roughly 10 members meet regularly to talk about issues facing LGBTQ college students, to create friendships and to connect LGBTQ students and allies with one another.

Since the formation of CUAllies in 2009, the administration at Catholic University, most notably President John Garvey, has denied the club official recognition multiple times.

“Just the act of having the university recognize us would be a huge step because it Catholic University (Blade photo by Michael Key) would make people feel way more welcome,” said CUAllies President Ash Samuels. “The nature of having a club that operates under the radar makes you feel like they have to operate under the radar and so just being recognized would make people feel a lot more welcome.”

Additionally, without recognition CUAllies does not have access to the same resources as official student organizations. For example, they cannot rent rooms on campus for meetings, receive funding for events, and are prohibited from advertising club meetings or events on fliers on campus. According to Samuels, the club uses space at the Center for Cultural Engagement, where director Javier Bustamante allows the club to meet and advertise events.

According to Samuels, CUAllies has been advised by the Dean’s Office to wait until next year to reapply when a new university president will replace Garvey. Until then, Samuels said the group still plans to hold meetings in-person, and he hopes to bring in speakers to talk to members about mental health and issues facing LGBTQ college students.

The last attempt by CUAllies to gain recognition was in March 2021, when the Catholic University’s Student Government Association passed a resolution after hours of public comment from students to support a resolution for the club to request official status. The request, however, was denied by Garvey.

“It was an interesting SGA meeting,” said Samuels. “A lot of people came to public comment and spoke their minds. There was a lot of homophobia.”

Catholic University is one of the 180 campuses deemed unsafe for LGBTQ youth on Campus Pride’s “Worst List.” Campus Pride, an organization that advocates for safe and inclusive college campuses for LGBTQ students, stated on their website that “Catholic University of America has qualified for the Worst Life because it has an extensive and well-documented history of anti-LGBTQ discrimination.”

In addition to repeatedly depriving LGBTQ students of the right to have an official student club, the university has also displayed its homophobic ideology by filing an amicus brief in the 2019 U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County. In the brief, the university argued that the campuses should be allowed to discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“This campus has repeatedly proven that they do not support LGBTQ rights, LGBTQ equality,” said Campus Pride Executive Director Shane Windmeyer.

A 2021 survey by the Religious Exemption Accountability Project, an organization that promotes equity for LGBTQ college students at Christian colleges, said that students at Christian colleges are 15 times more likely to report that their gender or sexual identity has prevented them from being accepted by others on campus compared to LGBTQ students at non-Christian colleges.

The pandemic has increased this sense of isolation, as students were forced to attend classes online and did not have access to the same social networks that were once offered in person on many campuses. Although mental health struggles have increased overall for college students overall throughout the pandemic, research has shown that LGBTQ individuals were more likely to have struggled with depression, anxiety, or suicidal thoughts than people identifying as straight.

Attending a university that already has limited resources for its LGBTQ student population, combined with the isolating effects of the pandemic, makes the Catholic University increasingly worrisome for LGBTQ students from a mental health perspective.

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practices before the pandemic, the pandemic has only worsened that because of the isolation that these students feel,” said Windmeyer.

Samuels said that CUAllies has served as an important place for students at the Catholic University to meet other queer students, with many members making their first contact with other LGBTQ students through the club. However, Samuels said that operating remotely during the pandemic made it difficult to feel the same level of connection, despite the fact that the group was still meeting routinely over Zoom.

“The feeling of isolation is amplified for LGBTQ students, especially on this campus,” said Samuels. “You might not have friends who you are out to or you might not have friends at all. If you don’t have [club meetings] in person in order to make those connections, and you are already isolated, it makes it a lot harder.”

Despite not having an officially recognized LGBTQ student organization, the Catholic University offers groups orientated towards LGBTQ students through its Counseling Center and Campus Ministry.

The Counseling Center runs a weekly therapy group called MOSAIC, which “provides an environment where LGBT-identified and straight students can come together to learn about available resources, discuss various topics related to personal wellness, and build a supportive network with other students,” according to the Counseling Center’s webpage.

Samuels, who is an active participant in MOSAIC, said that both the therapy group and the Counseling Center are “very LGBTQ+ friendly.” Samuels said he routinely encourages members of CUAllies to get connected with the Counseling Center during club meetings.

According to Samuels, therapists at the Counseling Center have told him that they often get students who identify as LGBTQ, but are hesitant to join CUAllies because they are perceived as being “too liberal or not Catholic enough” despite the organization not having any political or religious affiliation and being welcoming to people of all backgrounds.

Additionally, Catholic University’s Campus Ministry offers a faith group called ‘Beyond the Labels’ which defines itself as a ministry for LGBTQ students “to support each other in their Catholic Christian life by forming holistic friendships,” according to Campus Ministry’s website.

The group was formed last fall by Father Jude DeAngelo, director of Campus Ministry.

“Because we are a Catholic school I think there is a population of students who are trying to integrate their faith with all the different labels that they have either chosen or that people put on them,” said DeAngelo to the Washington Blade. “I just want to have a place where students can come and they can be themselves and they can talk about their faith and their struggles to be Catholic Christians.”

On “Beyond the Labels,” Samuels said, “I think [DeAngelo] has the right intentions, but it still has that risk that people could turn it into a negative thing or misconstrued his words.”

Samuels said that leadership at CUAllies has expressed their concerns to the Counseling Center that “Beyond the Labels” could be potentially harmful towards LGBTQ students. Samuels said that he encourages people who are in need to seek out the Counseling Center first.

DeAngelo did not offer a comment to the Blade on whether he believed CUAllies should be officially recognized by the university, however, according to Samuels, DeAngelo has been an advocate for CUAllies to be officially recognized by the university.

Windmeyer said what the Catholic University has done with its ministry has been replicated at other campuses with harmful policies against LGBTQ students as a push to better their public image.

He said that these colleges try to, “create a narrative that shows that [they] are compassionate, that [they] recognize, underneath our ministry, our LGBTQ group, but [they] are not going to recognize them as student organizations, they have to do it through the ministry. That in itself is just telling me that they are just doing enough to pacify their students, they do not see Catholicism as giving LGBTQ people the human dignity and worth that they deserve.”

Windmeyer noted that other Catholic Universities, such as the University of Notre Dame — which has an official LGBTQ student organization — have made improvements throughout the years to be more inclusive of their LGBTQ student population.

The Catholic Church’s stance on LGBTQ-related issues has improved as well.

Last year Pope Francis stated that he endorsed civil unions. However, despite these advancements, activists in conversation with the Blade have remarked church teachings on homosexuality and gender identity remain largely unchanged.

Catholic University did not return the Blade’s request for comment for this story.

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Trump ribbed Pence for thinking ‘it’s a crime to be gay’ Peters, who is also gay — identifies Trump’s potential picks for the judiciary as a source Donald Trump, in the days before he took office after the 2016 election, openly of significant concern for conservatives as the “Never Trump” movement was beginning contemplated naming an openly gay Fox News contributor to the U.S. Supreme Court to form and expectations were the next president would be able to name as many as amid concerns from social conservatives about his potential choices and ribbed former four choices for the Supreme Court. Among the wide ranges of possible choices he Vice President Mike Pence for thinking “it’s a crime to be gay,” according to the new book floated during the campaign were often “Insurgency” detailing the former president’s “not lawyers or judges he admired for their path to the White House. legal philosophies or interpretations of the The key moment between Trump, Judge Constitution,” but personalities he saw on TV. Andrew Napolitano and Pence took place Among this group of TV personalities, during the transition period after the 2016 the books says, were people like Fox News election when Trump invited the other two for host Jeanine Pirro, whom Trump “regularly a meeting at Trump Tower. That’s when Trump watched and occasionally planned his flight reportedly took the jab at Pence. schedule around, directing his personal pilot “During their meeting, for part of which to adjust the route accordingly so the satellite Mike Pence was present, Trump ribbed signal wouldn’t fade.” Trump told friends Pirro Pence for his anti-gay rights views,” the “would make a fine justice,” the books says. book says. “Addressing Napolitano, Trump Trump potentially making good of his gestured toward the archconservative vicetalk about naming Napolitano as one of his president-elect and said, ‘You’d better be choices for the Supreme Court “would have careful because this guy thinks it’s a crime been doubly unacceptable to many on the to be gay. Right, Mike?’ When Pence didn’t religious right,” the book says. Napolitano, a answer, Trump repeated himself, ‘Right, Mike?’ former New Jersey Superior Court judge, was Pence remained silent.” friendly with Maryanne Trump Barry, Trump’s The potential choice of Andrew Napolitano, sister and a federal judge with a reputation who was fired last year from Fox News amid DONALD TRUMP (left) ribbed former Vice President MIKE PENCE (center) in a meeting for liberal views, such as a ruling in favor of recently dropped allegations of sexual with ANDREW NAPOLITANO for thinking ‘it’s a crime to be gay.’ partial-birth abortion, and is also gay, both of harassment from male co-workers, as well as (Blade photos of Trump and Pence by Michael Key; screen capture of Andrew Napolitano via Fox News YouTube) which are identified in the book as potential other TV personalities Trump floated for the concerns by the religious right.

Supreme Court, as detailed in the book, were Napolitano and Trump were close, the book claims. Napolitano, as the book describes, among the many reasons conservatives feared he wouldn’t be reliable upon taking the had a habit of telling a story to friends about Trump confiding to him the future presidency. Ironically, Trump would have been responsible for making a historic choice president’s knowledge of the law was based on Napolitano’s TV appearances. Trump for diversity if he chose a gay man like Napolitano for the Supreme Court, beating told Napolitano: “Everything I know about the Constitution I learned from you on Fox & President Biden to the punch as the nation awaits his selection of the first-ever Black Friends,” the book says. woman for the bench.

Napolitano never took a post in the Trump administration.

The new book — fully titled “Insurgency: How Republicans Lost Their Party and Got CHRIS JOHNSON Everything They Ever Wanted” and written by New York Times political reporter Jeremy

White House responds to Fla. ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill Following Gov. Ron DeSantis’ comments signaling support for “Don’t Say Gay” legislation in Florida that would restrict school teachings on sexual orientation and gender identity in K-5 education, the White House has denounced the bill as a measure “designed to target and attack the kids who need support the most.”

A White House spokesperson on Tuesday blasted Florida’s HB 1557/SB 1834, which critics say is the latest in an attempt by conservatives to erase LGBTQ visibility in schools.

“Every parent hopes that our leaders will ensure their children’s safety, protection, and freedom,” the White House spokesperson said. “Today, conservative politicians in Florida rejected those basic values by advancing legislation that is designed to target and attack the kids who need support the most – LGBTQI+ students, who are already vulnerable to bullying and violence just for being themselves.”

After a Florida House committee approved the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ legislation last month, DeSantis – widely seen as a possible Republican candidate for president in 2024 – signaled support for the legislation, telling reporters on Monday it was “entirely inappropriate” for teachers to be having conversations with students about gender identity.

“Schools need to be teaching kids to read, to write,” DeSantis said, according to NBC News. “They need to teach them science, history. We need more civics and understanding of the U.S. Constitution, what makes our country unique, all those basic stuff.”

DeSantis, however, stopped short of committing to signing the legislation into law should it reach his desk, according to NBC News.

Critics say the legislation effectively stigmatizes LGBTQ families and students in schools and is part of a wider effort by conservatives to stymy visibility of LGBTQ people. Texas libraries, for example, have been banning books with LGBTQ material

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and sexually explicit content.

Defenders of the legislation have pointed out the restrictions in the “Don’t Say Gay” bill apply only to grade school, which they say isn’t an age-appropriate forum for discussion on sexual orientation and gender identity and leaves open the possibility of discussion in higher education.

The White House spokesperson said the Florida “Don’t Say Gay” legislation is “not an isolated action” and part of a broader movement throughout the country.

“Across the country, we’re seeing Republican leaders take actions to regulate what students can or cannot read, what they can or cannot learn, and most troubling, who they can or cannot be,” the White House spokesperson said. “This is politics at its worst, cynically using our students as pawns in political warfare. At every step of the way, Republicans have peddled in cheap, political attacks, instead of focusing on the issues parents, students, and teachers care about.”

The Biden administration, the White House spokesperson said, has instead “focused on keeping schools open, providing resources to combat learning loss, and supporting students’ mental health.”

“The difference in leadership could not be more stark, and the Biden-Harris administration will not shy away from holding leaders accountable for dangerous actions that hurt our nation’s students,” the White House spokesperson said.

The White House spokesperson drew a contrast between the message sent by the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and the Biden administration to LGBTQ students.

“Just imagine what it would feel like to be a kid watching the leaders in your state bully you through legislation that tries to erase your existence,” the spokesperson said. “These types of attacks are the root cause of the mental health crisis that LGBTQI+ people face.”

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Human Rights Campaign’s ex-president sues, alleges racial discrimination David fired after being implicated in Cuomo scandal

By CHRIS JOHNSON | cjohnson@washblade.com

Alphonso David, the former president of the Human Rights Campaign terminated by the board after he was ensnared in the Gov. Andrew Cuomo scandal, sued the nation’s leading LGBTQ group last week, arguing he was fired as ALPHONSO DAVID, former president of the a result of racial discrimination Human Rights Campaign, “amid a deserved reputation was fired after being for unequal treatment of its linked to the Gov. Andrew Cuomo scandal. non-white employees” and (Blade file photo) was explicitly told he was paid less because he’s Black.

David, speaking with the Blade during a phone interview, said he came to the decision to file the lawsuit after practicing civil rights law for 20 years and “never thought that I would be a plaintiff.”

“But I’m in this chair, I was put in this position,” David said.

“And as a civil rights lawyer, I couldn’t look the other way. It would be anathema to who I am and it would undermine my integrity and purpose for the work that I do. And so I have to go through and make a very, very difficult personal decision to file this lawsuit.”

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, accuses the Human Rights Campaign of violating new state and federal laws for terminating David, who was the organization’s first person of color and Black person to helm the LGBTQ group in its 40-year history. The lawsuit also contends the Human Rights Campaign contravened equal pay law in New York by paying David less than his predecessor, Chad Griffin.

After a public dispute with the board in September amid an independent investigation of his role in the Cuomo affair, the Human Rights Campaign boards unceremoniously fired David and shortly afterward announced a still ongoing search for a new president. David was named nearly a dozen times in the damning report by New York Attorney General Letitia James, suggesting David assisted in efforts by Cuomo’s staff to discredit a woman alleging sexual misconduct in Cuomo’s office. David has consistently denied wrongdoing.

But the lawsuit is broader than the termination and describes an environment at the Human Rights Campaign, which has faced criticism over the years for being geared toward white gay men, as a workplace where “non-white staffers were marginalized, tokenized, and denied advancement to highlevel positions.” After a speech David gave on issues of race and indifference in the context of HRC’s mission, the lawsuit claims a board member complained about him referring too much to being Black, but faced no penalty from the organization.

Specifically named in the report is Chris Speron, Senior Vice President of Development, who expressed concern about “alienating” white donors and specifically “white gay men” after David issued a statement on the importance of Black Lives Matter after the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. The lawsuit claims Speron pushed David to “stop mentioning in his public statements and remove from his bio the fact that he was HRC’s first Black President in its history.”

Speron also was critical of hiring a Black-owned consulting firm and “criticized a Black staff member for attending a meeting with the consulting firm without a white person present,” the lawsuit claims. Speron couldn’t immediately be reached for comment to respond to the allegations.

In terms of equal pay, the lawsuit says HRC’s co-chairs informed David he was underpaid compared to his predecessor because he’s Black. But the lawsuit also acknowledges in 2021, just before news broke about the Cuomo report, the Human

Rights Campaign in recognition of David’s work renewed his contract for five additional years and gave him a 30 percent raise.

David, speaking with the Blade, said he was in “shock” upon experiencing these alleged incidents of racism, maintaining he had kept quiet at the time out of concern for the greater good of the aims of the Human Rights Campaign.

Asked whether as president he considered implementing racial sensitivity trainings for his subordinates, David said “yes,” but added many trainings aren’t effective and said the power in organizations like the Human Rights Campaign is often spread out.

“There are people within the organization that have a fair amount of board support because they bring in the money because they are responsible for overseeing the money,” David added.

Joni Madison, interim president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement after the lawsuit was filed the organization is “disappointed that Alphonso David has chosen to take retaliatory action against the Human Rights Campaign for his termination which resulted from his own actions.”

“Mr. David’s complaint is riddled with untruths,” Madison said. “We are confident through the legal process that it will be apparent that Mr. David’s termination was based on clear violations of his contract and HRC’s mission, and as president of HRC, he was treated fairly and equally.”

Madison adds the individuals accused of racism in the lawsuit “are people of color and champions of racial equity and inclusion who provided support and guidance as Mr. David led the organization,” without naming any specific individual. The boards for the Human Rights Campaign and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation who made the decision to terminate David, were comprised of seven independent directors, five of whom were Black.

The racist environment, the lawsuit says, culminated for David in September 2021 amid an independent investigation of his role in the Cuomo affair conducted by the law firm Sidley Austin LLP at the behest of the organization. According to the lawsuit, the board co-chairs contacted David late at night before Labor Day weekend to tell him to resign by 8 a.m. the next morning or be terminated for cause. When David asked whether the Sidley Austin investigation had made any findings against him, or if a report would be issued explaining what he was accused of doing wrong, the board co-chairs refused to say, the lawsuit says.

As is publicly known, David declined to resign and took to Twitter to complain about the board, which subsequently issued a statement disputing his claims. He was then fired “for cause” under his contract.

The termination, the lawsuit says, signified differential treatment of David because he is Black, taking note the Human Rights Campaign under his predecessor had “endured repeated, serious, scandals — many of which involved HRC’s mistreatment of Black and other marginalized individuals,” but Chad Griffin was never terminated “for cause.”

Both the Human Rights Campaign Foundation board and the Human Rights Campaign board voted to terminate David.

A source familiar with the vote said no one voted “no” in either case. The campaign board vote was unanimous and there were two abstentions in the foundation board vote, the source said.

The source familiar with the vote said David never told the Human Rights Campaign he was helping Cuomo during his time as HRC president nor did he disclose he was talking to the New York attorney general. The first board members heard about it was when it hit the press, the source said.

Meanwhile, the lawsuit says David “performed extremely

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well as HRC president, by any measure,” navigating the organization through the coronavirus epidemic and boosting fundraising by 60 percent. (The Blade has not yet verified this claim.) It should be noted the Human Rights Campaign cited coronavirus as the reason it laid off 22 employees, as reported at the time by the Blade.

David, asked by the Blade how he sees the alleged racist culture at Human Rights Campaign infused in his termination, said “Black and Brown people are treated differently and have been for years in this organization,” citing a “Pipeline Report” leaked to the press in 2015 documenting an environment in which employees of color were unable to thrive.

“And so, the fact that I’m being treated differently now, in the fact that a different standard is being applied to me is just simply consistent with what they’ve always done,” David said.

“You know, we go back to the Pipeline Report: Imagine if I was leading the organization at the time, and there was a report that was issued, that said that anti-Semitic remarks were being made within the organization, and that women were being discriminated against within the organization or some other marginalized group and that one of the senior vice presidents used a derogatory remark. Do you think I would still be at the organization or would they have fired me?”

David concluded: “There’s a different standard and a double standard that they’ve applied for decades, and I’ve just now been one casualty — another in a long series of casualties based on their systemic bias and discrimination.”

Among the requests in the prayer for relief in the complaint is a declaration the Human Rights Campaign’s actions violated the law; restoration of David to his position as president; an award of the compensation he would have received were he still on the job as well as punitive damages. Asked by the Blade whether any settlement talks have taken place, David said that wasn’t the case and pointed out the lawsuit was recently filed.

Legal experts who spoke to the Blade have doubted the validity of a review by Sidley Austin on the basis it was among the legal firms agreeing in 2019 to help with the Human Rights Campaign entering into litigation to advance LGBTQ rights, an agreement David spearheaded upon taking the helm of the organization.

David, in response to a question from the Blade, said the independent investigation into his role in the Cuomo affair “is a sham and I believe it was a sham,” citing the lack of transparency of findings.

“One of the first instances that caused me concern,” David said, “is I suggested to the organization that we conduct an independent review, and they came back to me and said, ‘Here’s our press release history,’ and the press release never mentioned that I actually suggested that they do this review.

And when I challenged them on that, they told me that they thought it would be better for the press to review a complaint or receive a statement that showed that they were bringing this investigation as opposed to I’m recommending and push back even more. And then they said ‘Well, we will put in the statement that you are cooperating.’ So from the very beginning, they were not honest about what they were actually doing.”

Representing David in the lawsuit is the Chicago-based employment law firm Stowell & Friedman, Ltd. and and Chicago-based attorney Matt Singer. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Eric Vitaliano, a George W. Bush appointee, an informed source familiar with the case said.

The lawsuit was filed in New York as opposed to D.C. because David is a New York resident and much of the discriminatory behavior took place in New York, the source said. The pay disparity alleged in the lawsuit is expressed in percentages as oppose to hard numbers pursuant to rules for the judiciary in New York, the source added.

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Intersectionality is key for first Black, nonbinary GLSEN leader She’s experienced ‘superpower’ of being connected to the marginalized

By ZACHARY JARRELL

It’s 1986 in the rust belt city of Cincinnati. Two kids, Melanie and David, are at their aunt’s house being cared for while both of their single mothers are away – Melanie’s mom is traveling for work and David’s caught in “street life” and medicating her heartbreak.

A few years later, Melanie and David are in the fourth grade and starting to have trouble academically and behaviorally. Melanie’s mom jumps in to ask questions and take action. Meanwhile, David’s mom doesn’t have the energy or know-how to advocate for him, and his teachers assume that he’s not trying.

By sixth grade, Melanie had gotten tested to get to the bottom of her learning challenges, and, though things were still hard, she had the support of her mom.

David had never gotten the support he needed for his learning difficulties, labeled as “behavioral problems.” He’s receiving punishment instead of help. Before the year is out, he’s dropped out of school for good.

Now, Melanie WillinghamJaggers, fresh off being named the first Black and nonbinary executive director of national LGBTQ advocacy group GLSEN, tells the Blade that story while her cousin, David, has spent the time they spent in school studying in and out of incarceration.

“It really is because of the opportunity, and that window of opportunity being missed for him,” Melanie Willingham-Jaggers told the Blade in an interview.

This story is the main motivator for the new leader of GLSEN. “I’m not different, and I’m not special,” said Willingham-Jaggers. “I do this work in service of those MELANIE WILLINGHAM-JAGGERS was named executive director of national LGBTQ advocacy group GLSEN. people because I know that (Photo courtesy of Willingham-Jaggers) given what I’ve been given – access to the support and opportunity that I have – it’s my job to make the most of it.”

After serving as the group’s interim executive director last year, GLSEN named Willingham-Jaggers as its new executive director last week – a historic pick hailed by LGBTQ+ advocates across the nation.

“I think I’m the right pick; I think I’m the right leader for GLSEN; I think this is the right moment for a leader like me to act,” they said.

Willingham-Jaggers takes the helm of GLSEN – which advocates for making K-12 schools safer, more affirming and inclusive environments for LGBTQ youth – at a point in the United States when schools have become a battleground for political debate over trans inclusion in sports and LGBTQ-themed books some consider “inappropriate,” or even “pornographic.”

According to the Movement Advancement Project, 10 states already have laws in place that bar trans students from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.

In 2022, so far, 22 bills seeking to ban trans youth from sports have been introduced in state legislatures across the country, according to Freedom for All Americans. On Thursday, South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem signed the first anti-trans bill of 2022 into law, effectively keeping trans students, especially trans women and girls, from playing on women’s and girl’s sports teams.

In addition, conservatives have started a nationwide effort to keep books dealing with racism and LGBTQ issues off the shelves of school libraries.

Last December, the American Library Association (ALA) announced that it had documented 155 separate incidents of efforts to remove or ban books by or about LGBTQ and Black people since June 2021. Officials in one Virginia district went as far as to say they want to see books “burn.”

“It’s pretty shitty out there,” said Willingham-Jaggers, adding, “It is hard to put into words how terrible it is right now for queer kids.”

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According to Willingham-Jaggers, even legislative efforts that don’t directly affect LGBTQ kids, like anti-Critical Race Theory bans, end up hurting queer children and kids as a whole. “There is a move by political extremists to prevent our young people from learning the truth,” they said.

Bans of CRT – a college-level examination of the intersection of race and law that has become a hot button issue for Republicans – have also swept the nation in recent months.

The politicians introducing and passing this legislation are proud to highlight the bills. Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott stated, “Now Texas has the toughest anti-CRT protections in the nation,” celebrating the state’s CRT ban.

But opponents of such bans call attacks on CRT “gross exaggerations of the theoretical framework.”

“Rather than run from the issue of racism in America, we should confront it head on,” Rayshawn Ray wrote for the Brookings Institution, a progressive nonprofit public policy organization.

According to an interactive map from Education Week, 14 states have enacted CRT bans, while another 23 states have at least considered such bans.

Intersectionality, how aspects of a person’s social and political identities combine to create different levels of discrimination and privilege, is a big part of WillinghamJaggers’ focus moving forward. “No one’s out here with only a queer identity, right?” they said.

National LGBTQ organizations have been criticized at points in the past by some who think that their advocacy has focused too much on white, cisgender, LGB people – largely leaving people of color and trans people out of the conversation. In fact, a 2017 report from the Building Movement Project, which provides research and training tools to help nonprofits better connect with the communities they serve, found that LGBTQ people of color face more challenges compared to white people or straight people of color, even in LGBTQ-focused organizations.

Though many LGBTQ advocacy groups have made strides to become more inclusive, including speaking out against police brutality during widespread Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, some continue to call them out.

Last week, Alphonso David – the former president of the Human Rights Campaign who was terminated by the board after reports that he was involved in the New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo scandal – filed a lawsuit against the group, arguing he was fired as a result of racial discrimination.

The lawsuit said HRC’s workplace was one where “non-white staffers were marginalized, tokenized, and denied advancement to high-level positions.” David was the group’s first Black president.

However, Joni Madison, interim president of HRC, said David’s lawsuit was “riddled with untruths.”

In a 2020 press release following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to extend Civil Rights Act protections to LGBTQ people in employment, GLSEN’s former Executive Director Eliza Byard referenced an “internal process of transformation” to “center the leadership of Black and other POC leaders on the Board, staff, and across the network, and to become an anti-racist organization.”

“Because of the work we did not do in the past, and because of the pace of our current efforts, we have caused harm. I apologize,” she said.

Willingham-Jaggers stepped in as interim executive director following Byard’s resignation in 2021.

“Melanie’s expertise as an organizer and deep connections across movements are invaluable for the next chapter of GLSEN’s work,” said Byard of Willingham-Jaggers.

“The world of K-12 schools has been turned completely upside-down over the past few years, and Melanie’s vision and experience will provide the essential ingredients of new strategies for a new time.”

Willingham-Jaggers knows that their work is cut out for them but believes they are exactly the type of leader that GLSEN needs right now.

“I don’t do the work that I do because of my identities,” they said. “But my identity has formed the work that I do.”

As a Black woman and nonbinary, gender expansive queer person, WillinghamJaggers said she has experienced both the “superpower of invisibility” and the “superpower of being deeply connected to those who are marginalized.”

“The leader that I am is really informed by and led by those margins,” they said.

Willingham-Jaggers didn’t want to be “too specific” about their plans to address antiLGBTQ+ legislation and other rules aimed at schools. But they did say that “affirmation” is an essential part of their work as an advocate for LGBTQ+ kids.

“People grow in the light of love,” they said.

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3 LGBTQ people murdered in Honduras in one day

MARÍA FERNANDA MARTÍNEZ, JONATHAN GABRIEL MARTÍNEZ, and CÉSAR GUSTAVO ZÚÑIGA (Photos courtesy Reportar sin Miedo)

Three LGBTQ people in Honduras were reported killed on Feb. 2.

Reportar sin Miedo reported Jonathan Gabriel Martínez, and his partner, César Gustavo Zúñiga, were killed in San Pedro Sula’s Ticamaya neighborhood. The Washington Blade’s Honduran media partner also noted María Fernanda Martínez was shot to death in La Libertad, a municipality in Comayagua department.

Reportar sin Miedo cited witnesses who said men dressed as police officers shot Jonathan Martínez and his partner in the liquor store that he owned. María Martínez, according to Reportar sin Miedo, had previously joined a migrant caravan that had hoped to reach the U.S. The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Honduras office condemned the murders.

“The office expresses its concern over the attacks, threats and harassment that LGBTI people in the country face,” it said in a statement posted to its Twitter page. “The Honduran state must guarantee truth, justice and reparation for these crimes and ensure they don’t happen again.”

Cattrachas, a lesbian feminist human rights group based in the Honduran capital of Tegucigalpa, notes 405 LGBTQ people have been reported killed in the country since 2009.

Thalía Rodríguez, a prominent transgender activist, was killed outside her Tegucigalpa home on Jan. 11. Authorities have arrested a suspected MS-13 member in connection with Rodríguez’s murder.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

LGBTQ people omitted from South Africa Census Advocacy groups are up in arms with Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) over the exclusion of LGBTQ people in the ongoing national Census, which will end on Feb. 28.

Although South Africa is deemed to be among the most liberal countries when it comes to LGBTQ rights on the African continent and globally, this time, it seems as if the government made a costly error by including only male and female boxes on the questionnaire.

Reacting to the exclusion of LGBTQ people on the 2022 national Census questionnaire, Nolwazi Tusini, communications and media manager at Iranti, a Johannesburg-based media advocacy organization that advocates for the rights of LGBTQ people, said the data will be used to make conclusions about gender in ways that completely exclude transgender and non-binary people.

“According to StatsSA, the Census 2022 questionnaire includes a question relating to sex which provides only two options, male or female, and this refers to a biological make-up of the person or the sex that is assigned at birth. This effectually means that transgender and intersex persons will not be counted in the upcoming Census,” said Tusini. “The Census solely relies on counting a society that is cisgender and excludes a significant part of South Africa’s population.”

“Furthermore, history has taught us that the data captured from the responses to the question on sex is often used to make conclusions about gender in ways that completely exclude transgender and non-binary persons,” added Tusini. “For example, using this data to tell us about the number of cisgender women and cisgender men residing in South Africa and their employment status.”

The current questionnaire also does not include questions relating to sexual orientation and will therefore, not yield any data relating to lesbian, gay and bisexual people in South Africa. This is contrary to South Africa’s Constitution, which recognizes South Africans by their diverse sexual orientations.

“By StatsSA’s own admission, the current structure of the Census 2022 does not actively enumerate LGBTQIA+ persons. This effectively renders LGBTQIA+ persons invisible and is not in line with the South African Constitution which enshrines the rights to equality and self-determination,” said Tusini. “This urges a greater conversation around legal gender recognition in this country, where it permeates and how it’s understood and then accepted across government departments.”

Iranti Executive Director Jabu Pereira said StatsSA was encouraging the

state to erase the existence of the LGBTQ community, “We regard this Census as unconstitutional because its very design is premised on exclusion and if a census excludes a significant population such as the LGBTQIA+ community, then by its very nature it encourages the state to erase our very existence,” said Pereira.

Bruce Walker of Pretoria LGBTQIA+ Gay Pride concurred with Pereira, saying the omission of the LGBTQ community in the ongoing Census was a move aimed at “erasing their existence.” Walker said their organization has already launched campaigns against the count.

“Considering the news of the exclusion of the LGBTQIA+ identities in the Census we felt it necessary to voice our outrage on this. We feel this is a direct attack on the community,” said Walker.

“There are a few points that we feel should be addressed before this Census is held,” added Walker. “Why are there only two options relating to sex? Male or female. Why is there no intersex or transgender here? Why are people who do not identify with either excluded? Why are there no questions about sexual orientation? This is a missed opportunity for the government to better understand the LGBTQIA+ community.”

Pretoria LGBTQIA+ Gay Pride’s directed the following questions to StatsSA: – Why have you excluded a large portion of South Africa in this Census?

Do you feel that the LGBTQIA+ community is not part of the population?

– If you think the LGBTQIA+ is not part of the community then why should we participate in the Census? Is this not against our constitutional rights?

Why did you not engage with LGBTQIA+ organizations when compiling the questions? Is this not the first step to excluding the LGBTQIA+ rights in the constitution? Is the government now going to stop LGBTQIA+ rights in the workplace?

– Will the LGBTQIA+ community rights that we have fought for now be revoked? Will gay marriage now be revoked? What would the people say if you had only black or white under race?

– We as a Pride organization are outraged at this and we are extremely disappointed at the silence from political parties. We are putting out petitions out in the community and online. Why must we wait 10 years for the next Census? If we do not get a satisfactory response from Census 22 and the government then we will be asking our community not to participate in this Census at all. After all they do not think we are part of the population.

“An attack on one party of the LGBTQIA+ community is an attack on the whole community,” said Walker.

DANIEL ITAI

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Regarding the article “LGBTQ groups stop short of criticizing Sinema for obstructing filibuster reform” in the Jan. 28 Blade, there is no excuse for any senator to not support changing the Senate rules to pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Letting the filibuster block these bills drives the stake of death into the heart of our democracy because the right of millions of our fellow citizens to vote has been taken away by 19 states passing voter suppression laws. Because of the filibuster, nothing is being done about it.

According to the article, Sen. Sinema’s reasoning was that, “When one party need only negotiate with itself, policy will inextricably be pushed from the middle towards the extremes.” In this case, this reasoning is faulty. Protecting the right to vote is hardly extreme.

The freedom to vote is the core of our democracy.

Is it possible that perhaps Sinema opposed removing the filibuster for voting rights because, if the Democrats do remove it, when they are once again in the minority in the Senate, the Republicans might remove the filibuster for their own legislation? Well, without removing the filibuster and supporting voting rights, the Democrats may well be in the minority anyway because millions of people will not be able to vote and because of Republican gerrymandering, which would also be addressed by passing the voting rights bills. So, no, fear of Republicans doing the same is also not a reason.

The strategist mentioned in the article also has it wrong. He states that the filibuster “ensures that minority perspectives cannot be trampled” by the majority. This is not true.

With the present-day filibuster, the minority in the Senate does not even need to express its perspective. There is no debate. And, in this case, the filibuster is itself trampling minority perspectives because millions of minority citizens in our country cannot express their perspectives because they will not be allowed to vote this November since the filibuster is preventing corrective legislation to be passed by the Senate. Their perspectives have already been trampled, twice! Once by the state laws and again by the filibuster in the Senate.

Furthermore, protecting their right to vote is hardly “prioritiz[ing] hyper partisanship over persuasion.” Have the Senate Republicans been persuaded to do what is right for our democracy? No. They voted against the voting rights bills, are not speaking out against the voter suppression laws, and their Senate leader has even said that there is no voter suppression. However, I will allow that one party could refuse to use persuasion and remove the filibuster for partisanship reasons. In fact, it has already been done. Republicans removed the filibuster for judicial nominations so that they could pack the courts with their ideological partners, who happen to not rule in favor of people’s civil rights.

Merrick Garland, nominated by a Democrat, did not even get a vote, simple majority or 60 votes required. However, when three vacancies for the Supreme Court came up when a Republican was president and nominated replacements, the Senate Republicans could not have had a higher priority than to fill those seats and use the simple-majority rule that they made to get them through the nomination process and onto the court in due haste.

However, if the Democrats remove the filibuster, it would not be for reasons of partisanship over persuasion. What is going on is not some theoretical or philosophical debate that will eventually ebb with no consequences nor is it a matter of one party trying to get its way for its own political purposes. What is going on is 19 states have taken away people’s right to vote. This strikes at the core of our democracy. Voting is a right due all U.S. citizens regardless of political preference. The need for action is urgent, and Senate Democrats must remove the filibuster and pass the voting rights bills now to preserve and protect our democracy and ensure free and fair elections as early as this coming November.

Even though the article focuses on Sinema, she is not the only senator who has blocked the protection of millions of people’s right to vote. There is also Joe Manchin and the entire Republican caucus. Although it is highly unlikely that 10 Republicans will have an awakening of conscience and do the right thing and finally vote for the bills, Sens. Sinema and Manchin can still make it possible to reverse the current assault on voting rights by changing their minds and supporting the filibuster change. If they do this, they could literally save our democracy.

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PETER ROSENSTEIN

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

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin — a lesson for Democrats well run campai n ives wa to far-right reality

lenn oun in s campai n election and actions in his first wee s in office hold lessons Democrats must learn if they are to win in 2022.

Democrats must recognize Youngkin’s great campaign and how he walked the tightrope between being a total Trumper and a new face, a more moderate Republican. But also see the whole picture. The fact only one Democrat in 40 years won the Virginia governorship when a Democrat was in the White House. Then there was President Biden’s low approval ratin s on ress s inabilit to act and finall c uliffe s terrible campai n espite all that c uliffe lost b onl votes out of nearl cast ost observers believe if he hadn’t made that mistake in the debate suggesting parents shouldn’t have a say in their children’s education, he would have won.

SERVING THE LGBT COMMUNITY FOR ALMOST 20 YEARS. NOW IN DC, MD & VA! oters stuc with the same part for all three statewide offices t ov insome ears and ttorne eneral ason i ares won their races b onl sli htl lower mar ins than 827 Woodside Parkway • Silver Spring, MD 20910 Youngkin. It was clear from exit polling independent voters made the difference. CNN rep: 240.863.2441 • f: 240.491.9551 ported “Republican and Democratic voters overwhelmingly supported their parties’ candidates in the ubernatorial race between emocrat err c uliffe and epublican lenn jfairfax@jenniferfairfax.com • www.jenniferfairfax Youngkin, according to the results of CNN’s Virginia exit poll, with independents breaking in favor of oun in Now voters are realizing all three Republicans are more right wing than the campaign Youngkin ran indicated. Whether it is the anti-mask mandate in schools Youngkin is trying to push through with an Executive Order or taking Virginia out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Compact. With regard to the compact he told a business group “he will use executive action to pull Virginia out of a regional greenhouse gas compact, a plan that Democrats said would cost the state hundreds of millions a ear in oodin and ener assistance fundin he t pical residential customer would save 4 a month on electric bills or $52.44 per year, if Virginia pulled out.” Youngkin, like other Republicans, doesn’t think efforts to fi ht climate chan e are worth it hen instead of a ir inia attorne eneral who supports oe v ade there is i ares who said ir inia would no lon er be part of a friend of the court brief before the upreme ourt a ainst ississippi s restrictive ban on abortion after wee s nstead ur es upreme ourt to overturn oe hen ears when as ed about withholdin funds from school districts that follow Virginia law but not the governor’s executive orders said, “Well, you know, there are certain combinations of money that we send to the state, to the local school boards and he can withhold some of that, and he could possibly, if the law allows, even give the parents the ability to decide what schools their children should attend.”

Finally the governor’s most recent move, announcing a state email address targeted at teachers urging parents to report “any instances where they feel that their fundamental + Largest LGBT owned title company rights are being violated, where their children are not being respected, where there are inherentl divisive practices in their schools ome have accuratel called it a i rother + Billions of dollars in transactions closed annually snitch line. + 7 in house attorneys A D V E R T I S Ihese N G statements P R O O F and actions have iven voters a lot to thin about an are clearl ISSUE+DATE: 171208 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: Residential and commercial transactions disappointed. They fell for the smiling Youngkin without knowing the apparent hypocrite who sent his children to private schools in ational athedral and t lbans both with AD FORand COPY AND must be settlements submitted within 24 hours of the date of + InREVIEW home inDESIGN offiACCURACY. ce refiRevisions nance proof. Proof will be considered final and will be submitted for publication if revision is not submitted within 24 hours of mandator mas policies ccordin to a Post columnist mon the other thin s ational 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 responsible content design of your ad. Advertiser is + Licensed inwashington DC,blade) DE,is notMD, NJ,for theVA &and/or WV Cathedral has done: made time in the school schedule for ‘critical conversations around 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 IONS any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any topics of race, anti-racism, social justice, and inclusion;’ added courses such as ‘Black Lives copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair GO REVISIONS competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation of anti-discrimination law or regulation, in Literature’ and ‘Courageous Dialogues.’ Included in the school’s summer reading list or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the ADVERTISER SIGNATURE NS washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all By signing this proof you are agreeing to your contract obligations with the liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred s such asto placement, obin i n elo s hite ra ilit h t s o ard for hite People o al washington blade newspaper. Thisboo includes but is not limited by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations payment and insertion schedule. and warranties. bout acism t lbans has underta en similar anti racism initiatives mon the boo s promoted on the school s website are hite ra ilit ritical ace heor n ntroduction enr ouis ates r s ton the oad econstruction hite upremac and the ise of im row and bram endi s tamped from the e innin he efinitive istor of acist deas in merica Every Democrat running in 2022 must make sure to fully explain to voters who they are and who the Republican candidate in their District is. They must compel Republicans to make clear their positions on these and a host of other issues before the voting begins.

1 8 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • FEBRUARY 11 , 2 0 2 2 • V I E WP O I NT

DAVE WALTER

is a Washington-based writer and editor whose previous journalism experience includes stints at the Washington Blade and The Advocate.

Wikipedia’s sanitized Winsome Sears article How volunteer editors have kept her homophobia out of view

Winsome Sears, a Black conservative Republican, was sworn in as Virginia’s new lieutenant governor in January. Her sparsely reported anti-gay history was not mentioned in the Wikipedia article about her. I decided to change that.

Anyone can write and edit Wikipedia articles. After some false starts, I successfully updated the Sears article to include the following revision: In a 2004 op-ed piece in the Daily Press, Sears wrote that she “emphatically” supported a constitutional amendment “preserving the institution of marriage to be between a man and a woman.” She added, “I also believe our society has gone immeasurably beyond almost all standards in accommodating the homosexual community [over] the last couple of decades.”

During a 2004 political debate, she criticized comparisons of the gay civil rights movement to the Black civil rights movement, saying, “I and people who look like me can’t believe our movement is being hijacked.”

The Human Rights Campaign has accused Sears of running political campaigns based on “her staunch opposition to LGBTQ rights.” In 2021, she appeared in a campaign ad with E. W. Jackson, a controversial pastor who has called homosexuality “a work of the devil.”

Nineteen minutes later, the entry was gone, the article having been “reverted” to its previous state by one of Wikipedia’s 120,000 volunteer editors. Thus began my illuminating journey through the convoluted editorial innards of Wikipedia.

The reason for the reversion was WP:UNDUE, shorthand for “Due and undue weight,” one of more than 200 Wikipedia guidelines and policies. The guideline contains a description of what’s considered the appropriate weight to give content in an article.

I condensed my revision to a single paragraph. The editor reverted it.

In the article’s “talk” section, I was directed to WP:STRUCTURE, describing supposed structural issues with my edit. “This article would benefit from a neutrally-written ‘Political positions’ section,” wrote the same editor, snidely adding, “I do not suggest that you attempt to create one.”

The editor called me a WP:SPA, a single-purpose account “limited to one very narrow area or set of articles.” So I added more viewpoints: conservatives happy about Sears, progressives not so keen on her, criticism of her rifle-toting during the campaign, balanced by her defense of guns and the Second Amendment, and some back and forth on racial politics.

Not only was the new revision reverted, I was also banished for a week for “edit warring” (WP:WAR). “While you are blocked, you might want to read WP:BRD,” advised an administrator.

The “BOLD, revert, discuss cycle” is a method of seeking consensus, starting with, “Be bold, and make what you currently believe to be the optimal changes based on your best effort.” I think I did that.

Next, “Wait until someone reverts your edit. You have now discovered your first VIP [Very Interested Person].” Check.

“Discuss the changes you would like to make with this VIP, perhaps using other forms of Wikipedia dispute resolution as needed, and reach agreement. Apply your agreement. When reverts have stopped, you are done.” Sounds reasonable – in theory.

I added a “Seeking consensus” section to the talk page, prompting a second editor to accuse me of WP:COI (conflict of interest), WP:TIMESINK (“tendentious editing”) and “Failure or refusal to ‘get the point,’” a form of “disruptive editing” in which editors “perpetuate disputes by sticking to an allegation or viewpoint long after the consensus of the community has decided that moving on to other topics would be more productive.” One other editor’s opposition constituted the “consensus of the community”? Oy. Following more feedback, I trimmed the revision to two sentences, which were rejected in favor of the sole wording suggestion I received, the advice to adopt this super-lean entry: “Sears’ candidacy was supported by Christian Broadcasting Network’s 700 Club and The Washington Times, while opposed by the Human Rights Campaign.”

Believing that sentence to be absurdly incomplete, I entered a “request for comment” (WP:RFC), through which the larger Wikipedia community weighs in. None of the five additional editors who responded sided with me, so that was the end of the process; the Winsome Sears article remained untouched.

My Wikipedia experience ended with the Sears article still including nothing about her views on LGBTQ rights, but the administrator who had banned me for a week offered this: “If there is one thing that is absolutely certain, it is that consensus changes. It is fluid. Because we have such strong policies on the biographies of living persons (WP:BLP) you will find that, on average, we err on the side of being conservative when it comes to including material that is contentious.”

So, potentially, you could have better luck than I did in revising the Winsome Sears article.

Why not give it a shot? Anyone can edit Wikipedia.

V I E WP O I NT • F E B R UA RY 1 1 , 2 0 2 2 • WA S H I N GTO N B L A D E.CO M • 1 9

Most Eligible LGBTQ Singles 2022

Our annual roundup just in time for Valentine’s Day FROM STAFF REPORTS

D.C. is home to tens of thousands of busy professionals working hard by day and searching for love by night. Each year, we look to highlight some of our city’s most interesting singles just in time for a Valentine’s Day date.

Kristen Beckman, 29, OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST

How do you identify? Lesbian What are you looking for in a mate? Someone who challenges me, holds me accountable, a good communicator, kind and adventurous.

Biggest turn off? Superficial, rudeness, doesn’t try to see things from other perspectives.

Biggest turn on? Open(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) mindedness, spontaneous, cares about their health.

Hobbies: I play ice hockey for the Chesapeake Bay Lightning — come watch a game!

I love hiking, camping, and just getting back into mountain biking.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? it’s definitely interesting out here. At times it seems harder to connect due to more online dating. It seems harder to meet people in person due to people staying in more.

Pets/kids/neither? I have two cats and a dog and definitely open to more!

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Hmm, I want to say yes, but depending on the differences, it could be tough to look past.

Celebrity crush: Missy Peregrym One obscure fact about yourself: I used to play football in the LFL, it was an interesting time.

Jarrod Brodsky, 31, HEALTHCARE LAWYER

How do you identify? Gay man What are you looking for in a mate? Someone who is grounded, outgoing, authentic, comfortable expressing emotions, and who doesn’t take himself too seriously.

Biggest turn off? Apathy.

Biggest turn on? Silliness and spontaneity.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) Hobbies: Swimming, karaoke, reading, meditation, and working out.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? I prefer making in-person connections, and COVID has definitely made that more difficult. At the same time, it has pushed me to be more outgoing when I do have opportunities for live interactions.

Pets/kids/neither? Dad to a dog and two cats.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Yes, I like being around people who challenge my way of thinking.

Celebrity crush: Jake Gyllenhaal One obscure fact about yourself: I was a springboard diver through college.

Katie Harrington, 35,

BUSINESS OWNER/HAIRSTYLIST How do you identify? Queer What are you looking for in a mate? Someone who will rap in the car with me while on our way to have crabs and beer.

Someone who is also down to stay in and cook a meal together while watching our favorite show. My ride or die.

Biggest turn off? Bad tippers (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) and not putting your shopping cart back.

Biggest turn on? Confidence! Someone who loves themselves and treats others with kindness and compassion. Butch/top energy!

Hobbies: Spending time with my niece Edith, hanging out with my friends, Peloton, watching thrillers and documentaries, dancing to ‘90s/2000s rap and R&B. How has COVID impacted your dating life? COVID has made dating pretty nonexistent but that’s OK. I have spent the past two years opening my own business and really working on myself. I have been able to focus on becoming the best version of me so that when the world does slowly open up, I’ll be ready!

Pets/kids/neither? My dog Hari is my best friend. He is a senior Pekingese that I rescued right before the pandemic. He has been with me through quarantine, breakups, and is the sweetest guy. I honestly feel like we were meant to find each other.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? No. Celebrity crush: Lily Rose (country singer), Sarah Paulson, Lena Waithe One obscure fact about yourself: I have a B.A. in Dance from Point Park University.

Kareem ‘Mr.Bake’ Queeman, 35, ENTREPRENEUR & TV PERSONALITY

How do you identify? Gay What are you looking for in a mate? I appreciate a person with a sense of humor, with an understanding heart and mind and a drive to be a better version of themselves.

Biggest turn off? Someone (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) who is unappreciative and lacks commitment and drive.

Hobbies: You can find me baking/cooking, reading, traveling — anything dealing with the arts.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? I actually haven’t really been dating in COVID. Chatting with people but no real connections. During COVID I’ve been working on myself.

Pets/kids/neither? I don’t have any, but open to the conversation of them.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? It depends — I’ll say this: I’m open to the conversation.

Celebrity crush: Jeremy Pope, Anthony Mackie, Adam Levine One obscure fact about yourself: I love getting cards. And been collecting everyone I’ve received since 1994.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 22 2 0 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • FEBRUARY 11 , 2 0 2 2

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Bryan Frank, 46,

Cara Eser, 32,

How do you identify? Gay What are you looking for in a mate? Someone who likes to be active and likes to be challenged.

Triathlete?

Hiker?

Awesome!

Kickball? Flag Football? Yoga?

That’s cool too! A guy who: needs to laugh, sometimes even at (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) themselves; is kind to themselves and others; can be equally happy staying in and binge watching the “Mandalorian” with a bottle of tempranillo or grabbing tacos from a food truck before catching “Rent” at the Signature Theatre; and will hold my hand as we do these things.

Biggest turn off? Taking yourself too seriously. Disrespecting others. A bad kisser.

Biggest turn on? Someone who has the confidence and desire to push their limits.

A guy comfortable belting out show tunes in the car at the top of their lungs. And to be honest: great abs will always catch my eye.

Hobbies: I enjoy swimming, biking, and running (some might call that person a triathlete, I might be one). In addition, I really enjoy hiking (like to the top of Old Rag to watch the sunrise), anything that combines my love of cycling, vineyards/breweries, and traveling (think biking through the Provence region of France with stops for wine tasting), or watching a good movie (has anyone seen the new “Dune”?) or a good TV show (have you watched “Young Royals”?).

How has COVID impacted your dating life? As someone who works in the biotech field with COVID daily, in the beginning of the pandemic, thinking about doing anything outside of my “quaran-family,” like dating, was seriously stressful. Now that vaccines and therapeutics are available, I am excited to return to in-person dating.

Pets/kids/neither? All the things. I have two cats (Stitch and Kona). I love dogs. I would love to have kids, if that’s in the cards for me.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Yes, but someone who is anti-vax or anti-science should probably not hit me up.

Celebrity crush: Orlando Bloom for a night in/Paul Rudd for a night out.

One obscure fact about yourself: I am starting to play the piano again. And weirdly, I can still play Beethoven’s Fur Elise from memory 30+ years later.

How do you identify? Trans girl who likes girls What are you looking for in a mate? Someone who can handle my quirks and keep up with my motormouth, likes spontaneity but doesn’t get mad when I need security. Someone who communicates, likes to laugh, and is willing to put air in my tires (Photo courtesy of Caitlyn Willard) because I’m just simply bad at it.

Biggest turn off? TERFs, fatphobia, being rude to people in the service industry.

Biggest turn on? Good teeth that aren’t perfect, wit, and people who can read the room.

Hobbies: Avid cinephile — especially genre film — and coming up with the perfect things to say even if I’m 10 minutes too late.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? What dating life?

Pets/kids/neither? Allergic to dogs and cats, but I love them both and suffer happily.

I don’t have kids, but would like to be a mom one day.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? *Sips tea in silence* Celebrity crush: Recently it’s been Melanie Lynskey from “Yellowjackets,” but ‘90s-era Drew Barrymore will always have my heart.

One obscure fact about yourself: I sat across the aisle from Dennis Rodman once.

SCIENTIST

Craig Dillon, 29,

FOUNDER/CEO OF WESTMINSTER DIGITAL How do you identify? Gay What are you looking for in a mate? Smart, interesting, and funny. Oh, and someone who can help me understand the weird things in this country, like the blender in my sink — still not sure what to do with it.

Biggest turn off? Not being up (Photo courtesy of Craig Dillon) for an adventure.

Biggest turn on? Humour, self deprecation and a touch of sarcasm. Someone who doesn’t take themselves too seriously and enjoys life.

Hobbies: I’m obsessed with movies. I also like going out with friends, photography, dining, and drinking wine.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? Well, I moved to the U.S. during the pandemic, so it has made meeting new people rather difficult. Also, something I realized during isolation is the amount of opportunity and sheer chance that takes place on any given day. So many missed occasions where you could have met a new and interesting person at the office, at a party, or during a random unexpected encounter.

Pets/kids/neither? Children, and each one can have a puppy. But I hate cats, I don’t trust them, they’re always up to something.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? I would prefer to, within reason. I love to debate, and I would enjoy someone who can challenge my ideas, and explore our philosophical and political positions together.

Celebrity crush: Jake Gyllenhaal or Lucas Hedges.

One obscure fact about yourself: I guess that I’m from England. But it’s not very obscure, for some strange reason it’s usually the first thing people notice about me.

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DJ/PRODUCER

Bryan Van Den Oever, 41, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & EVENTS

How do you identify? Gay What are you looking for in a mate? May I write “A big <@<&”?

No. Okay. Seriously, he’s got to be ready to sling around his sense of humor because I love to laugh.

Laughing together is bonding and very important to me. The rest of what I’m looking for is a gay cliché.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) You know, long walks in dark alleys or tall, dark, and with a traumatic back story.

Biggest turn off? Pretentious folx who care only about themselves or their place in the world. I’m a cis white guy. Trust me, we are the worst at being this type of person.

Biggest turn on? A man who has mastered the art of flirting. Bonus points if he directs the flirts toward me.

Hobbies: Typical geek stuff, board games, video games, reading, and anything Marvel. Once upon a time, I did a lot of physical hobbies, and maybe this is the year I go back to some of them.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? Profoundly. Red Bear Brewing Co. opened in March 2019, we had a smashing first year, but COVID-19 hit us and everyone in the service industry HARD! The brewery is my dream, so it’s taken all my attention and focus. As the ongoing pandemic has its ups and downs, I’ve realized it’s time to focus on me and my personal life. So, I dumped anxiety. He just wasn’t doing it for me anymore.

Pets/kids/neither? Bring them on! I love people and animals, so I would like either or both in my life. Preferably with a hubby by my side.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Did you watch the news on Jan. 6, 2021? Republicans are a menace to everyone. No thank you.

Celebrity crush: Date: Michael B. Jordan. Dinner: Rebecca Sugar. Friends: Elmo.

One obscure fact about yourself: Before Red Bear Brewing, I was a certified Nuclear Medicine Technologist, performing diagnostic imaging using radioactive isotopes.

Science is fascinating, and it works! Get vaccinated.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 24

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Adam Clark, 38,

Most Eligible LGBTQ Singles 2022

NGO CONTENT MANAGER How do you identify? Queer What are you looking for in a mate? Someone that aspires to greatness and exudes peace.

Biggest turn off?

Ethnocentrism, sarcasm, apathy.

Biggest turn on? Emotional intelligence, versatility, faith Hobbies: Volunteering, meditation, horseback riding (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) How has COVID impacted your dating life? The pandemic has offered me the space to focus more energy on what I can provide my future mate.

Pets/kids/neither? I feel called to be a father, literally or figuratively.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Of course.

Every challenge is an opportunity for growth.

Celebrity crush: Bilal Baig One obscure fact about yourself: I jumped out of a plane to break my fear of falling.

Consuella Lopez, 48, HAIRSTYLIST/ACTIVIST

How do you identify? Trans woman What are you looking for in a mate? Masculinity Biggest turn off? Cheap Biggest turn on? Height and weight Hobbies: Exercising Pets/kids/neither? Neither Would you date someone (Photo via Instagram) whose political views differ from your own? Yes Celebrity crush: Too many One obscure fact about yourself: I did 19 miles of cardio in one week.

LeAndrea Gilliam, 40, GRANTS MANAGEMENT & HOUSING SPECIALIST

How do you identify? Intersex What are you looking for in a mate? Someone special, honest, stable, secure, caring, and craves adventure and new experiences just as much as I do.

Biggest turn off? Bad breath, a liar, overall poor hygiene and lack of respect for boundaries.

(Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) Biggest turn on? A nice smile, smells good and is a good kisser.

Hobbies: I like dancing to music I can vibe to, traveling, horror movies. I like to improve my life by reading and learning something new every day. I’m spontaneous and love doing whatever makes me happy.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? OMG! COVID has made dating much harder for me and far more laborious than ever before. I’m from the old school, I’m accustomed to meeting potential mates in person to explore my possibilities. For me in person offers more opportunities to find a romantic partner but unfortunately in person socializing is now considered a health risk. This virtual world of dating is truly for the birds.

Pets/kids/neither? No human kids but I have my doggie boo thang son Hermarry!

2 4 • WA SHIN GTO N BLADE.COM • FEBRUARY 11 , 2 0 2 2

He’s 4 a hybrid Pekechon Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? I’ll say this: If I’m dating someone and our political views differ so widely regarding human values and human rights, probably not. I would want to date someone whose values and views on human rights align.

Celebrity crush: LL Cool J One obscure fact about yourself: I love tropical weather and the long, hot summers.

I don’t function well when I’m cold. Matter of fact, my face will literally break out in hives if it’s exposed to cold temps for 15 minutes or more. However, I won’t break out until I get in a warm space. It’s been that way since I can remember.

Heidi Niskanen, 28, ENGINEER

How do you identify? Lesbian What are you looking for in a mate? I am drawn to trustworthy people; individuals with a strong sense of self, authentic approach to life, that offer an empathetic ear to anyone in need of one, have always had my admiration and respect. I hope to find a person that believes in the importance of “tell me (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key) about your day” and being truthful even when it is inconvenient. Our scrapbook hopefully has lots of pictures and stories of bizarre everyday moments, many wonders of the world, and memories to look back to on all the anniversaries.

Biggest turn off? Pretentiousness Biggest turn on? Wittiness Hobbies: I spend a lot of my free time playing various sports or being outdoors.

I volunteer as a crisis counselor and coach. I try really hard to be a good dancer, will never turn down an opportunity to learn a new recipe way above my skill level, and am often hungry for another Jennifer Rubin opinion piece. I dream of visiting a diner in every state, reaching the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, taking a selfie with a wild polar bear and teaching my children how to skate. I hope to visit museums and do more mountain biking this year.

How has COVID impacted your dating life? Raised the bar of when to meet in person. That said, COVID helped me become a better solo date.

Pets/kids/neither? Can’t wait to be a dog mom. Want children in the future.

Would you date someone whose political views differ from your own? Absolutely.

Zero time for conspiracy theories or alternative facts, however.

Celebrity crush: Michelle and Barack Obama One obscure fact about yourself: I have never tried a peanut butter & jelly sandwich.

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F E B R UA RY 1 1 , 2 0 2 2 • WA S H I N GTO N B L A D E.CO M • 2 5

CALENDAR |

By TINASHE CHINGARANDE

Friday, February 11

Friday Tea time and social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults will be at 2 p.m. on Zoom. Feel free to bring your beverage of choice. For the Zoom link or more information, contact Justin (justin@thedccenter.org).

Women in Their Twenties and Thirties will be at 8 p.m. on Zoom. This is a social discussion group for queer women in the Washington, D.C. area and a great way to make new friends and meet other queer women in a fun and friendly setting. For more information, email supportdesk@thedccenter.org.

OUT & ABOUT Blade, DC Fray to host LGBTQ Skate Night

Saturday, February 12 Universal Pride Meeting will be at 1 p.m. on Zoom. This group seeks to support, educate, empower, and create change for People with Disabilities (PWD). For more information, email supportdesk@thedccenter. org or the group’s facilitator andyarias09@gmail.com.

Trans/Queer Brunch will be at 10 a.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar. This event is open to LGBTQ people and allies who want to brunch in a gender-affirming space. For more details, visit Eventbrite.

Sunday, February 13 Mayflower Heated Retractable Rooftop “Day Party” will be at 5 p.m. at The Mayflower Club. This event will feature a heated rooftop and hookah, among other activities. Guests are required to present proof of vaccination to enter the event. Tickets cost $50 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.

Monday, February 14 Center Aging Coffee Drop-In will be at 10 a.m. at the DC Center for the LGBT Community and online on Zoom. LGBT older adults — and friends — are invited to enjoy friendly conversations and to discuss any issues you might be dealing with. For more information, visit the Center Aging’s Facebook or Twitter.

Tuesday, February 15 Bi Roundtable Discussion will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This event is an opportunity for people to gather in order to discuss issues related to bisexuality or as Bi individuals in a private setting. For more information, email supportdesk@thedccenter.org.

DC Area Transmasculine Society (DCATS) Transmasculine and Nonbinary Social Hour will be at 6 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co. This event is for those ages 18 and older. At the event, DCATS will be accepting binder donations and will be able to give out needles to those who are in need. This event is free and more details can be accessed on Eventbrite.

Wednesday, February 16 Job Club will be at 6 p.m. in-person at the DC Center for the LGBT Community and online on Zoom.

The Job Club is a weekly job support program to help job entrants and seekers, including the long-term unemployed, improve self-confidence, motivation, resilience and productivity for effective job searches and networking — allowing participants to move away from being merely “applicants” toward being “candidates.”

For more information, email centercareers@thedccenter.org or visit www.thedccenter.org/careers.

BookMen DC will be at 7:30 p.m. on Zoom. This event is an informal group of men who are interested in gay literature (both fiction and non-fiction). For more information about this month’s book discussion, visit BookMen DC’s website.

Thursday, February 17 The DC Center’s Food Pantry Program will be held all day at the DC Center for the LGBT Community.

To be fair with who is receiving boxes, the program is moving to a lottery system. People will be informed on Wednesday at 5 p.m. if they are picked to receive a produce box. No proof of residency or income is required. For more information, email supportdesk@thedccenter.org or call 202-682-2245.

Poly Group Discussion will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This group is designed to be a forum for people at all different stages to discuss polyamory and other consensual non-monogamous relationships. For more information, email supportdesk@thedccenter.org.

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The Washington Blade is teaming up with social club DC Fray to host “LGBTQ Skate Night” on Friday, Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. at The Wharf.

Guests are invited to skate on ice and celebrate the release of the Washington Blade’s highly anticipated seventh annual “Most Eligible LGBT Singles” issue.

Skate rentals will be offered at half the regular price.

This event is free and more details can be found on Eventbrite.

GMCW celebrates chosen families with concert series The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington D.C. will host a concert series titled “Brand New Day” on Saturday, March 12 at Lincoln Theatre. There will be performances at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The concert will explore stories of loved ones establishing acceptance and love from their chosen families and feature songs from musicals such as Once On This Island, Mulan, and The Wiz. Tickets cost $25 and $65 and can be purchased on GMCW’s website.

Those who need assistance with tickets or have any questions can contact the GMCW Box Office at 202293-1548 or tickets@gmcw.org.

Beyonce vs. Rihanna dance party R² Productions LLC and Union Stage are teaming up to host R² Productions’ inaugural “MEGA Dance Party” on Thursday, Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. at Union Stage at The Wharf.

The event will be a night full of dancing to music by pop stars Beyonce and Rihanna. DJ Just Different will be performing at the event.

General Admission tickets cost $25 and Premier Plus tickets cost $35. For more information about ticket purchases, visit Union Stage’s website.

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New podcast holds a mirror up to queer D.C. Social stratification, middle school bullshit, and secret worlds

By BROCK THOMPSON

Some say life is just high school with money. If that’s the case, podcaster William Keiser might see D.C. gays as that mean clique of junior high girls.

In “Popular,” a podcast debuting this week, Keiser, a Princeton graduate and former resident of Washington, holds up a mirror to our gay city and seeks to explore the “social stratification, middle school bullshit, and the secret world of queer D.C.” The podcast is laid out in a sort of queer trilogy, a three-part deep dive into what makes D.C. gays so exceptional. And as we explore the series, exceptional doesn’t necessarily mean extraordinary.

Part one, “Gay Heaven,” explores our gay geography — places still around, places long gone, and what makes one popular in those spaces. Part two, “It’s Not Healthy to Mask,” takes on conformity in our queer community, while part three, “Let the Bitch Eat Her Food,” deals with the relationship between popularity and sex. All created in cooperation with D.C.’s haus of bambi, Robert Woofter’s local arts organization “dedicated to the complexity of queer identities” as typically seen through dance and music videos but now including podcasts.

The first podcast opens up in that summer of the second vaccination shot — 2021, when it all seemed possible again, where we felt as if we’d been sitting on a spring for months. Before breakthrough cases and long before omicron. The city was alive, Keiser called it ‘intense,’ and Logan Circle was the place to be and be seen. And that is where Keiser first lays eyes on the “Vida Gays.” A group, as he describes, named after the high-end chain of local gyms, and the boys themselves showing off pristine bodies and look-alike attire. (And in full disclosure, I’m gay. I go to Vida, but I don’t think I’d call myself a “Vida Gay”). Keiser takes a sort of Jane Goodall observational look at their habits and behaviors and attempts to place a definition on exactly what it means to be popular. Asked if he had an axe to grind with gay D.C., Keiser paused and said, “I think so.” Taking a breath, he added, “but I have an axe to grind with human nature.” In this first episode you’ll hear snippets from “I Love It When Hot Guys Cry,” a song by Link Lauren.

Asking Keiser what exactly is it about middle school that gays can’t seem to get over, Keiser points to that seminal work in the gay canon, Alan Downs’ “The Velvet Rage.” In it, Downs describes the idea of shame as the main catalyst in the successes that gay men, especially urban gay men, so often seek — socially, professionally, monetarily. Keiser draws upon that in his look at the meanness, envy, and a certain Schadenfreude that he saw as all too common in our gay world. “We can be brutal to each other,” he told me.

“The first step is asking why?”

As a trained historian, one part of the series I found particularly interesting is a look at our gay spaces — the social geography we all weave through in being part of the District’s queer community. Stead Park, Logan Circle, Number 9, Trade, Pitchers, maybe even the P Street Whole Foods. What makes these places gay and what they mean to us are questions worth asking. Still many of these spaces are gone. The storied Town closed in 2018,

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lost to development. The year 2006 saw the razing of queer spaces in Southeast to make way for a new baseball stadium.

But it’s not just a cataloging of our queer spaces. Keiser examines how we negotiate them, how we move through them.

For him, again, it’s all taken back to the pitfalls of WILLIAM KEISER’s new podcast asks: Is there an unspoken hierarchy in the school cafthe LGBTQ community, and, if so, who gets to be on top? eteria. And our geography can be extraordinary. This city is the most educated, the most physically fit, and the queerest.

Our city sits at around 10 percent for its gay populace. All of that coming together can make for a peculiar space.

And do you remember driving into the city for the first time? Moving here with all the excitement? The wonder? The feeling that this is it; this is what I’ve been waiting for all this time. What happens between that moment and now, and how we define ourselves as queer Washingtonians — the gym membership, a kickball team — is what this podcast will look at.

As for what he hopes listeners will take away from the series, Keiser wants it to start a “debate about how to bring consent and anonymous intra LGBT violence out of the shadows in a responsible way.” It’s difficult to say what exactly audiences will take away from it. Some might see it as just a fun and gossipy take on our queer lives on our little patch of 61 square miles. Others might see it as a serious critique of just how and why we behave the way we do. Will there be some shame? Maybe. But isn’t that the job of the artist?

If anything, there will certainly be a debate. Find “Popular” wherever you get your podcasts.

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‘And Just Like That,’ season one is wrapped

Despite imperfections, an entertaining blend of story and representation

By KATHI WOLFE (Note: This article contains spoilers.)

In Billy Wilder’s 1959 masterpiece “Some Like It Hot,” Osgood Fielding III proposes marriage to Daphne (Jack Lemmon). “Well, nobody’s perfect,” Osgood says after Daphne reveals that he’s Jerry, a man.

Nothing is ever perfect.

Though I can’t help but wonder (as Carrie Bradshaw would say) how perfect “And Just Like That,” the “Sex and the City” revival would have been if only Wilder had been at the helm.

“And Just Like That,” the HBO Max series, recently released its first season finale.

As of this writing, it’s not known if the show will have a second season. Variety has reported that Michael Patrick King, the series’ executive producer, writer, and director, and Sarah Jessica Parker, who stars in the show as Carrie Bradshaw, are interested in continuing the series. “Definitely, yeah,” Parker told Variety, “there feels like there’s momentum.”

“Sex and the City” fans looked forward to the revival with a mixture of anticipation and dread.

We missed writer and shoe-aficionado Bradshaw (Parker); lawyer Miranda Hobbes, (Cynthia Nixon); art dealer and docent Charlotte York-Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis); and public relations pro and force of nature Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall).

We had fond memories of their husbands and boyfriends (especially, Carrie’s Mr. Big, Charlotte’s Harry, Miranda’s Steve and Samantha’s Smith).

Every self-respecting “Sex and the City” fan fondly remembers how much Charlotte and Miranda enjoyed the vibrator affectionately named “the Rabbit” and how Samantha

loathed “funky spunk” and fantasized about “Father Fuck.”

Yet, we worried: How would these fab characters fare 17 years after the 2004 “Sex and the City” series finale? After all, “Sex and the City” premiered more than two decades ago.

When I reviewed “And Just Like That” for the Blade after it was released in December, only two episodes of the show had streamed. “The reboot has its awkward, clunky, annoying moments, but shows glimmers of tenderness, wit, and promise,” I wrote then.

“Sex and the City” and the two movies made of the series (the first mediocre, the second unspeakably bad) have been rightly criticized for being too white, too hetero, bi-phobic and transphobic. (Think of Samantha’s relationship with a stereotypically depicted Latina lesbian or when Carrie ditches a date because he’s bisexual.)

The creators of “And Just Like That” took this criticism to heart. There are people of color, including the talented Samantha Irby and Keli Goff, in the show’s writers’ room.

“And Just Like That” has characters who are people of color, LGBTQ+ as well as POC and queer.

As I watched the series’ first two episodes, I, thought the show had an interesting, provocative premise, but, at times, wondered if “And Just Like That” should have been created.

For starters, because Cattrall didn’t want to be in it, Samantha is absent from the series. The show’s other characters, new and old, are wonderful. Yet, “Sex and the City” without Samantha is like the solar system minus one of its planets. No new planet could replace it.

Then, at the end of the first episode, Big, in his 50s dies from a heart attack after a workout on his Peloton bike.

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

The “Sex and the City” women, now in their 50s, talk about aging endlessly. They seem bewildered by everything from podcasts to ebooks.

Yet, the sterling performances of the actors, particularly, Sara Ramirez as Che Diaz, the “queer, nonbinary, Mexican-Irish diva,” a podcaster, Miranda’s love interest and Carrie’s boss, compelled me to watch the series to its end.

What I discovered was a rarity for TV: 50-something women grieving, lusting, loving, laughing and changing (everything from their professions to their sexuality and gender identities). The show is a feast for party-animals – featuring everything from a “they mitzvah” with a trans rabbi to a surprise wedding to a Diwali celebration.

“And Just Like That,” despite its imperfections, is an entertaining blend of story and representation.

The Internet loves to hate-watch and, “And Just Like That” has had its share of hate-bingers. But, though the series had its awkward, heavy-handed moments, I didn’t clutch my Manolo Blahniks or Carrie necklace. I wasn’t among the haters.

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Animated docs tell gay stories a century apart ‘Coded,’ ‘Flee’ essential viewing for any queer film fan

By JOHN PAUL KING

At first thought, the idea of using animation to make a documentary film seems fundamentally at odds with what a documentary film is supposed to be. When the entire purpose of a movie is to offer a truthful, non-fictional presentation of a real-life situation or story, using an inherently artificial tactic like animation feels somehow less than honest. What happens, though, when the information that filmmaker wants to deliver is 100 percent truthful, yet no visual record or documentation of it is possible?

That’s when it’s time to get creative, and as two of 2021’s best documentaries prove, “creative” is not synonymous with “dishonest.”

In “Coded: The Hidden Love of J.C. Leyendecker,” director Ryan White relies predominantly on animation in telling the long-obscured life story of its subject – one of the most prominent artists of his time, whose early 20th century commercial illustrations helped to define modern advertising art but whose life and legacy have long been all but forgotten. Forgotten, that is, except within the gay community, where the obvious homoerotic undertones of his impossibly idealized male figures and the settings in which he placed them shone like a beacon signal that reminded them they were not alone.

In fact, Leyendecker’s heyday was during a time known as the “Pansy Craze,” in which the giddy progressive atmosphere of the “roaring 20s” allowed for a brief surge in LGBTQ acceptance and visibility; nevertheless, he remained closeted for life, to all but his inner circle (and of course his long-term partner, who was also his

An animated Amin kisses his fiancé Kasper in ‘Flee.’

model and muse), even going so far as to destroy most of the letters and drawings that would have “outed” him after his death.

With virtually no visual material to work with – save for a few grainy photos and Leyendecker’s copious catalogue of illustrations – White tells much of the story via animation inspired by the artist’s visual style, accompanied by voiceovers from Neil Patrick Harris and interspersed with “talking head” style remarks from cultural historians and others with insight on his legacy. It’s a perfect match to the material, for obvious reasons, but it also gives emotional resonance to what might otherwise be a mere recitation of dry biographical facts. Tellingly, Leyendecker remains a distant, enigmatic figure even as his story draws our empathy – a solemn reminder of the self-erasure he felt compelled to perform on his own life.

Danish filmmaker Jonas Poher Rasmussen undertakes a more ambitious challenge with the feature-length “Flee,” which must chronicle an Afghan teenager’s escape from his homeland without any real-life footage. It’s the story of Rasmussen’s high school friend Amin, now a successful adult pursuing a postdoctoral de-

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gree, who has always kept secret the full story of his ordeal for the protection both of those who helped him find refuge in the West and of family members still in peril. On the brink of marriage to his boyfriend Kasper – who knows only a set of false facts concocted to obscure the risky details of his past – he feels the need to share the truth of his traumatic experience and confides it to Rasmussen in recorded conversations.

Those interviews form the bulk of “Flee,” unfolding a grim but inspirational take that begins with happy memories of Amin’s childhood (such as his fondness for wearing his sister’s dress) before launching into the nightmare history that has cast a shadow over his life ever since: how his father was persecuted and finally taken away by the mujahedeen, who had seized control after the collapse of the Soviet-backed Afghan government; how his remaining family, with the help of an older brother living in Moscow, enlisted the expensive aid of human traffickers to be smuggled out of an increasingly dangerous Kabul, only to suffer one heartbreaking setback after another; how he was finally able to make it to safety in Denmark only by leaving his mother and siblings behind and vowing to respect the admonitions of the traffickers never to veer from the cover story they made him learn by heart.

There are surprising moments of lightness, too, many of which involve Amin’s coming of age into his queer identity (no spoilers, but that part of the tale is a refreshing departure from expectation in stories such as this), which pull us back from the brink of despair; and interspersed throughout are scenes of the present (also animated) in which he opens up about his relationship with Kasper and his desire to fully connect – because despite having built a successful life for himself and even being in furtive and occasional contact with some members of his long-lost family, he still finds himself feeling like a fugitive, unsafe and alone.

That’s the truth at the heart of Rasmussen’s film, driven home

by Amin’s recorded observation that “When you flee as a child, you are constantly on guard – you’re afraid to trust anyone, even your partner, even your best friend.” It’s the point of access to Amin’s harrowing story for many of us who have never endured the hardships he was forced to face as a refugee but can nevertheless, through that simple but hard-won insight, feel authentic solidarity with him. In allowing his friend to finally share the emotional burden of his experiences, and us to share in it, Rasmussen offers the poetic suggestion that trauma can make refugees of us all.

For that to be accomplished, the filmmaker needs to get us deeply invested, and the choice to use animation – instead of simply showing us Amin as he tells the story – enables him to use the full visual vocabulary of cinema to do it. Indeed, the stylized presentation adds just enough distance to evoke a deeper response than might be sparked by a direct, live-action recreation of events; real-life people and events are given a larger-than-life quality by seeing them rendered artistically, connecting them to the realm of our psyche which deals in archetypes and myth and giving them a wider significance to us than the mere intellectual assimilation of facts. It’s a story that tugs at our heart, and while for most documentaries that might be a liability, in this case it makes the truth Rasmussen means to reveal shine through even more.

To a lesser degree, perhaps, the same can be said of “Coded,” which in many ways serves as a perfect companion piece for “Flee.” It’s the story of a man at the top of his highly visible profession who hides in plain sight for a lifetime, leaving only his work and a few scraps of personal papers behind to hint at the vast landscape of his private self; seen that way, it’s impossible not to recognize his parallels with Amin, who hopes finally to be free of a life lived looking over his shoulder.

Both “Coded” and “Flee” are short-listed Oscar contenders, perhaps representing this year’s best chance at LGBTQ visibility among the winners – “Flee” is a potential nominee in three categories, including International Feature. That’s reason enough to see both – but as testaments to the experience of two remarkable gay men 100 years apart, they should be considered essential viewing for any queer film fan.

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Andrew Rannells making D.C. debut at Kennedy Center Celebrating 50 years of Broadway shows in Washington

By PATRICK FOLLIARD

to people starting out it seems like forever. And then add seven years before that and it’s unimaginable.

For two nights only, a host of big-name talent is converging on the Potomac to celebrate great musicals with “50 Years of Broadway at the Kennedy Center.”

A standout in the concert’s exciting lineup (which includes Tony Award-winner James Monroe Iglehart, Norm Lewis, La Chanze, Vanessa Williams, etc.) is out musical theater star Andrew Rannells. Best known for his memorable Tony Award-nominated turn as goody-two-shoes Elder Price in “The Book of Mormon” and as gay best friend Elijah on HBO’s “Girls,” Rannells also played in Broadway productions of “Hairspray,” “Jersey Boys,” “Falsettos,” “Boys in the Band,” and “Hamilton” (as a temporary replacement).

Despite a busy career that’s taken him all over, this weekend’s gig marks Rannells’ first time singing on a Washington stage. He has, however, been to town to hawk his book “Too Much Is Not Enough,” a terrific memoir featuring stories about growing up in Omaha, Neb., his move to Manhattan in 1997, really bad highlights, and sometimes humiliating work experiences.

Via phone from New York, Rannells, 43, recently took time from re-learning lyrics to talk about Broadway and other stuff.

WASHINGTON BLADE: For many Washingtonians, their introduction to Broadway is a national tour of a hit show at the Kennedy Center.

ANDREW RANNELLS: For me, besides watching the Tonys on TV, it was the Orpheum in Omaha — mostly the second national tour of a show, but always very exciting.

When I was last home in Omaha for Christmas, I was going through old Playbills that I’d collected, as every good gay boy does, and names popped up – Patrick Wilson in “Carousel,” Sutton Foster who passed through town with a production of “Grease.”

BLADE: Playing Elder Price in “Book of Mormon” must have been an especially heady time for you.

RANNELLS: Oh, it was. And a busy two years too. We went from workshopping to Broadway to the Tony Awards in a short time. And I was also doing TV: Lena Dunham saw the show opening night and the following week she asked me to do “Girls.” A few weeks later I was on set doing the scene where I tell Lena’s character that her father is gay. I’d never spoken lines on camera before.

BLADE: Amazing. Any truth to the reboot rumors?

RANNELLS: Actually, Lena was misquoted on that. She said there won’t be a reboot until the characters had something new to say. To me, I think the show hasn’t been off the air long enough to go back.

ANDREW RANNELLS is making his D.C. debut.

(Screenshot via YouTube)

‘50 Years of Broadway at the Kennedy Center’ Feb. 11 and 12 Kennedy Center Opera House $59-$249 | Kennedy-center.org

BLADE: Was Broadway always the focus?

RANNELLS: I thought my career would start when I was on Broadway. When in fact, there have been lot of jobs before and in between, and each took me closer to where I wanted to be. I don’t think I would have gotten “Hairspray” or “Mormon” if I hadn’t done all that work and met all those people.

When doing “Falsettos,” we had a dedicated group of younger fans who’d come to the stage door and they’d ask if there was a short cut to big success. There isn’t. I worked 12 years before starring in “Mormon.” As an older person looking back five years is no big deal but

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BLADE: What will we see you doing at the Kennedy Center?

RANNELLS: Some really fun stuff with talented friends: Stephanie Block and I will be singing “Move On” from “Sunday in the Park with George.” Christopher Jackson, who I briefly did “Hamilton” with on Broadway, and I are doing “You’re Nothing Without Me” from “City of Angels.”

And Betsy Wolfe and I are singing “Suddenly Seymour” from “Little Shop of Horrors.”

It’s been a minute since I’ve performed in a theater this size, so I’m a little nervous. I’ll probably be clutching Stephanie and make Chris Jackson hold me back stage until we’re done.

BLADE: And what’s up next for Andrew Rannells?

RANNELLS: A Hulu limited series about the Chippendales murders, a crazy and sad story based on the podcast “Welcome to Your Fantasy.”

Murray Bartlett from “White Lotus” is playing Nick DeNoya the producer/choreographer who was murdered. I play his lovah.

And I’m writing a second book that leads from 2005 to the present. It includes “The Book of Mormon,” “Girls,” and working with [out producer/director/writer] Ryan Murphy. I cover all of the opportunities that shifted things for me.

BLADE: Enjoy your time in D.C. RANNELLS: I will. Just wish I could hang out longer.

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Dorothy Parker will cure your Valentine’s blues Poetry collection ‘Enough Rope’ now in public domain

By KATHI WOLFE It’s that time of the year. Red hearts everywhere. Sappy greeting cards. The need to have a lover or at least a date ASAP. It’s Valentine’s Day season!

But, you needn’t go to bed, and pull the covers over your head. There’s hope.

Hope is the thing with feathers, said Emily Dickinson. (If alive today, Dickinson, thought by some scholars to have been queer, likely would pen a beautiful, sardonic, nearly inscrutable, poem about Valentine’s Day schmaltz.)

This V day, hope can be found in the poetry of writer, poet, wit, critic, civil rights activist and gay icon Dorothy Parker.

Parker, who lived from 1893 to 1967, still has many fans and her wit hasn’t gone out of style. Last summer, Parker was in the news after the longstanding issue of what to do with her remains was resolved.

Parker was a die-hard New Yorker: she lived and wrote in New York City. But because she willed her estate to the Rev. Martin Luther King, her remains were given to the NAACP after King’s death.

Her remains were buried on the NAACP Baltimore headquarters’ grounds. After the NAACP moved from Baltimore in 2019, efforts were made to move Parker’s remains to New York.

In August, Parker’s remains were buried in New York. The epitaph on her new gravestone is taken from her poem “Epitaph for a Darling Lady.” “Leave for her a young red rose/Go your way and save your pity/She is happy for she knows/That her dust is very pretty.”

Parker’s first poetry collection “Enough Rope,” released in 1926, is now in the public domain.

Parker was hetero, and poetry isn’t everyone’s jam. But, as I’ve written before in the Blade, Parker’s second husband was gay and she had many queer friends. Some scholars believe that the phrase “I’m a friend of Dorothy” used by many gays before you could be out, referred to Parker.

“Heterosexuality isn’t normal,” Parker said, “it’s just common.”

Parker was a poet at a time when some poets (such as Edna St. Vincent Millay, who was queer) were rock stars.

(Think of Amanda Gorman, President Biden’s inaugural poet, and National Youth Poet Laureate.)

“Enough Rope” was a bestseller. Parker was invited to gatherings everywhere. Parker didn’t take well to being a rock star. She would make excuses to get out of these readings by pleading “a return of that old black cholera of mine,” reports Marion Meade, her biographer, in “Dorothy Parker: What Fresh Hell Is This?”

I’d wager a red rose or a chocolate heart that a hit of Parker’s work will dispel your Valentine’s blues. Or make you laugh (ironically) even though your heart is broken.

Parker, who was a member of the “vicious circle” of writers of the Algonquin Round Table, is best known today for her sharp wit. “I don’t know much about being a millionaire,” she said, “but I’d bet I’d be darling at it.” But she had a drinking problem, suffered from depression, attempted several times to kill herself and had her share of heartbreak in love.

Though written nearly a century ago, Parker’s poetry is relatable now. Her poems, while filled with wit and irony, often grew out of her feelings of sadness, rejection, and loneliness. As with many LGBTQ folks, her irony and wit helped her not only to survive, but to create.

“Oh, life is a glorious ‘Enough Rope’ by Dorothy cycle of song/a medley Parker was released in 1926. of extemporanea/” Parker wrote in her poem “The Queen of Romania,” “And love is a thing that can never go wrong/and I am Marie of Romania.”

If you’ve been hurt by a sweet-seeming, but Satanic cad, Parker’s right there with you. “The sweeter the apple, the blacker the core,” Parker writes in “Enough Rope,” “Scratch a lover and find a foe.”

Love is for unlucky folks, and it’s a curse, Parker said in a poem. But she, in her inimitable way, looked on the bright side: “Once there was a heart I broke,” she wrote, “And that, I think, is worse.”

Happy Valentine’s Day! Note: “Enough Rope” by Dorothy Parker is widely available.

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Kiki quickly becomes popular LGBTQ destination New bar on U Street plans summer expansion, patio space

By EVAN CAPLAN

After a New Year’s Eve soft opening, Kiki has become one of the most popular LGBTQ destinations in Washington, D.C. The two-floor bar takes over the space vacated by Velvet Lounge and Dodge City on the 900 block of U Street. Both closed during the pandemic. The locale is directly adjacent to another gay bar, Dirty Goose.

O w n e r and gay man Keaton Fedak, a general manager at Dirty Goose, noticed that these two next-door bars had gone dark during the pandemic, and met with the owners of the two buildings, who are cousins.

Plans quickly developed to use both buildings to Kiki, at 915 U St., is already drawing crowds. (Blade photo by Michael Key) craft an expansive, interconnected, inclusive space to transform the city’s gay bar landscape.

Fedak called the bar “Kiki” both after himself (it’s a nickname) and for its connection with the LGBTQ community. “The word wasn’t invented by the Scissor Sisters song,” he explains. “It’s been an important concept in the community for decades.”

The first half of Fedak’s vision has already opened. The ground floor of the 915 U St. building is open-plan space with bar stools and a color-block wall of rainbow panels.

A bar sits in the back up a short flight of stairs. This level will feature music, but quieter than the second-floor space. There, a DJ booth presides over a large dance floor. Disco lights flood this space; there is a bar on this level as well. The elevated dance floor is set to hold drag shows.

In the spring, a small patio will open, strung with fairy lights. It will have a “backyard aesthetic,” he says, to be green, bright, and relaxing. “It’s a good place to chill on a nice day outside.” It may even be reminiscent of Town Danceboutique’s popular patio.

The second half, at 917 U St., is still waiting for permits, and Fedak hopes to open this

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section in the summer.

It will connect to the current space via the outdoor patio. This section will have more of a sports bar feel, given Fedak’s connection to D.C.’s Gay Flag Football League (he is a former board member). The bar will welcome Stonewall Sports and other LGBTQ sports teams, and will be replete with plenty of mounted TVs to show various games.

After the closing of Cobalt and Town, Fedak wanted to ensure that Kiki was “an inclusive space, so that there’s vibes for everyone,” he says. “It should be a place where regulars would just show up and hang out.” He made sure that he recruited staff from different professional and personal backgrounds.

Fedak began working in food and hospitality at age 17 in his hometown in Pennsylvania. After moving to the D.C. area for work, he continued to moonlight as a bartender.

Fedak joined Dirty Goose as general manager in 2019 before starting his Kiki journey.

To stock the bar, Fedak has plenty of spirits to go around. There is a focus on the vodka offerings, but he ensures that local distilleries take center stage: He carries District Made Vodka and Rye Whiskey, as well as Green Hat Gin. The beer game is also a winning strategy: there are more than 25 bottles and cans available, with three beers on tap.

Local options are first-string, including selections from DC Brau, Right Proper, and Anxo Cider. Finally, the bar comes complete with a house margarita on tap (“ it’s a homemade recipe,” notes Fedak, using agave nectar syrup instead of sugar). The 16-ounce marg is always on special for $10.

While Kiki doesn’t serve food, Fedak is exploring options for a small truck or stand in the backyard.

Moving forward, Kiki will host weekly events. The bar already hosts drag shows during “RuPaul’s Drag Race” viewing parties. Fedak plans to begin a “Cobalt-style underwear contest” as well. Once COVID cases decline, he also wants to resurrect the Sunday funday parties that Cobalt would host with sports teams.

Fedak’s mantra for Kiki is evident in the mural that will take up the backyard patio – a quote from “Schitt’s Creek”: “I like the wine and not the label.”

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F E B R UA RY 1 1 , 2 0 2 2 • WA S H I N GTO N B L A D E.CO M • 3 9

District Snacks disco party

‘Drag Race’ alums Kennedy Davenport and Willam Belli perform (Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

LGBTQ-owned District Snacks held a ‘District Disco’ launch party on Saturday at Zebbie’s Garden. ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ alums Kennedy Davenport and Willam Belli performed alongside Jasmine Rice LaBeija with music provided by DJ Charlie B.

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HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

- Peter PETER M. CRAWFORD, REALTOR | METROPOLITAN LUXURY HOMES | LONG & FOSTER 20 Chevy Chase Circle, NW | Washington DC 20015 | 202.966.1400

Peter.crawford@longandfoster.com | 202.210.2889 www.LongandFoster.com/PeterCrawford

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LEFT PAGE

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Original Lewes Firehouse & Lock Up is a rare opportunity to be part of history, complete w/ retail & living space. This resilient property extends a unique invitation for the visionary. Completely renovated from top to bottom in the mid 1980s, a 1st floor shop features 2 showrooms, storage (formerly town jail), bath & classic, multi-paned storefront windows. Upstairs living area offers 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, kitchen, dining & living rooms w/wood & tile flooring.

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NOW HIRING, ALL POSITIONS! retail sales

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1155 23rd St NW #4M, Ritz-Carlton / West End Offered at $809,900 Compass is a licensed real estate brokerage that abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is not guaranteed. All measurements and square footages are approximate. This is not intended to solicit property already listed. Compass is licensed as Compass Real Estate in DC and as Compass in Virginia and Maryland. 1232 31st Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 |202.448.9002

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The Academy of Hope Adult Public Charter School located in Washington, DC, requests proposals from experienced and qualified contractors to fully replace the current fire alarm system. Proposals are due February 28th, 2022. You can find the detailed Request for Proposal and submission information at https://aohdc.org/jobs/

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