Washington Blade, Volume 56, Issue 23, June 06, 2025

THEPRIDE ISSUE

• Deacon Maccubbin on 50 years of Pride, PAGE 08

• Coping with a dark Pride season, PAGE 28

• Q&A with Betty Who, PAGE 48

• WorldPride events guide, PAGE 52

• Queer walking tour of D.C., PAGE 60

• WorldPride religious services, PAGE 64

• Freddie Lutz to wed during parade, PAGE 68

• Roundup of the weekend’s nightlife scene, PAGE 72 ...and much more inside!

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Community Partners

Mayor Bowser hosts WorldPride welcome event after Shakira cancels

‘We’re proud to welcome the world to our city’

By LOU CHIBBARO JR.

| lchibbaro@washblade.com

More than 300 people turned out on Saturday, May 31, for a WorldPride welcoming reception organized by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser that was held at the Rubell Museum in Southwest D.C.

The mayor’s office said the reception was expanded in scope following the sudden cancellation by singer Shakira of her WorldPride welcome concert scheduled for the same day at Washington Nationals Stadium.

In a statement on social media, Shakira said due to logistical issues that also prompted her to cancel a concert in Boston one day earlier, she was unable to come to D.C. in time for the WorldPride welcoming event.

Bowser, Japer Bowles, director of the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, and WorldPride organizers were among those who spoke at the reception, which also included a performance by members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington.

Officials with the Capital Pride Alliance, the D.C.-based group serving as the lead organizer of WorldPride 2025 D.C., said that although a welcoming ceremony with multiple speakers was scheduled to take place at Nationals Stadium along with Shakira’s concert, they decided to cancel the entire event after learning Shakira would not be coming.

“It was a transition from one to the other,” said Ashley Smith, president of Capital

Pride Alliance, when asked if the mayor’s reception was serving as a replacement to the Shakira welcoming ceremony.

“And it’s to not lose the importance of creating an opening experience for people who came internationally and domestically as well as to highlight the great work of our team and our city,” Smith told the Washington Blade at the reception.

“This has been a phenomenal event tonight, and I’m really thankful for the mayor and her team members who worked to pull this together,” Smith said. Held in a large reception room at the Rubell Museum, which specializes in

Comings & Goings

Lovitz takes senior communications role at HRC

By PETER ROSENSTEIN

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

Congratulations to Andrew Doster who has joined EagleBank as the Head of Operations & Technology. He will spearhead the operational execution and enterprise-wide transformation of the bank. Upon accepting the position, he said, “It’s an honor to join EagleBank as Head of Operations & Technology. I’m thrilled to collaborate with this talented team to deliver on our ‘Relationships FIRST’ values, driving tangible results and exceptional service for our clients across the DC, Maryland, and Virgina regions.”

EagleBank said about Doster, “He has a robust career spanning finance transformation at CrossCountry Consulting and strategic advisory at Boston Consulting Group; Andrew excels at turning complex visions

contemporary art and is located at 65 I St., S.W., beverages and appetizers were served while the crowd mingled and listened to at least six speakers, including Mayor Bowser.

“Shakira, girl, get yourself over here,” the mayor joked during her remarks at the event. “You’ve got the rest of the week. Get yourself here. We love you. We want to see you. We want to party with you. But we’re going to do it anyway,” she said, drawing laughter and loud applause from the crowd.

“If you live here, you know this,” Bowser said. “If you are visiting us let me tell you. D.C. has long been a leader in the fight for LGBTQ rights in the world. We’re proud to welcome the world to our city, to recognize the Fabric of Freedom as the theme of this year’s activities.”

“I am so proud to thank you, InterPride, for choosing us and making us the home of WorldPride 2025,” Bowser told the crowd. She was referring to the international association of LGBTQ Pride organizations, InterPride, that selects the location of the WorldPride celebrations through a bidding process. (D.C. actually lost the bid to host WorldPride to Taiwan in 2021. Taiwan later backed out and D.C. took over as the 2025 host city.)

Among those who spoke at the mayoral reception event was Rick Andre, InterPride’s co-president.

“Our theme this year, the Fabric of Freedom, reminds us of and honors the past, the fight in the present, and a just future for all,” he said.

“Around the world, the LGBTQIA+ people still face discrimination, violence, and erasure,” he continued. We’re together and we say we are here, and we are proud, and we will not be silenced.”

Others who spoke included Capital Pride Alliance president Smith, Capital Pride Alliance Executive Director Ryan Bos, longtime D.C. LGBTQ advocate and talk show host Rayceen Pendarvis, and D.C. mayoral staffer Jim Slattery.

At the time she spoke, Bowser invited more than a dozen members of her staff and officials at D.C. government agencies to join her at the podium to thank them for their service for D.C. residents and support for WorldPride D.C.

“I want to acknowledge the Capital Pride Alliance for spearheading hundreds of [World Pride] events in all eight wards across Washington, D.C.,” she said.

Shakira, meanwhile, posted this statement May 30 on social media: “Due to circumstances beyond my control, I am sad and heartbroken that I will not be able to be in Washington, D.C., with you tomorrow. I hope that I can come back to D.C. as soon as I am able. Meanwhile, please know that I am eternally thankful for your unconditional support.”

into streamlined realities.”

Previously, Doster worked with CrossCountry Consulting in D.C., as director, Finance Transformation, Office of the CFO. He has also held positions with Fannie Mae, Strategic Alliances Team Lead, Digital Alliances and Distribution, Digital Product; with the Boston Consulting Group, Washington, D.C., Project Leader, TURN (Turnaround and Restructuring); Guidehouse Consulting, Management Consultant, Banking, Insurance and Capital Markets Washington, D.C.; and Fifth Third Bank, OH and IL. He is a TutorMate for Capitol Hill Elementary, Innovations for Learning; and is an Eagle Scout.

Doster earned his bachelor’s in finance and accounting, University of Dayton; and his MBA from Xavier University.

Congratulations also to Jonathan Lovitz new Senior Vice President of Campaigns and Communications, and to Amy J. Peña new Senior Vice President, General Counsel, both joining the senior staff of the Human Rights Campaign. HRC President Kelley Robinson said, “I’m thrilled to welcome Jonathan and Amy to the Human Rights

Campaign at a critical moment for our community and the fight for equality. Their deep well of leadership experience, strategic vision, and passionate advocacy, will ensure HRC is prepared to face the ongoing threats to LGBTQ+ freedoms from a place of strength, joy, and respect.”   Lovitz is a nationally recognized public affairs and policy leader with deep experience in LGBTQ advocacy. He most recently served as director of Public Affairs and Senior Adviser at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he was a Biden-Harris administration appointee shaping the “Investing in America” story behind the CHIPS and Science Act and other major national economic growth initiatives. Prior to that he spent nearly a decade at the National LGBT

Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). Peña brings more than two decades of experience in legal counsel and management for non-profit and for-profit organizations to the general counsel role at HRC. She most recently served as the first ever General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for The Chicago Community Trust, a 100-year-old non-profit organization with assets exceeding $4.3 billion. Prior to that she worked as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for the Association of Lions Clubs, a 1.4-million-member global 501(c)4 association and a $300 million 501(c)3 foundation with offices in the U.S., India, Japan, South Korea, and wholly owned legal entities in Brazil, Canada, and Australia.

About 300 people turned out for a WorldPride welcome event on Saturday. (Washington Blade photo by Lou Chibbaro, Jr.)

ANDREW DOSTER

JONATHAN LOVITZ

Deacon Maccubbin reflects on 50 years of D.C. Pride celebrations

Organizer of city’s first Gay Pride Day in 1975 serving as parade grand marshal

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. |

lchibbaro@washblade.com

As the lead organizer of D.C.’s first Gay Pride Day celebration held 50 years ago in 1975, Deacon Maccubbin has been involved as an organizer in D.C.’s Pride events at least until 1979 and as an active participant every year since that time.

But this year Maccubbin says he, along with his partner and husband of 47 years, Jim Bennett, are honored to have been selected as both honorary co-chairs for World Pride D.C. 2025 and as grand marshals for the World Pride Parade scheduled for June 7.

Maccubbin points out that D.C.’s first Gay Pride Day celebration came one year after he opened Lambda Rising, D.C.’s first LGBTQ bookstore in 1974 on the section of 20th Street, N.W. where the first Pride celebration was held.

He later moved Lambda Rising to two other nearby D.C. locations in the Dupont Circle neighborhood with more space to allow the popular LGBTQ bookstore to expand its operations. And not long after that, Maccubbin opened Lambda Rising stores in other locations including Baltimore, Norfolk, Va., and Rehoboth Beach, Del.

Around 1977, Maccubbin says Lambda Rising started a book mail order operation that published a catalogue of LGBTQ books and related items. And in 1989 he and his business partners founded the Lambda Literary Awards, which recognized excellence in LGBT books and authors, according to Maccubbin.

As if that were not enough, in 2006 under Maccubbin’s direction, Lambda Rising bought the famous Oscar Wilde LGBTQ bookstore in New York City to prevent it from going bankrupt, he told the Blade.

Leading up to his retirement in 2010, Maccubbin says he turned over the Lambda Literary Awards operation to a nonprofit foundation and sold or closed the bookstores, including Lambda Rising in D.C. and the other cities.

Maccubbin, 82, reflects on his more than 50 years of LGBTQ activism, Pride organizing, bookstore operations, and what he calls his enjoyable years of retirement in an interview with the Washington Blade.

Blade: Can you tell a little about when you first came to D.C. and your launching of the

Lambda Rising bookstore in D.C.?

Maccubbin: Well, I’m from Norfolk, Va. originally. And came to D.C. in 1969 after getting out of the Army. And after two weeks of enjoying Washington, I called home and said sell everything I own. I’m staying here. And I’ve been there ever since.

And when I was in D.C. I was active in the Gay Liberation Front and later with the Gay Activists Alliance. And I started Earthworks with a $100 investment.

Blade: Was Earthworks your store?

Maccubbin: Yeah, the pipe store.

Blade: And what year was it that you started Earthworks?

Maccubbin: In 1971 is when I bought an existing store for $100 that had been going out of business for two years. And I had nothing else to do at that time. It was something for me to do. And before I knew it, I had built it into a pretty good business.

In ’71 I had been in New York for Gay Pride Day, and I stumbled upon the Oscar Wilde bookshop and thought someday I should have a store like that. It was the first gay and lesbian bookstore in the world. I wasn’t sure I would do it myself. But in 1974 a space became available in the community building across the hall from where my pipe shop was. And I said what the hell, let’s give it a try.

So, we took $3,000 from Earthworks and borrowed $1,000 from a gay activist and had $4,000 to open a bookstore. It had about 250 titles.

Blade: Was it immediately named Lambda Rising?

Maccubbin: Yes.

Blade: And could you remind me of the address?

Maccubbin: It was on 20th Street, 1724 20th St. It was a 300-square-foot store, very small. It opened in ’74. And the next year, I think it was February but I’m not sure about the date, we were having a party at my place and talking about going to New York for Pride Day.

And somebody said it’s nice to go to New York, but why don’t we do a Pride Day here in D.C.? And I thought that was a wonderful idea. So, the next morning I started working on it. I had a friend who was currently unemployed. So, I thought about giving him $200 to help me put it together. And he did, and we had the first Pride in June of that year.

And we had no idea what we were doing because we never did it before. It had never been done before here. But it worked. We had only one sponsor at the time, and that was the bookstore [Lambda Rising], a tiny little bookstore that had been open for only a year. That was our sole sponsor.

We didn’t have a board of directors. We didn’t have anybody with a title. There was

no government support at all. There was no guarantee that we could get a permit even to close the street. But we had a burst of progress and a willingness to try. So, we did it anyway. That was our attitude. We don’t know what we’re doing but we’re going to do it anyway, because we had to. We had to show up. We had to be visible. As I put it, we needed to take the battle to the people and bring the people to the battle.

Blade: So, was that Father’s Day? Wasn’t it on Father’s Day for a few years?

Maccubbin: Not that year but the next year it happened to fall on Father’s Day. The reason we did it on that date it was the week before New York, because we knew people still wanted to go to New York because that was the tradition. So, we did it the week before New York. But eventually we changed it to another date so we wouldn’t conflict with Father’s Day. There were fathers who wanted to be there on that day.

Blade: At some point was the then-Gay Blade located in the same building where Lambda Rising was located?

Maccubbin: Yeah, the Blade had an office on the second floor right above Lambda Rising.

Blade: And eventually didn’t it move again around the corner to Connecticut Avenue?

Maccubbin: Yeah, in ’84. In ’84 we had outgrown the S Street space, and we rented a space at 1625 Connecticut Ave. And that was a 5,000-square-foot space on two floors. … The store was on the first floor and the office, and the mail order operations were on the second floor. And we had almost a whole basement that was for storage.

Blade: Were books sold through the mail order?

Maccubbin: Yes, We published a catalogue four times a year that went to a quarter of a million people. And in 1989 we founded the Lambda Literary Awards, which is still ongoing today.

Blade: And what is that about?

Maccubbin: That is to recognize excellence in lesbian and gay and bisexual books, writings. It’s kind of like the Oscars in gay publishing.

Blade: So, did you retire in 2010 when the D.C. Lambda Rising was closed?

Maccubbin: Yes, I did retire.

Blade: Can you tell me a little about what you have been doing since your retirement?

Maccubbin: I’ve been enjoying retirement. I’ve been traveling a bit. We just got back from a major trip. Earlier this year we celebrated our 47th anniversary with a trip to Puerto Rico. And then over the past three weeks we were in Denver, Seattle, Vancou-

ver, and all over the coast of Alaska.

Blade: Wow – it was your 47th anniversary with Jim Bennett.

Maccubbin: Yes.

Blade: And what year was it that the two of you became a couple?

Maccubbin: Well, we first met in ’78. He started working at the bookstore probably – we think it was in ’79 or ’80 maybe. We’re not sure. And he worked there for 20 years, starting as a salesperson and rising to the position of general manager for regional operations.

And when he decided he wanted to do something else, he went into the décor business and did very well at that. Excellent years.

Blade: Can you tell a little about what prompted you and Jim to move from D.C., where  you lived for many years, to the Maryland suburbs?

Maccubbin: We moved to Kensington, Md., seven years ago. And we did so – we still maintain our condo in Dupont Circle, which is right across the street from the original Lambda Rising. We still maintain that, and we rent it out. But we have a townhouse now in Kensington.

Blade: What are your thoughts now on being selected as one of the grand marshals for the WorldPride Parade?

Maccubbin: Jim and I are apparently both honorary co-chairs of WorldPride and grand marshals. There are a lot of grand marshals this year.

Blade: What message might you have for people attending WorldPride this year in your role as the person who started the very first D.C. Gay Pride Day event 50 years ago?

Maccubbin: So, we are under attack right now. We’re under serious attack right now. And that’s the time you need to stand up and be counted. I will be marching. I hope everybody will be out marching. We’ve got to be visible.

Blade: Are you talking about the planned WorldPride March for Freedom or the parade?

Maccubbin: Yes, both.

Blade: What can you say about some of the changes that have taken place since the first D.C. Gay Pride Day?

Maccubbin: Well, when we started Pride originally, we didn’t have sponsors, we didn’t have much money. It was all done with volunteers. We did it with flyers. There wasn’t any government support for it at the time. And it was just done by the seat of our pants. We just rolled up our sleeves and went to work and got it organized.

JIM BENNETT and husband DEACON MACCUBBIN are serving as grand marshals of the WorldPride Parade on Saturday. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

DINNER:

D.C. police chief rescinds request to close Dupont Circle Park for WorldPride

Council member Parker hopeful U.S. Park Service will agree to change

By LOU CHIBBARO JR.

| lchibbaro@washblade.com

D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5) announced that at his request, D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith agreed to ask the U.S. Park Service to rescind its decision at her earlier request to close Dupont Circle Park this weekend for WorldPride events.

The Park Service announced in a statement Monday night, June 2, that it would close Dupont Circle Park from Thursday, June 5 to Monday, June 9, at the request of Chief Smith, to prevent “destructive and disorderly behavior” by WorldPride participants.

“I spoke to Chief Smith this morning and I’m glad to report that the decision to close Dupont Circle park is being rescinded,” Parker, the Council’s only openly gay member, said in a posting on X. “The Park is central to the LGBTQ community and neighbors will be happy to enjoy it this year for WorldPride,”  Parker stated in his X post.

But Parker spokesperson Melissa Littlepage told the Blade that while Parker believes the U.S. Park Service will agree to Smith’s request to rescind the closing of Dupont Circle Park, Parker did not contact the Park Service to confirm that.

National Park Service spokesperson Mike Litterst, who released the statement on Monday announcing the closure of Dupont Circle Park for WorldPride weekend, didn’t immediately respond to a Washington Blade inqui-

ry on Tuesday, June 3, asking for confirmation of whether the Park Service has agreed to Chief Smith’s request to rescind the park closure.

Ryan Bos, executive director of Capital Pride Alliance, the group that organizes D.C.’s annual Pride events and that is serving as lead organizer for this year’s WorldPride events, said no official WorldPride events were scheduled to take place at Dupont Circle Park this weekend.

Bos said he could not confirm whether individuals or groups not associated with Capital Pride Alliance planned to hold an event there this weekend.

The National Park Service statement on June 2 announcing plans to close Dupont Circle park this weekend made it clear that the action came at the request of D.C. police.

“At the request of the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, with the concurrence of the United States Park Police, the National Park Service will temporarily close Dupont Circle park this weekend, beginning Thursday, June 5 to Monday, June 9, as a public safety measure and to protect park resources during WorldPride celebrations,” the statement says.

The statement adds, “This decision was based on a history and pattern of destructive and disorderly behavior from unpermitted activities happening in the park during past DC Pride weekends, including vandalism in 2023 that resulted in approximately $175,000 in damage to the historic Dupont Circle fountain.”

Bos said he was certain that any damage that occurred in the Dupont Circle Park was not caused by participants of Capital Pride events.

This story continues to unfold and will be updated when more information becomes available.

Baltimore Pride gearing up for annual celebration

Events kick off June 9 with happy hour at Ema’s Corner

By DANIELA WHITE

Hosting its “50 Shades of Pride” anniversary, Baltimore Pride will have various events from June 9-15 to celebrate the LGBTQ community.

Kicking off with an opening happy hour with good vibes, music, and signature drinks on June 9, community members can head to Ema’s Corner for a night of joy, community, and bold self-expression.

According to Baltimore Pride’s website, attendees from 5-9 p.m. can show off their “unique shade of Pride” by dressing down or going full glam.

Hosting another happy hour on June 11 from 5-9 p.m., the Manor in Mount Vernon allows attendees to “sip, socialize, and celebrate 50 years of Baltimore Pride in style.”

Filled with Insta-worthy photo moments, signature cocktails, and feel-good Pride anthems played by a live DJ, this event will promote community, connection, and culture.

Ditching the drinks for a flag in hand, Baltimore Pride is taking over Mount Vernon for a vibrant block-style cele-

bration June 13 from 3-8 p.m.

Mount Vernon Pride will be filled with live music, art installations and community vendors, food trucks and an outdoor bar, Pride merch, dance zones, and hangout lounges. The event is free and open to all ages, taking place on Park Avenue and Read Street.

Giving you some time to enjoy Mount Vernon Pride, Baltimore Pride’s Twilight on the Terrace will take place from 7-11 p.m. on June 13, giving attendees “a night of dancing under the stars, fine food, open bar, and great music.”

The “original Dreamgirl herself,” and Tony award and Grammy-award winner Jennifer Holliday, will grace the stage at M&T Bank Exchange at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center with her “soul-stirring vocals and electrifying presence” for an unforgettable night.

Attendees are able to mix and mingle over signature cocktails and gourmet bites before and after the show with community leaders, culture icons, and changemakers at the Gala Reception.

Limited seating is available, and attendees are expected to “dress to impress.”

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, Baltimore Pride will host its annual Pride parade on Charles Street and North Avenue on June 14 at 12 p.m. Floats, dancers, DJs, and marching bands will walk along that route that “winds through the heart of Baltimore.”

Onlookers are able to cheer from the sidelines of the parade while drag queens and community organizations celebrate LGBTQ joy, history, and resistance.

The event will also feature announcers and special guest appearances.

Admission is free for all ages, and attendees are encouraged to bring flags, signs, and lots of energy.

Shutting down Charles Street once again, Baltimore Pride is hosting its annual Block Party.

From 3 p.m. until sunset on June 14, headliner and rapper Lola Brooke will perform as attendees visit local vendors, food trucks, street eats, dance zones, and more.  Giving community members a chance to interact with 10 local drag entertainers, Baltimore Pride is hosting its own Pride drag brunch at 1611 Guilford Ave. on June 15. Filled with “jaw-dropping performances” with brunch and drinks included with purchase, attendees can be prepared to “slay” their Sunday and honor the “many shades, styles, and stories” that make up the LGBTQ community.

Doors open at noon with the show starting at 1:15 p.m. with a $20 admission fee.

Ending its week of celebration, Baltimore Pride is hosting Pride in the Park from 12-6 p.m. at Druid Hill Park. Community members are invited to celebrate “a day of love, laughter, and community in the heart of nature.”

Attendees will have lots to choose from for entertainment with live performances from special guests, like singer and songwriter Durand Bernarr and gospel singer Kelly Pride, community vendors, food trucks, and a family zone with arts, games, and activities. Pet-friendly with a variety of opportunities for photo ops and giveaways, this event is free with an RSVP and open to all to celebrate the LGBTQ community authentically and unapologetically.

D.C. Council member ZACHARY PARKER (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

A scene from the 2024 Baltimore Pride Parade. (Blade photo by Michael Key)

DEI isn’t dead: See the companies standing behind inclusion

Not everyone is caving to political pressure to abandon initiatives

By CLINTON ENGELBERGER

At a time when companies are abandoning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, WinMark Concepts President Andrew Isen said DEI was never meant to be a political statement –– it’s a smart move for business and company culture.

“It fosters an environment and a camaraderie of teamwork that will lead to a company’s positive bottom line, period,” Isen said. “It’s the complete opposite of what is being sold to America through a system of lies and distortions.”

Though this distortion is what led to many companies leaving DEI in the dust, many businesses aren’t caving to political pressure and are standing behind their inclusive initiatives.

DEI was once the standard. Now it’s a polarizing statement.

The prominent fight against DEI can be traced to as recently as June 2023, when the Supreme Court ended race-based affirmative action in higher education. But DEI is more than just affirmative action, and many prominent conservative figures took notice.

One year after the Supreme Court’s decision, music video producer Robby Starbuck uploaded a video bashing Tractor Supply, a company that sells farm equipment, for its DEI policies.

In the video, Starbuck said the company offered equal health care for trans employees and sponsored Pride events. He called on customers to boycott the company until they changed these practices. It did.

Tractor Supply announced it would pull out of its DEI initiatives shortly after the video was published. Starbuck took credit for the takedown, and called on other companies –– like Lowe’s, Harley-Davidson and John Deere –– to follow suit. They all did.

As President Donald Trump took office earlier this year, the DEI debate burst into the mainstream political scene. Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from universities that continued DEI practices. He banned transgender people from serving in the military, and slashed multiple federal programs that supported marginalized communities.

Isen said many companies caved to this political pressure and were afraid of being caught in the crossfire of

“culture wars.”

Just because some companies are backing out doesn’t mean DEI is dead.

Numerous prominent businesses have stood up in the face of political and consumer pressure and sustained, if not expanded, their inclusive initiatives.

Apple has kept up its inclusion and diversity page, continued an initiative that creates pathways to engineering for students at historically Black colleges and most recently announced its Pride collection for this year

Costco has stood firmly behind its DEI initiatives, such as inclusive hiring practices and fair wages. Almost all of the company’s shareholders voted against an anti-DEI proposal that would have made Costco review its inclusive practices and the company is thriving.

Here are some of the other major companies that remain committed to DEI:

• Ben and Jerry’s

• Coca-Cola

• Levi Strauss & Co.

• Marriott International

• NFL

• Pinterest

• Sephora

• Ulta

• e.l.f. Beauty

• Patagonia

• Procter and Gamble

• Southwest Airlines

• Delta Airlines

• T.J. Maxx

• Microsoft

• Kroger

The list goes on, but the corporate commitment to DEI isn’t quite as dead as some may want you to believe.

Isen said DEI is both a smart workplace and economic decision.

“When you become an inclusive company, and you promote fairness and inclusivity and equity within an organization or company, you’re fostering an environment where people work closer together,” Isen said. “You’re creating a professional camaraderie that produces quantifiable business results.”

In a 2023 study, consulting firm McKinsey and Company found that companies with greater representation on executive teams were 39% more likely to financially outperform companies with less ethnic and gender representation.

Isen said companies that stray from DEI initiatives, like PepsiCo, Walmart and McDonalds, will face “hor-

rific” consequences. He pointed to Target, which saw a decline in foot traffic during the first quarter of this year after it abandoned its commitment to DEI policies.

Target CEO Brian Cornell said the decline could have been attributed to the combination of consumer fears of Trump’s tariffs and boycotts following the company’s DEI abandonment.

The fate of DEI isn’t predictable.

Isen said the economic state of the country “unfortunately creates a powerless consumer.” This is because many people can’t afford to boycott brands that abandon DEI, because shopping at certain stores is the only affordable or accessible way to provide essentials for their family.

“Traditionally, the only way to really show their unhappiness was not to patronize the brand or the company or anything associated with it,” Isen said. “But many people can’t do that.”

Though Isen said there are other ways consumers can advocate for DEI — such as contacting their representatives or company management — it’s ultimately up to the companies themselves to understand the value inclusion provides to their culture and profitability.

Hegseth orders Navy to rename Harvey Milk ship

Pelosi calls move ‘shameful, vindictive erasure’

By CHRISTOPHER KANE | ckane@washblade.com

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the renaming of the U.S. Naval Ship Harvey Milk, according to a report in Military.com on Tuesday. Since 2016, the replenishment oiler has borne the name of the late gay rights icon, who served in the Navy during the Korean War, was separated from the service other than honorably to avoid being court martialed for his homosexuality, and then went on to become the the first LGBTQ candidate

elected to public office in California.

Per the article, a memorandum from the Office of the Secretary of the Navy outlined the plans to rename the ship, and a defense official said the order to take this “rare step” came from Hegseth with an announcement deliberately planned for Pride month, on June 13.

The memo reviewed by Military.com indicates that the move comes as part of an effort to strengthen “alignment with president and SECDEF objectives and SECNAV priorities of reestablishing the warrior culture.”

Milk was assassinated in 1978 while serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. U.S. House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D), who has represented the city in Congress since 1987, said the decision is “a surrender of a fundamental American value: to honor the legacy of those who worked to build a better country” and “a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers

for all to chase the American Dream.”

“Our military is the most powerful in the world — but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the ‘warrior’ ethos,” she said.

Renaming a Naval ship is traditionally considered taboo, as well as a harbinger of bad luck.

During the Biden-Harris administration in 2023, however, a cruiser and research ship with names tied to the Confederacy were renamed — though Military.com notes that “the  recommendation to rename the two ships came from a commission that was created by Congress to study names with ties to the Confederacy across the entire military.”

CBS on Tuesday reported that along with the Harvey Milk, the Navy is also considering renaming other John Lewis-class oilers including the USNS Thurgood Marshall, USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and USNS Harriet Tubman.

WinMark Concepts President ANDREW ISEN said DEI was never meant to be a political statement. (Photo courtesy of Isen)

U.S. Defense Secretary PETE HEGSETH (Blade photo by Michael Key)

Judge blocks Trump order banning affirming care for inmates

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the enforcement of President Donald Trump’s executive order compelling officials with the Bureau of Prisons to stop providing gender-affirming hormone therapy and accommodations to transgender people.

News of the order by Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, a Republican appointed by former President Ronald Reagan, was reported in a press release by the ACLU, which is representing plaintiffs in the litigation.

Pursuant to issuance of the executive order on Jan. 20, the the BOP announced that that “no Bureau of Prisons funds are to be expended for any medical procedure, treatment, or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex,” while also prohibiting clothing and commissary items the agency considers incongruous with a person’s birth sex, and requiring all BOP staff to misgender transgender people.

Two transgender men and one transgender woman, each diagnosed with gender dysphoria by prison officials and prescribed hormone therapy, were either informed that their treatment would soon be suspended or were cut off from their treatment. On behalf of America’s 2,000 or so transgender inmates, they filed a class action lawsuit against the Trump administration and BOP in March.

The ACLU noted that while Lamberth’s order did not address surgeries, it did grant the plaintiff’s motion for a class certification and extended injunctive relief to the full class, which encompasses all persons who are or will be incarcerated in BOP facilities and have a current medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria or who receive that diagnosis in the future,” per the press release.

“Today’s ruling is made possible by the courageous plaintiffs who fought to protect their rights

and the rights of transgender people everywhere,” said Shawn Thomas Meerkamper, managing attorney at the ACLU’s Transgender Law Center. “This administration’s continued targeting of transgender people is cruel and threatens the lives of all people. No person—incarcerated or not, transgender or not—should have their rights to medically necessary care denied. We are grateful the court understood that our clients deserve basic dignity and healthcare, and we will

continue to fight alongside them.”

“Today’s ruling is an important lifeline for trans people in federal custody,” said Michael Perloff, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of D.C. “The ruling is also a critical reminder to the Trump administration that trans people, like all people, have constitutional rights that don’t simply disappear because the president has decided to wage an ideological battle.”

CHRISTOPHER KANE

White House has ‘no plans’ to recognize Pride month

Trump acknowledged LGBTQ Americans in 2019 Tweet

By CHRISTOPHER KANE | ckane@washblade.com

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday said that President Donald Trump has “no plans” to recognize Pride month in 2025, a departure from policy and practice under the Biden-Harris administration.

“There are no plans for a proclamation for the month of June,” she said during a press briefing at the White House, “but I can tell you this president is very proud to be a president for all Americans, regardless of race, religion or creed.”

Trump during his first term declined to acknowledge the observance apart from a tweet in 2019 in which he wrote, “As we celebrate LGBT Pride month and recognize the outstanding contributions LGBT people have made to our great nation, let us also stand in solidarity with the many LGBT people who live in dozens of countries worldwide that punish, imprison, or even execute individuals on the basis of their sexual orientation.”

Democratic Former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama issued Pride month proclamations, and while Trump was the first Republican president to do so, his second term has seen a whole-of-government effort to restrict the rights of LGBTQ people.

Notably, given the president’s 2019 message about his administration’s work combatting the criminalization of queer people in countries overseas, so far those efforts have been stymied and defunded across the board since his return to the White House.

Anti-LGBTQ U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.) introduced a resolution on Tuesday that would establish June as “Family Month,” which she said would “reject the lie of ‘Pride’ and instead honor God’s timeless and perfect design.”

“The American family is under relentless attack from a radical leftist agenda that seeks to erase truth, redefine marriage and confuse our children,” the congresswoman told the Daily Wire.

U.S. Attorney General PAM BONDI, who oversees the Federal Bureau of Prisons (Blade photo by Michael Key)

White House Press Secretary KAROLINE LEAVITT (Blade photo by Christopher Kane)

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2 trans women document Argentina military persecution

(Editor’s note: Washington Blade International News Editor Michael K. Lavers was on assignment in Argentina and Uruguay from April 2-12, 2025.)

ROSARIO, Argentina — Two transgender women in Argentina’s Santa Fe province are documenting the persecution of trans people that took place during the brutal military dictatorship that governed their country from 1976-1983.

Carolina Boetti and Marzia Echenique created the Travestí Trans Santa Fe Archive, which seeks to “create a collective memory,” in 2020. (“Travestí” is the Spanish word for “crossdresser.”)

The archive, among other things, includes interviews with trans women who the dictatorship arrested and tortured. The archive also contains photographs from that period.

The archive is not in a specific location, but Boetti and Echenique have given presentations at local schools and universities. They have also spoken at a museum in Rosario, the largest city in Santa Fe province that is roughly 200 miles northwest of Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital, that honors the dictatorship’s victims.

Boetti and Echenique during an April 11 interview at a Rosario hotel said they are trying to raise funds that would allow them to digitize the archive and house it in a permanent location.

“We have this material that is fantastic,” said Boetti.

The Associated Press notes human rights groups estimate the dictatorship killed or forcibly disappeared upwards of 30,000 people in what became known as the “dirty war.” The dictatorship specifically targeted students, journalists, labor union leaders, and anyone else who it thought posed a threat.

The dictatorship first detained Echenique in 1979 when she was 16. She said it targeted her and other trans women because they were “not within that strict” binary of man and woman.

“There was a dictator during the dictatorship, and he dictated this binarism, and there was no other way than man or woman,” Echenique told the Blade. “Everything

else was penalized, deprived of all rights. They took away everything.”

Boetti was 15 when the dictatorship first detained her.

“They detained me because of my sexual orientation,” she told the Blade. “Homosexuality in those years was penalized under the law.”

Boetti said the law in 1982 — the year when she began her transition — penalized crossdressing, prostitution and vagrancy with up to 120 days in jail. Boetti told the Blade that authorities “constantly detained me” from 1982 until she left Argentina in the 1990s.

Echenique said the regime once detained her for six months.

“The way of living, of studying, of walking freely down the street, of living somewhere, of sitting down to eat something in a bar or how we are sitting today, for example, was unthinkable in those years,” she said.

Echenique left Argentina in 1988, three years after the dictatorship ended. She returned to the country in 2006.

“The dictatorship ended in ’83, but not for the trans community,” she said.

Rosario and Santa Fe, the provincial capital, in 2018 implemented a reparation policy for trans people who suffered persecution under the dictatorship. They remain the only cities in Argentina with such a program.

Boetti on May 17, 2018, during an International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia ceremony over which then-Santa Fe Gov. Miguel Lifshitz presided became the first trans person in Argentina to receive reparations. Boetti receives a monthly pension of ARG 40,000 ($34.48) and a monthly stipend that pays for her health care.

Those who have received reparations successfully presented evidence to a judge that proved they suffered persecution and repression during the dictatorship. Boetti and Echenique pointed out that only 10 of the 50 trans women in Santa Fe who the dictatorship are known to have persecuted are still alive.

Then-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in 2012 signed Argentina’s landmark Gender Identity Law

that, among other things, allows trans and nonbinary people to legally change their gender without medical intervention. The country in 2010 extended marriage rights to same-sex couples.

Then-President Alberto Fernández, who is unrelated to Cristina Fernández, in 2020 signed the Trans Labor Quota Law, which set aside at least 1 percent of public sector jobs for trans people. Fernández in 2021 issued a decree that allowed nonbinary Argentines to choose an “X” gender marker on their National Identity Document or DNI.

Alba Rueda, a trans woman and well-known activist, in 2022 became Argentina’s special envoy for LGBTQ and intersex rights.

President Javier Milei has implemented several anti-trans measures since he took office in December 2023. These include a decree that restricts minors’ access to gender-affirming surgeries and hormone treatment and the dismissal of trans people who the government hired under the Trans Labor Quota Law.

Milei closed the National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Racism, a government agency known by the acronym INADI that provided support and resources to people who suffered discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and other factors. He also eliminated Argentina’s Women, Gender, and Diversity Ministry under which Rueda worked until Fernández left office.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

LGBTQ Ghanians targeted in cities

LGBTQ people and allies have been attacked in the Ghanaian cities of Tamale and Wa.

Yeliminga Naa Abayema, a journalist with Wa-based Tungsung Radio, last month while on the air said he was going to deal with the LGBTQ community and called on local law enforcement and officials to help him.

Rightify Ghana, a local LGBTQ organization, said Abayema’s remarks are in response to human rights activists who had helped two queer people evade anti-gay attacks.

The chief of Kpalsi Palace in the Sagnarigu municipal district tracked down one of the activists, beat him, fined him $300 and a sheep. The activist was also banished from the area.

The second activist had a written death threat attached to the front door of his apartment, warning him to stop protecting LGBTQ people. The threat forced him to flee the area.

Rightify Ghana on May 27 issued a statement that condemned the attacks.

“From physical attacks, eviction, and death threats to

media-led defamation and economic sabotage, these defenders are being punished for standing up against hate,” reads the statement.

Rightify Ghana also said the attacks are silencing voices and crippling community support. The group noted the two activists are in urgent need of protection, legal support, relocation assistance,  medical and psychological care.

Yaw Mensah, a Ghanaian LGBTQ activist, said some law enforcement officials were exacerbating the homophobic attacks through arbitrary arrests and supporting the perpetrators.

“The saddest thing in this, is that they can’t even rely on

the police for protection because some of the police officers are part of the problem as they are helping persecute LGBT people and their supporters,” said Mensah.

Meanwhile, the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill that would further criminalize LGBTQ people and outlaw allyship is back in parliament.

Parliament Speaker Alban Bagbin on May 27 said the anti-LGBTQ bill can now be tabled for its first reading after having completed all necessary processes.

The Ghanaian penal code criminalizes consensual same-sex sexual activity and carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison.

Anyone convicted of forming or funding LGBTQ groups under the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill would face fines and up to five years in prison. Those convicted of participating in LGBTQ rights campaigns aimed at children would face up to 10 years in prison.

DANIEL ITAI

From left: CAROLINA BOETTI and Marzia Echenique (Photo courtesy of Carolina Boetti and Marzia Echenique)

Queer Ghanians are being attacked and harassed.

(Photo via Awo Dufiean’s X Account)

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Celebrating Values That Theater Arts Stand For

Nicholas F. Benton

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

Mine were brief but cherished moments this week before a sold-out 2,400 high school students, parents, friends, teachers and mentors in the concert hall at the Kennedy Center this week gathered for an annual lovefest known as the Cappies Gala.

Cappies, as AI tells us, stands for Critics and Awards Program for High School Theater. It’s a program where high school theater and journalism students are trained as critics, write reviews of other schools’ productions, and participate in an awards ceremony. The program aims to recognize and celebrate student achievements in high school theater.

The gala is truly an amazing event every year, veritably awash with loud, boisterous and lifeaffirming teen spirit, ear piercing cheers for nominees as they are announced, winners and the dozen or so production numbers interspersed throughout the three-hour event. (It emulates the Tony Awards that way).

This year there were special tributes to the passing of leaders who’ve kept the program alive and flourishing (copies of the original National Capital Area event are now active in a dozen regional centers all across the U.S. while 46 schools participate in this area), including a man I was honored to know, the recently deceased U.S. Congressman Gerry Connolly of Fairfax County, Virginia, himself a thespian who often partook of small parts in productions by a local drama troupe in his district.

Having done this a number of times now, I always put extra thought into what I might say when coming onto the Cappies Gala stage to play a brief part opening an envelope and announcing a winner in a given category (this year for me it was for lighting). So I said this year, “It is such a joy and privilege to be a part of this every year, to be in the heart of the nation’s heart. Beauty, empathy and human compassion are the very es-

sence of theater, and you students have your whole lives ahead of you to practice these. They are the best weapons against cruelty and indifference.”

It earned a sustained applause, though not as big as the one a few years ago when I said simply, “Happy Pride!” Every year now I enjoy wearing my rainbow lightning pin on my lapel through June Pride months.

Sadly, this time I was the only presenter who represented a news organization of any kind, despite the fact the Cappies were set up 25 years ago to celebrate achievement at the high school level of both theater artists and young writers as critics. All the other presenters this week were school leaders or from arts non-profits.

This reflects the state of a news industry that has been under such attack from Trump, who assails it routinely as “public enemy Number One,” as well as attention-span numbing, cheap and easy online so-called “alternatives” that do not resist but encourage the kind of social segmenting and distancing that is proving a danger to democratic values and practice.

It is something I am dedicated to overcoming for reasons associated with fundamental values. It had a lot to do with the Page One feature I wrote and published in my Falls Church News-Press last week profiling friend and longtime Washington Blade reporter Lou Chibbaro Jr., whose work for that LGBTQ+ community newspaper since 1976 has contributed far more than people may think to shaping an inclusive but cohesive identity for the gay community that as a result is much better poised to resist and counter divisive efforts at ripping us apart and setting us against ourselves.

I have felt this ever since I wrote the first editorial in the very first edition of the Gay Sunshine newspaper in Berkeley, Calif. at the outset of our modern movement in 1971.

In this month, made special this year by the selection of the D.C. to be the locus for a World Pride fiveweek extravaganza, the celebration is in the shadow of the most dangerous threat since the eruption of the modern LGBTQ+ movement to the freedoms and self-affirmations currently afforded all.

Stand tall for the universal values native to our movement against this angry dark influence.

KEVIN NAFF

is editor of the Washington Blade. Reach him at knaff@washblade.com

Making sense of a dark Pride season

Trump’s attacks have deterred WorldPride visitors but we won’t be erased

WorldPride was supposed to attract up to three million visitors to the Nation’s Capital for a once-in-a-lifetime celebration that would boost all of the region’s queer-owned businesses and shine a bright light on the progressive, pro-LGBTQ city that is Washington.

Then came the 2024 election.

In an instant, the mood shifted. Then the anti-trans attacks came — eliminating “X” gender markers on passports, a trans military ban, efforts to criminalize affirming healthcare. The list goes on. Many trans people fear for their safety and those with the means are fleeing the country, as the Blade has reported.

As WorldPride drew closer, there were travel warnings from here and abroad for trans tourists and boycott calls from allied countries.

As we commemorate the 50th anniversary of LGBTQ Pride in D.C., it’s important to remember why we come together each June. We celebrated Pride before corporate sponsors embraced us and we will continue to celebrate and protest as our fair-weathered “allies” drop like flies amid Trump’s petty threats. We don’t need rainbow-colored Doritos and Oreos. We need safe and affirming spaces for our own to gather, celebrate, grieve, and protest the many injustices perpetrated by Trump and his toadies in Congress.

The first D.C. Pride, held on Sunday, June 22, 1975 and organized by local legend Deacon Maccubbin and the staff of Lambda Rising, sought to draw attention to New York’s Liberation Day March held that June 29 that drew thousands commemorating the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion. The D.C. City Council proclaimed June 22 as Gay Pride Day. The Blade published a crowd estimate of 2,500 for that first celebration and noted that many attendees were busy dodging NBC and Channel 7 news cameras out of fear of being outed.

Fast-forward 50 years and the city’s Pride events draw hundreds of thousands as the city embraces LGBTQ visibility and equality each June.

After so many years of progress, 2025 feels dark, as our trans community is attacked, our friends in the federal workforce face harassment and termination, immigrant communities are hunted, HIV funding is gutted, and journalists, musicians, actors, and artists are deemed enemies of the state. It’s inconceivable to many of us that Trump could defeat Kamala Harris and take our country backwards so fast, crippling an economy that was booming under Joe Biden.

In the face of all this darkness, it’s important that we show up for WorldPride. Many LGBTQ people no longer feel safe or comfortable living authentically and openly. So those of us who are more privileged have to show up and be seen and heard. The WorldPride boycott calls are disappointing and misguided. No one ever said a social justice movement would be an endless party. This is hard work filled with setbacks and heartbreaks. Many of us won’t live to see a day in this country when the work is finished but that’s the point — we show up to make things easier on the next generation. Rather than stay home, all of us, along with our straight allies, should attend the marches and parades (and fireworks displays!) and send a clear message to Trump that we will not be erased. He and his cronies have deleted scores of pages from government websites from the SBA to the Interior Department, scrubbing any mention of LGBTQ history, as if we never existed. The Blade’s 56-year archive tells another story.

It’s the story of a loving community fighting to overcome police brutality, AIDS indifference, hate crimes, legalized discrimination, racism, hate, and bigotry to forge happy and productive lives under the American promise of equality. We’re not there yet but WorldPride offers an opportunity to stand up and be seen and counted.

So I hope everyone reading this will join us at the many events scheduled to celebrate Pride. It may seem like a small thing but there is power in numbers. Help us show the world that Donald Trump has not extinguished or exhausted us. He has reinvigorated us and inspired a renewed sense of purpose and dedication to justice. See you at WorldPride.

JAKE STEWART

is a D.C.-based writer and barback.

2025: the year that Pride changed

We need to bring some Marsha P. Johnson energy to the party this year

Rewind back to 2017. Trump took office following his election win, and Republicans controlled both the House and the Senate. Superstar Katy Perry suffered a public relations disaster following the release of her latest album. Nintendo brought us a brand-spankingnew Switch, while a now-iconic horror movie—written and directed by a Black man—became a smash hit among critics and audiences alike.

Well, this feels familiar. Why, then, does Pride in 2025 feel so different? The year 2017 was my first D.C. Pride, and I distinctly remember having a blast and feeling celebratory, even in the wake of Trump’s election. Now instead of Pride, all I feel is anxious, which sucks given this year D.C. hosts WorldPride, too. Upon some reflection, I distilled three reasons as to why.

The first is highly personal and comes with an update: I recently switched bars. Early this year, I experienced a profound crisis that, sadly, came with substance abuse. It was the most challenging time of my life, and while I may write about it someday, for now I’m still processing its impact. Fortunately, my colleagues at The Little Gay Pub stepped up in a major way to help their struggling coworker. I’d love to take this moment to thank them, since I have yet to properly do so. The work they did to assist me speaks volumes about the staff’s character, and I am forever grateful for their friendship and guidance.

Now I work at Spark Social House, the new LGBTQ alcohol-free bar and café. Yes, you read that right: an alcohol-free bar. You can also think of it as a nonalcoholic “third space” for the LGBTQ community, but hey, if you are tipsy, stop in for a grilled cheese. We’re open until 4 a.m. on weekends for a reason, and I work the late shift most Saturday nights.

My switch between bars was the healthier move, but it underscores why Pride is a bit complicated for me this year. I’m navigating severe and unexpected changes in my life, and as a result, Pride fell off my radar. I also know I’m not alone. Here in D.C., thousands of people lost their jobs abruptly, causing many to question who they are in an otherwise austere, corporate landscape. Meanwhile, the news cycle became bleaker than before, so in times like this it’s easy to isolate. Personally, I isolated myself for months after leaving the Pub, and navigating large crowds became the last thing I wanted. It makes sense, then, why WorldPride might feel as overwhelming as a stampede of rhinos.

in sports, work in safe spaces, serve in the military, or simply pee unbothered. Tell me: what group of people have their lives controlled to that level of minutiae? I don’t know—prisoners, maybe?

Outside the stripping of their rights and dignity, the language directed at the trans community has turned vile. This is best represented by the antics of Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.). Mace is so obsessed with everyone else’s genitalia in the bathroom, it borders on sexual harassment. This is made more egregious given she once seemed exemplary for Republicans on gay and transgender equality, yet for some dubious reason, she went from that to poster child of LGBTQ+ hatred. Now she purposely misgenders trans people, leading me to believe we should misgender him to see how he likes it, so I’ll start: Nancy Mace is such a dreadful, horrid, odious bigot, I lazily Google searched synonyms for vile to describe him, because he certainly ain’t worth the extra effort, ain’t he?

However, Nancy the Mancy is not the only Republican to support these terrible views. Trump himself spent more on anti-trans ads than any other topic in his most recent campaign, but don’t worry—his appointment of a gay man to Treasury Secretary makes up for it. No, actually, it doesn’t, but for some gays it does, which blows my mind. Republicans made a trade-off between the gay and trans communities, because we’re what? That’s right: interchangeable. Grab any letter and you’re good, apparently. Or no letters at all, if you’re Richard Grenell.

Nowadays, coming out trans is undoubtedly the bravest of all queer identities, not only because you’ll lose your rights, but you’ll face deeper hatred as well. Still, trans people like Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) remain unfazed, which speaks to their remarkable poise and courage. But can we say the same for the rest of the queer community? Are we capable of not fleeing in the face of such hatred? Seeing some of us sell out our queer family leaves me wondering. As a reminder: family doesn’t sell out family, and when you do, I no longer want you in my family. I think that’s fair.

The second reason is the political context. Yes, Trump has been president before, and yes, he recently appointed the highest-ranking openly gay official in our nation’s history, but still his presidency ushered in attacks on LGBTQ rights. To start, look to my home state of Idaho, which this year passed a resolution calling on the Supreme Court to overturn its 2015 decision on same-sex marriage. Idaho’s brashness here is the direct result of the reelection of Trump, who knowingly appointed three conservative justices to the high court during his first term.

Unfortunately, policies like this are cropping up across the country, like in Ohio, where there’s currently a bill to celebrate “natural family” month, or in Florida, where our history is being erased from schools and libraries. Outside the country, Trump’s defunding of crucial USAID programs leaves queers around the globe in peril. Big-named corporations like Target basically abandoned us, while the Department of Homeland Security can now spy on us solely for our gender identity or sexual orientation. So yes, in the face of all this, dancing with my shirt off and making out with the dude beside me doesn’t feel as fun as it used to. Strange how that happens.

The final, and perhaps most salient, reason Pride changed are the relentless attacks on our transgender, genderqueer, and drag artist brothers, sisters, and siblings. These attacks are heinous. While many queers fear a rollback of rights, it has already begun for trans people. This year alone, there grew a laundry list of what trans people can’t do: participate

So, for these three reasons, Pride changed in my book. To better understand why, I also looked up the definition of the word ‘pride.’ Turns out there isn’t one definition but two, the first being “a feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from the achievements of those with whom one is closely associated.” A few years into securing corporate support and our right to marry, this describes how Pride felt in 2017. But the second definition is “consciousness of one’s own dignity.” To me, this better summarizes Pride in 2025, for it became the year they tried to steal our dignity, which also makes it the year we must stop them from doing so. This more closely aligns to the first Pride of our queer ancestors, for in the face of even more hatred and fewer rights, they persevered.

So, grab that metaphorical brick—it’s time we bring some Marsha P. Johnson energy to Pride this year. Remember our haters want us divided and isolated because that’s how they win. This means I, too, must pull my head out of my ass and change my attitude toward Pride while I still can. WorldPride organizers fought tirelessly to secure our events, particularly during this difficult year, so let’s enjoy them. If drag artists are performing, go support them if you can, and events focused on our solidarity matter more than ever before. Let’s take our energy and spread it like glitter everywhere we can throughout the whole damn year. The best part is I know we’re capable, for if the queer community can show up in my lowest moments, we can certainly show up for us all. My next three columns will focus on our most targeted family members: the trans, genderqueer, and drag artist communities. Since people back home read my stuff, for better or for worse, it’s worth highlighting to them the profound beauty of each.

So sure, Pride is different this year, but whether that’s good or bad is now up to us. I know which I’m choosing. Do you?

Try some mocktails this Pride season!

Nic Ashe and Kyle Beltran for

Gathered. Photo by Tony Powell.

DUSTIN

NOWASKIE, MD

is founder and chief medical officer of OutCare Health.

LGBTQ health equity must not be abandoned

Beneath the glitter of Pride there is a simmering fear

Pride month feels different this year. There is a simmering fear beneath all the glitter. Of course, Pride has always been a festivity interwoven with a certain amount of unease. Our rainbow parades were forged from protest marches, demonstrations that erupted from a community under the searing fire of violence and humiliation. Accordingly, our rhinestone costumes and glimmering disco balls have always held an element of precarity, though that edge may have felt less present recently. Nevertheless, Pride is a holiday in active conversation with our communities’ place in society. At once, it is a moment of radical celebration while also an act of resolute defiance.

However, Pride month feels different this year because that conversation has shifted. The discourse around our communities carries a renewed threat of violence: systemic, political, and physical. In just six months since the inauguration, the Trump administration has worked swiftly to strip protections from LGBTQ+ communities, erase our histories, and demonize us in the public imagination. The vitriol that Trump and his lackeys have spewed against the trans community specifically is completely baseless and profoundly dangerous. Although our communities have long weathered such abuse, the return of such bigoted ideology at the highest levels of power is alarming, to say the least.

One of the key ways Trump has attacked LGBTQ+ communities is by targeting our access to healthcare. While healthcare is essential for anyone, for LGBTQ+ people, it can mean life or death. Our medical needs are unique and complex, often compounded by intersecting identities of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. Denying us affirming, equitable care is not just negligent, it’s dangerous. By enacting barriers to gender affirming care, slashing tens of millions of dollars in grants for LGBTQ+ medical research, and stripping away essential protections, the current federal administration is carrying out a calculated assault with catastrophic consequences.

As a queer, nonbinary person and practicing psychiatrist, I have an intimate, visceral understanding of these issues. Even before Trump ever set foot in the Oval Office, the medical disparities affecting my LGBTQ+ friends, colleagues, and patients were obvious to me. As a young medical student in Indiana, I quickly became aware of the substantial gaps in access to healthcare for LGBTQ+ communities. At a base level, there is already significant distrust between LGBTQ+ patients and their providers, stemming from a long history of mistreatment and, in many cases, outright gaslighting, abuse, and trauma. This distrust can prevent patients from seeking care, and even when they do, providers often lack the training to deliver the affirming care they need. This lack of equitable and affirming healthcare led me to found OutCare Health. OutCare started with a carefully curated list of medical professionals with the knowledge, training, and experience to provide LGBTQ+ people with the care they desperately need and deserve. That list has since blossomed to more than 6,000 providers and has become a vital resource for LGBTQ+ communities, their families, and allies. Over the last decade, our grassroots efforts have grown into a national force, and our programming has expanded to include health equity training, care navigation, and public education. That early momentum gave me hope that we were making headway in the fight to ensure that LGBTQ+ communities have access to the care they deserve. However, with the return of Trump to the White House, it feels like everything has changed. We endured his first administration, bolstered by what felt like a nationwide resistance to his presidency, but this time, something is different. Instead of resistance, the air feels thick with despair, lulling the country into a doleful acceptance of our fate. Moreover, there is a pervasive sense of fear. Some providers have asked to have their names removed from our OutList of affirming providers, not out of a desire

to stop helping our community, but out of a legitimate fear of retribution, professional retaliation, and even their own safety. This is a request I completely understand. There is nothing wrong with protecting yourself, your livelihood, and your family, but the need to do so speaks volumes about the political climate in which we find ourselves. What has been truly demoralizing has been the behavior of the healthcare field at large. The willingness to grovel to the unscientific, harmful, and ignorant policies of the Trump administration is not just disappointing, it’s disgraceful. Even more disturbing is the speed and enthusiasm with which some health systems and organizations have preemptively distanced themselves from LGBTQ+ equity work, as if racing to prove their compliance with regressive ideology. Many of our past partners have vanished, most without a last goodbye. To those outside our communities, this quiet retreat from providing life-saving care to those of us who are being vilified may seem unfortunate yet pragmatic. But let me be clear: if you abandon your values in moments of inconvenience, you never really held them in the first place.

Nevertheless, I do not believe we can resign ourselves to walking despondently into the future being laid out for us. Although we are seeing an attempt to systematically dismantle many of the structures that we have put in place to help ensure health equity for LGBTQ+ communities, it is worth remembering that it was we who built those structures. Fifty or even 25 years ago, we had so much less than we do now, even after these attacks. Today, we have life-saving medications and therapies that we used to only dream of. We have networks and coalitions with deep knowledge and formidable strength. They may force us to take a step backward, but they cannot and will not make us turn around.

Most importantly, we have each other, and we have the wisdom of those who came before to guide us. From the Stonewall Riots to seizing control of the FDA, the LGBTQ+ community has shown a staunch resilience and strength of spirit that has always been one of our greatest assets. Although we are a broad and diverse banner and may not always agree, we must remember that our sense of community and our ability to organize are what have gotten us where we are today. We must stand shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand. The echoes of our footsteps drumming the streets can cause even the most unyielding enemy to cower. These are lessons we cannot afford to forget. Our survival depends on it.

So yes, Pride month does feel different this year. There is indeed a simmering fear beneath the glitter, but deeper than that fear, more enduring and infinitely stronger, there is grit—grit forged in fire and defiance. We are vibrant, colorful, and unapologetically queer, but do not mistake our joy for weakness. We’re loud, we’re resilient, and we’re holding the damn line.

In this spirit, let me make one thing abundantly clear: OutCare Health is not going anywhere. When I founded this organization 10 years ago, I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I didn’t do it because it would be easy. I did it because it was necessary. Because it was right. Because it was my life. Your life. Our lives. We will not back down, and we will not be erased. We will continue to uplift our communities and fight for truth, equity, and democracy—no matter what the bigotsthrow at us.

To my OutCare family and all LGBTQ+ families, know that we are here for you, and we will not stop. To our allies, now is the time to show up—loudly, proudly, and relentlessly. To those who fear our freedom, despise our joy, and resent our very existence: our glitter may catch your eye, but don’t underestimate the strength burning beneath it. We will not break. We will not be silent. We’re not going anywhere.

Happy Pride!

A free outdoor exhibition chronicling the local LGBTQ+ Pride movement and how the pickets and protests of the 1960s led to the vibrant celebrations of the 2020s.

MAY 18th thru JULY 6th

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Directly between the Capitol Building and White House.

I interviewed Biden in late 2024 and he was attentive, engaged

CNN narrative about former president’s mental state is unfair, exaggerated

I have grown frustrated by the discussions about former President Joe Biden’s age-related cognitive decline, especially in the weeks following the publication of Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s book on the subject, “Original Sin.”

Writing in POLITICO, James Kirchick took the Beltway reporters to task for what he perceives as their (our) failure to investigate and cover the “truth” about the president’s mental acuity, as if the truth were a simple binary (is he OK?) and as if the answer was as evident at the time as it now appears with the benefit of hindsight.

“Lack of access is no excuse,” he wrote in POLITICO. Sorry, but I call bullshit.

We can report only what we know, and we can know only what we can observe with our own eyes and ears. If you happened to catch a White House press briefing in 2023 or 2024, there’s a pretty good chance you heard difficult questions about Biden’s health. When we don’t have much time with the president, we rely on the testimony of those in his inner circle who did.

And at this point I become agnostic on the question of whether there was a coverup by those closest to him or an effort to obfuscate the truth. Because even now the reality looks murky to me, and I was fortunate enough to spend more time with Biden than many of my colleagues near the end of his tenure in the White House.

As many of our readers will know, in September 2024 I had the great privilege of interviewing the president one on one across the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.

Biden was as attentive and engaged as anyone I’ve spoken with. When I reflect on the experience, I remember how blue his eyes looked and how electrifying it felt to have his gaze and focus fixed on me.

Part of that is charm and charisma, but I also think he took very seriously the opportunity to talk about his legacy of helping to advance the equality of LGBTQ people in America. He wanted to be there. He spoke clearly and from the heart.

The president came with a binder of talking points prepared by the press secretary and the communications director, both of whom were present for our sit-down, but he barely glanced at the notes and needed assistance from his top aides only very briefly — on two occasions when he struggled with the title of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 and Karine Jean-Pierre spoke up to help him.

On one hand, Project 2025 was a critical part of the messaging strategy of his and then his vice president’s 2024 campaign, and our conversation came at the tail end of the election cycle last year. On the other hand, considering the totality of my experience talking with Biden, looking back it doesn’t seem like those lapses were that big of a deal.

I guess what I am ultimately trying to say is this: I think we should extend some grace to the former president and those closest to him, and we should also have some humility because a lot of these questions about Biden’s cognitive health are unclear, unsettled, and even to some extent unknowable.

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is a longtime LGBTQ rights and

Party activist. He writes

WorldPride cruising the Norwegian Fjords

As many of you who follow me in the Washington Blade know, I love to travel. These days it is all about cruising (on the water). I take at least two cruises a year, and plan them out years in advance so it’s not always guaranteed they won’t conflict with something else I may want to do at the same time. This time it turned out my bucket list cruise to the Norwegian Fjords and the Arctic is going to happen right in the middle of WorldPride in D.C. I had planned on sitting with the mayor at the Shakira opening concert,

This particular cruise has been on my bucket list for more than 40 years. Before she passed away, my mom ran the largest Title XX senior center in New York City. This was back in the early 1980s. She would often plan trips for those who came to the center, taking them to fun places. One of those trips was a cruise through the Norwegian Fjords. Mom came home with amazing pictures and from that time I swore one day I would get there myself. Nearly three years ago, before D.C. was awarded WorldPride, I spoke with my favorite travel agents at My Lux Cruise, and began to plan and promote the idea of this trip with them. So now this dream of mine is coming true. My cruises, while not gay cruises, are always with large groups from the LGBTQ community. So, I will be celebrating my Pride on this trip traveling with a group of about 85 members of the community. Some from D.C., others from my second home in Rehoboth Beach, and others from around the United States, and around the world. Many are the same people who travel with me on my annual transatlantic cruises. This year, that one will be on the Celebrity ASCENT leaving Oct. 31 out of Rome, and traveling 13 days

I left for London on June 3 so missed the biggest weekend of WorldPride in D.C. By the time you read this column, it will be in full swing, and a huge success, thanks to the

On the morning of June 5,, I will be boarding a bus from my London hotel for the ride to Southampton, where we will meet the Celebrity APEX for our 12-day cruise. Scott and Dustin, my travel agents, and good friends, will host a sail-away party onboard, where I will get to see old friends, and make new ones. The next morning, we will arrive in Bruges, (Zeebrugge) Belgium. I love Bruges and will be spending the day in town. From there it’s on to places I haven’t been before, including Norway and the Arctic Circle. Day three we arrive in Flam, Norway, where we have already booked a railway trip up the mountain; day four will be cruising the Arctic Circle; day five we will be in Tromso, Norway; day six in Honningsvag, Norway; day seven is again cruising around the Arctic Circle; day eight is in Geiranger, Norway; day nine in Alesund, Norway; day 10 in Haugesund, Norway; day 11 is at sea; and day 12 we arrive back in Southampton. I have arranged to go directly to the airport for an afternoon flight back to D.C. While I really regret missing WorldPride, what I am happy about is missing the June 14 birthday

In each of the cities in Norway we will be taking tours, and be off the ship for most of the day. One of the interesting things I look forward to is during this time of the year, we will have about 20 hours of daylight, which should be something different. Unfortunately, this will not let us see the Northern Lights, but then you can’t have everything. I look forward to hearing from all my friends back in D.C. about their fun experiences with WorldPride, and I know there will be lots of great stories to share. I will be sharing some of my experiences from the cruise with you in a blog I will be writing for the Blade. I wish everyone a happy WorldPride wherever you are, and whatever you are doing. Stay strong, stay beautiful, speak up, and speak out, knowing we all make the world a better place.

Betty Who talks Broadway, Pride, and reclaiming her sound

With a new single and WorldPride performance, she opens up about the music that moves her

By JOE REBERKENNY | jreberkenny@washblade.com

There are few performers who have maintained as consistent and authentic a relationship with Washington—and its LGBTQ community—as Betty Who.

Betty Who, the Australian-American pop singer originally from Sydney, has spent the last 15 years taking her breathy, synth-driven sound from hole-in-the-wall venues to some of the most iconic stages in the world. She’s been around —and she’s not going anywhere.

The Blade recently sat down with the beloved pop princess to talk about her recent Broadway run in Hadestown, her evolving sound, and why performing at Pride events in the nation’s capital holds such a special place in her heart.

Born Jessica Anne Newham in 1991, Who moved to the U.S. in her teens to pursue a promising music career. A multi-instrumentalist since childhood—she plays the cello, piano, and guitar—she’s collected devoted fans, especially LGBTQ ones, along the way.

“It feels pretty crazy,” Who said, reflecting on her unique connection with D.C. “D.C. is one of those cities that I never really expected to have the relationship with that I have at this stage. I started coming to D.C. in the first year of my career—I was playing a couple East Coast cities because I was based in Boston for school, and then I moved to New York.”

In 2014, Who was one of the headlining performers at Capital Pride and has kept that relationship close ever since.

“I would pack up the rental car with my friends from Berklee and go play these shows. And D.C.— what I remember is playing at the Rock & Roll Hotel. I have a long history of playing shows in D.C., and there are few cities that have shown up for me in the way that D.C. does whenever we come around. It’s always one of the biggest shows of the tour. And there’s something about the energy there that is just undeniable for me.”

That energy, she said, continues to fuel her artistic evolution. Her 2022 album “BIG!” marked a shift for her development.

“’BIG!’ was such a huge turning point for me,” Who said. “I think because I was trying to reinvent, but I think I was stuck in a lot of the same patterns that I had been stuck in for a long time. And through making ‘BIG!,’ I thought that I was breaking a lot of those patterns. And on looking back, I realized that I still had so much work to do, and maybe that’s just being an adult. Being in your life, you think you’ve got it all figured out, and then five years later, you look back and you’re like, ‘You silly little girl!’”

One major change has been her approach to releasing music.

“The interesting thing about this era and phase of music is that I do feel like the urgency has been turned up a lot for me,” she explained. “When I came into the business, the model was like: make a song, submit it to your label, and maybe two and a half years later somebody hears it. And now, I finished ‘Run!’ eight weeks before everybody heard it. That direct-to-consumer pipeline that I’m now exploring feels really exciting. That urgency feels more real and tingly for me. I think I used to lose steam sitting on music for so long. Now, it’s like—I haven’t decided that I love these songs, I just like them enough to put them out. It takes me a long time to decide how I feel about music, and I’m excited about this new era.”

That new era is also one of self-discovery—both musically

and personally. Her recent Broadway debut as Persephone in the Tony Award-winning “Hadestown,” a retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, was transformative.

“I think having an experience that’s really outside your wheelhouse, that makes you uncomfortable, that’s fresh and new—it’s that beginner’s mindset,” she said. “I’ve put in my 10,000 hours in music and songwriting. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid. I feel quite grown now. So to step away from everything I know and feel comfortable in—and throw myself into both of those experiences—helped me so much. It taught me a lot about leadership and about being part of a grander purpose. Because sometimes with Betty Who music, I’m like, ‘Who’s this for? What do I care about?’”

She continued: “I was like, ‘Wow, all these incredibly talented people have been working their whole lives to be on Broadway, and I got this chance to step into that world without the 5 a.m. auditions at Ripley-Grier.’ I felt very grateful. My imposter syndrome was definitely alive and well, but I tried to tamp it down because I wanted to be present and really experience it. Walking away from that and returning to music, I thought, ‘What if I could give that same energy to my own project? What if I could show up for this with that same beginner’s mindset?’ I learned so much.”

That renewed mindset has carried over into every aspect of her work.

“It feels a little bit more reckless—but in a good way, in a healthy way,” she said. “Where it’s like, great, I like it, put it out. That’s given me a little more freedom and more opportunity to experiment with sound and genre. I’m coming back to music with a lot more purpose and vision.”

That includes dance.

“We’ve been working really hard in the dance studio,” Who said. “Me and my boys—these two dancers I’m bringing on tour—we’ve really worked our asses off on this show. We’re creating shape and feeling and storytelling. It’s big theater ‘Hadestown’ energy. I’m asking, ‘How does this choreography serve the story of these songs?’ So I think if you’re coming to the show for the first or 15th time, you’ll see familiar moments, but also be transported somewhere new. There’s a new layer we’re adding, and I can’t believe it’s happening this weekend.”

She’s also drawing inspiration from artists who challenge traditional boundaries, including Beyoncé.

“I’m really inspired by so many artists right now—particularly my queen, my number one, Beyoncé—who said gender is made up,” Who laughed. “I was saying genre, but now gender and genre are both in my head—Freudian slip! Genre is made up. Her winning Country Album of the Year just showed me how silly it is to think I have to ‘be something.’ I should just make stuff I’m proud of. And that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Her current listening rotation reflects that mindset.

“I’m a huge Kenny Loggins fan—big Ken-ergy in this one,” she said. “His Vox Humana record has this song ‘No Lookin’ Back,’ and that album has been really inspirational to me sonically.”

She paused and pulled up her Spotify library. “I’m going to open my Spotify… Jennie’s record from Blackpink—because I’m a Blink, I’m a Blackpink stan. I love K-pop. Between the girls’ solo records and also XG—that’s a new discovery of mine. I guess I’ve been living under a rock,” she

said with a laugh. “Six months ago, I was like, ‘Who’s XG?’ Their music is so good. XG is up there for me right now.” It’s clear this new chapter for Who is rooted in empowerment, freedom, and connection.

“I think it sounds obvious to say, ‘Who you are is beautiful,’” she said. “But what I’m trying to embody right now is: you can be whoever you want to be, regardless of how other people see you. It’s about your agency, your choice, your ability to show up for yourself—and about creating the life and world you want to live in, in the body you want to be in.”

As she prepares to return to multiple stages during WorldPride, she couldn’t help but reflect on the significance.

“I feel so grateful and excited to be a part of this huge event. Especially now. The fact that WorldPride is happening in D.C.—the irony of it all, a little bit—feels like it’s time for us to show up and show out even bigger and better than we ever have. To be ourselves and celebrate that, especially when so many people don’t want to celebrate us.”

And just in time for Pride season, she has a brand-new single to dance to.

“My new song, ‘Sweat,’ comes out tonight—so it’ll be out by the time this is published. It’s a song I’m really excited about. It makes me want to dance and celebrate. I wrote it about a night I went out with all of my gay friends to a club in New York City and had a little too much fun.”

BETTY WHO performs on Saturday, June 7 at 10 p.m. at the 9:30 Club. Tickets available at Ticketmaster.

(Photo courtesy of Zak Cassar)

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WorldPride schedule of events

Final weekend of epic celebration underway

By JOE REBERKENNY

With hundreds of events across D.C. for WorldPride, it can be overwhelming to decide where to go. From late night parties that turn into early morning dance floors to family friendly events, WorldPride has something for everyone. To help make the most of the events ahead, the Blade rounded up some of the most anticipated events on the calendar with each providing a unique way to celebrate LGBTQ pride, joy, and community.

Key: * Official Events; – Official Partner Events; + Local Events

Friday June 6

+Grizzly Happy Hour

Grizzly Happy Hour at Crush (2007 14th St NW) is getting extra wild for WorldPride DC 2025 with a special edition of their beloved weekly event on Friday, June 6 from 4 to 8 p.m. Known for its laid-back vibes, sexy crowd, and unpretentious fun, this WorldPride edition will turn the dial up with gogo bears, special drink deals, and a curated playlist full of queer anthems, throwback bangers, and underground beats to keep the dance floor busy all night.

*17th Street Block Party

Join the worldwide LGBTQ community to celebrate, dance, and be merry at WorldPride DC’s official Block Party! Located along 17th Street in DC’s historic Dupont circle neighborhood, this annual party honors DC’s “Gayborhood”, and features local food, adult beverages, and various activities in celebration of Pride! The party starts at 5 p.m. and goes til 10 p.m.

-We Are Them: A WorldPride Drag Race Party

Join an iconic lineup of drag royalty — TS Madison, Alaska Thunderfuck, Angeria Paris VanMicheals, Brooke Lynn Hytes, Courtney Act, Denali, Envy Peru, Miz Cracker, Nicky Doll, Olivia Lux, Pangina Heals, Peppermint, Ra’Jah O’Hara, and Trinity the Tuck — for a night of unstoppable energy and fierce performances. With DJs CakePop! and Tezrah spinning all night, the beats will be as bold as the looks. This event takes place at the Anthem (901 Wharf St SW) with tickets available at the Anthem’s website.

*Full Bloom

Come join the lilies, pansies, and blossoms as they dance from the garden to the nation’s capital for the WorldPride official event Full Bloom Dance Party! Queer DJs from across the east coast, The Carry Nation (NYC), Flower Factory (DC), Sweet Spot (BAL), DJ Ed Bailey (DC), WessTheDj (DC), Lemz (DC), and Fish House Funk (DC) will keep the energy high with electric music, sensational outfits, and floral performances

in a venue with 100,000 sq ft of indoor-ourdoor dancing space! The party is 21+ and starts at 9 p.m. at 1235 W Street NE. Outfit participation is requested and tickets are required at the Capital Pride website.

+WorldPride Music Festival

The WorldPride Music Festival, a monumental two-day celebration marking the 50th anniversary of Pride in the city, will have its first night with musical legends like Jennifer Lopez, Galantis, Betty Who, Trisha Paytas, and ZEDD. Taking place at the RFK Festival Grounds (2500 Independence Ave SE) from 1 to 11 p.m., this event promises an unparalleled fusion of music, art, and LGBTQ+ culture. For passes visit https://worldpride25. com/

*Pride on the Pier

Celebrate Pride at the Wharf (760 Maine Ave SW) with DJ, drag, dancing, and much more! Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older. On Friday, the inaugural WorldPride Boat Parade will begin at 7 p.m. featuring 30 decorated boats cruising along the Washington Channel. The event is free to attend, but a VIP ticket is available with air-conditioned lounge, private bathroom, cash bar and complimentary drink. To buy tickets visit https:// www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip

-MIXTAPE Pride Party

Join DC DJs Matt Bailer and Shea Van Horn as they keep the night going with a mix of house, indie dance, nu-disco, electropop, and unexpected throwback gems at the 9:30 Club (815 V St NW). The event starts at 10 p.m. with tickets still available here https://www.930.com/e/mixtape-pride-party/

-LUSH: The DC Lesbian Nightclub Experience

Welcome to the third ever LUSH! DC’s lesbian nightclub experience. Join the “all-dyke DJ lineup” including Lady Lavender, Flotussin, Jacq Jill, and headliner Chrissy Chlapecka for a night of sapphic sensations. Music from across genres- from techno to hyperpop, this is one party the girls don’t wanna miss. The nightclub experience starts at 10 p.m. at 618 Cocktail and Whiskey Lounge (618 H St NW) in Chinatown. Tickets are available for people 21+ at https://ra.co/events/2134312

-JUDY by Sasha Colby and Leland

JUDY, a euphoric dance party curated by Sasha Colby and Leland — is dialed into the purest frequency of sweat, sound, and pop royalty at one of DC’s newest venues the Atlantis (2047 9th St NW) at 10 p.m. From Janet and Madonna to Charli, Troye, and Sylvester, JUDY is a full-throttle celebration of

the queer icons who move us. This is more than a party — it’s a musical sanctuary for the divinely dramatic and unapologetically free. For tickets visit theatlantis.com.

-UNCUT XXL

Get ready for the ultimate WorldPride after-dark experience at UNCUT XXL, the mega party that needs no introduction. Known for its raw energy and unapologetic vibes, this legendary men-centered event returns with one massive stage, nonstop beats from three world-class DJs, and XXL play zones and cruise spaces designed for uninhibited freedom and connection. Cool off in the outdoor chill zone under the stars. This event is 21+ and has limited tickets at the door. Location TBD.

*Woven Together: WorldPride Mega Party

At one of D.C.’s hottest spots, The Park at 14th (920 14th NW), the official WorldPride Mega Party for men will bring the heat with world-class entertainment, a dynamic crowd, and a space to celebrate Pride, community, and culture in true festive style. Special guests, including Steven G. Norfleet from Netflix’s BEAUTY IN BLACK will be there to dance the night away. The event starts at 10:30 p.m. for those 21 and up. For tickets visit Capital Pride’s site.

Saturday, June 7

*17th Street Block Party

Join the worldwide LGBTQ community to celebrate, dance, and be merry at WorldPride DC’s official Block Party. Located along 17th Street in DC’s historic Dupont circle neighborhood, this annual party honors DC’s “Gayborhood”, and features local food, adult beverages, and various activities in celebration of Pride! The party starts at 12 p.m. and goes til 10 p.m.

*WorldPride Parade

Starting in the vibrant Logan Circle neighborhood and winding its way down 14th Street, the parade transforms Pennsylvania Avenue into a colorful corridor of queer joy and celebration. The parade starts at 1 p.m. at the intersection of 14th and T St and will end after a 1.8 mile walk through downtown, ending at Pennsylvania Avenue and 9th St. The Parade is anticipated to end by 8 p.m. it is free to attend, but grandstand tickets are available at https://worldpridedc.org/ events/parade/

*WorldPride Street Festival and Concert

From noon to 10 p.m. enjoy hundreds of vibrant exhibitors, skilled artisans, delicious food, and beverage gardens in addition to multiple stages showcasing an array of multicultural and multilingual performances. And once the Pride Parade wraps, prepare

for a night that defies gravity. Cynthia Erivo, joined by David Archuleta, CeCe Peniston, and Kristine W, will light up the district with a show-stopping celebration you won’t want to miss. To purchase tickets, visit https:// worldpridedc.org/events/concerts/

+WorldPride Music Festival

The WorldPride Music Festival, a monumental two-day celebration marking the 50th anniversary of Pride in the city, will have its second night with a slew of queer musical legends like Troye Sivan, Kim Petras, RuPaul, Purple Disco Machine, and Slayyyter. Taking place at the RFK Festival Grounds (2500 Independence Ave SE) from 1 to 11 p.m., this event promises an unparalleled fusion of music, art, and LGBTQ+ culture. For passes visit https://worldpride25.com/

-Perfume Genius Concert

Join the hauntingly beautiful and emotionally raw sounds of Perfume Genius, as they perform live at the 9:30 Club (815 V St NW) as part of the WorldPride weekend lineup. Known for their genre-defying sound and deeply vulnerable performances, Perfume Genius will deliver a set that’s both intimate and electrifying — a perfect prelude to a night of celebration. The concert begins at 6 p.m. with tickets available at https:// www.930.com/e/perfume-genius/

*Pride on the Pier and Fireworks Display Celebrate Pride at the Wharf (760 Maine Ave SW) with DJ, drag, dancing, and much more! Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older. On Saturday night after a long day of celebrating the LGBTQ community, watch the only Pride Fireworks Show, presented by the Leonard-Litz LGBTQ Foundation, at 9 p.m. The event is free to attend, but does offer two groups of VIP tickets that include access to a cash bar, bathrooms, and a better view of the fireworks. To buy tickets visit https:// www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip

*UNRAVELED – The Official Women’s Party for World Pride DC

Get ready to unleash your wild, free, and unapologetically fabulous self at UNRAVELED, the ultimate WorldPride celebration for HER.With 4 floors, 5 bars, and 1 patio, celebrate with over 5,000 queer women, femmes, trans and non-binary baddies & theydies to coming together to identity, joy, and community. An all-female DJ lineup will keep the energy high, spinning everything from hip-hop to house all night long. This 21+ event will be at The Park at 14th (920 14th NW), with tickets available at the Capital Pride site.

CONTINUES ON PAGE 56

Jason Robert Brown & Friends

Saturday, June 14, 7 p.m.

Three-time Tony Award-winning composer and living legend of musical theater, Jason Robert Brown, performs an intimate evening filled with musical brilliance. JRB & Friends o ers a close-up look at the career of the composer, director, orchestrator and lyricist.

COMING NEXT SEASON

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 52

WorldPride schedule of events

*Fabric of Freedom Unite with thousands of LGBTQ+ partygoers in the nation’s capital for the largest nighttime Pride event in DC history! With 3 stages, over 100,000+ sq. ft. of dance floor, and an iconic performance by Brazilian drag (and musical) superstar Pabllo Vittar. This is one dance event that is sure to be the hot spot on Saturday night. The party begins at 10 p.m. at 1235 W Street NE for those 21 and up, with tickets available at the Capital Pride site.

-Betty Who Concert

cedes Iman Diamond, D.C. favorites Crimsyn and Druex Sidora, and will take place at Dirty Habit (555 8th St NW) inside Hotel Monaco on Sunday, June 8. Tickets include a brunch buffet two drinks, and admission to the show.  VIP tickets include a pre-show meet and greet with Alyssa and reserved seating. This 21+ event still has tickets available at etix.com.

*WorldPride Street Festival and Concert

Pop powerhouse Betty Who will bring her signature anthems and magnetic stage presence to the he 9:30 Club (815 V St NW) at 10 p.m. Known for turning every show into a joyful, high-energy celebration of queer love and liberation, Betty’s performance promises a setlist packed with synth-pop hits and heartfelt singalongs. Whether you’re a longtime fan or just discovering her infectious sound, this is a can’t-miss moment of WorldPride weekend. For tickets visit https://www.930. com/e/betty-who/

-UNCUT: Fully Loaded

Back by popular demand, UNCUT: Fully Loaded storms into Saturday, June 7, bringing a second night of untamed WorldPride energy to the same legendary venue. This men-centered mega event is a explosion of music, sweat, and raw connection—featuring Paulo Fragoso and DJ Paulo keeping the dance floor alive with nonstop, world-class beats. Expect XXL play zones and a relaxed outdoor chill space. The location is TBD. Tickets are still available for this 21+ event at KineticPresents.com

Sunday June 8

-Flashy World Pride Afters

Join DJs Kitty Glitter and Shane Marcus as they keep the night going with their special edition of Flashy at Flash(645 Florida Ave NW)! If you still wanna keep those feet moving after a WorldPride weekend, then this is the place. Starting at 4 a.m. and going until 8, this is the place to rise with the sun and dance the morning away. Tickets are available here https://www.flashdc.com/e/Fu4k42Ekie

-World Pride Drag Brunch w/ Alyssa Edwards

Kick off your WorldPride Sunday with glitz, glam, and a whole lot of charisma at the official WorldPride Drag Brunch, starring none other than Alyssa Edwards, winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars. Hosted by Minneapolis legend Sasha Cassadine, this star-studded brunch lineup also features Utica, Mer-

Then, as WorldPride DC 2025 comes to a fierce finale, get ready for a closing concert that bites back. Headlined by the unstoppable Doechii—fresh off her raw and fearless Alligator Bites Never Heal—this explosive night of music will be anything but ordinary. With powerhouse performances by Khalid, Brooke Eden, 2AM Ricky, Parker Matthews, and MkX, Sunday’s grand finale will leave you healed, hyped, and hungry for more. To purchase tickets, visit https://worldpridedc.org/ events/concerts/

+FLOWER FACTORY WORLD PRIDE 2025 feat. DEEP CVNT MINI BALL DELUXE Close out WorldPride 2025 in style with an iconic Sunday soirée hosted by Flower Factory and DEEP CVNT on June 8 from 3–9:30 p.m. at Zebbie’s Garden (1223 Connecticut Ave NW). This multi-floor celebration will feature superstar DJs, legendary performances, and pure queer radiance. Upstairs, dance to sets by Sekucci (NYC), Flotussin (Baltimore), and the Flower Factory crew. Downstairs, Deep Cvnt Mini Ball Deluxe takes over with music from ballroom legend and Renaissance producer Mike Q, plus a set from local favorite Znorthy, all presented by Girliepop. Come dressed to impress for floral-themed categories like Runway, Best Dressed, Performance, and Sex Siren. For tickets visit https://sickening.events/e/flower-factory-world-pride-2025

-RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 Extravaganza

Celebrate WorldPride with the stars of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 at the 9:30 Club (815 V St NW) for an electrifying night of drag, music, and pure queer joy. This high-energy event features dazzling performances by the top 5 queens of season 17, Sasha Cassadine and Mercedes Iman Diamond, with beats by D.C.’s own Cake Pop! keeping the party going all night long. Whether you’re a die-hard Drag Race fan or just here for the vibes, this is your chance to cheer on your favorite queens and revel in the art of drag at its fiercest. The event starts at 9 p.m. with tickets still available at 930.com.

(Blade file photo by Michael Key)

kp.org/excellence/mas

In town for WorldPride?

Take a D.C. queer walking tour

Sites of protest, celebration, and mourning

By JOE

REBERKENNY | jreberkenny@washblade.com

As Washington welcomes the world for WorldPride, it’s essential to honor the city’s deep-rooted LGBTQ history—an integral part of the broader story of the nation’s capital. The following locations have served as cornerstones of queer life and activism in D.C., shaping both local and national movements for LGBTQ rights. So take a walk around “the gayest city in America” and check out these sites.

DUPONT CIRCLE AREA

Dupont Circle

Central hub of LGBTQ life since the early 20th century, hosting Pride parades, Dyke Marches, and cruising culture. A long-standing site of protests and celebrations.

Washington Hilton– 1919 Connecticut Ave NW

Hosted D.C.’s first major hotel drag event in 1968 and the iconic Miss Adams Morgan Pageant. Protested in 1978 during Anita Bryant’s appearance.

Lesbian Avengers – 1426 21st St NW

Formed in 1992, the group empowered lesbians through bold direct actions. They met in Dupont Circle and launched the city’s first Dyke March.

Lambda Rising Bookstore (former) – 1724 20th Street NW

D.C.’s first LGBTQ bookstore and the birthplace of the city’s inaugural Pride celebration in 1975.

Women In The Life (former office) – 1623 Connecticut Ave NW

Founded in 1993 by Sheila Alexander-Reid as a safe space and support network for lesbians of color.

17th Street NW Corridor – Between P & R Streets NW

Core of the LGBTQ business district, home to the annual High Heel Race in October and the June Block Party celebrating the origins of D.C. Pride.

CAPITOL

HILL / SOUTHEAST

Tracks (former) – 80 M St SE

Once D.C.’s largest gay club, famous for inclusive parties, RuPaul shows, and foam nights from 1984 to 2000.

Ziegfeld’s / The Other Side – 1345 Half Street SE

Legendary drag venue since 1978, hosting famed performers like Ella Fitzgerald.

Club 55 / Waaay Off Broadway – 55 K Street SE

Converted theater central to D.C.’s early drag and Academy pageant scenes.

Congressional Cemetery – 1801 E Street SE

Resting place of LGBTQ figures like Sgt. Leonard Matlovich and Peter Doyle. Offers queer history tours.

Mr. Henry’s – 601 Pennsylvania Ave SE

LGBTQ-friendly bar since 1966 and the launching stage for Roberta Flack’s career.

The Furies Collective House – 219 11th Street SE

Home to a 1970s lesbian feminist collective that published “The Furies.” Members included Rita Mae Brown.

ARCHIVES / PENN QUARTER

Archives Metro & Center Market Site – 7th St & Pennsylvania Ave NW

Where Walt Whitman met Peter Doyle in 1865, commemorated by a sculpture linking Whitman and poet Fernando Pessoa.

COLUMBIA HEIGHTS / PETWORTH

Palm Ballroom (former) – 4211 9th Street NW

Mid-20th century venue for Black drag balls and LGBTQ events during segregation.

NATIONAL MALL AREA

National Mall / Washington Monument Grounds

Historic site of LGBTQ activism and remembrance, including the 1987 display of the AIDS Memorial Quilt and a mass same-sex wedding. Hosted major civil rights marches in 1979, 1987, and 1993.

NORTHWEST DC

Dr. Franklin E. Kameny House – 5020 Cathedral Ave NW

Home of gay rights pioneer Frank Kameny and the Mattachine Society of Washington; now a national landmark.

LAFAYETTE SQUARE / WHITE HOUSE

Lafayette Park – Pennsylvania Ave & 16th St NW

Historic gay cruising area and epicenter of government surveillance during the Lavender Scare.

Data from: SSecret City by James Kirchick, The Deviant’s War by Frank Kameny, Brett Beemyn, The Rainbow History Project, NPS Archives, Washington Blade Archives.

The home of Frank Kameny is a national landmark. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Lambda Rising bookstore closed in 2009.

Congressional Cemetery is home to a memorial tribute to Frank Kameny. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Faith and interfaith-based events for WorldPride

Whatever you hold sacred this Pride is a faith-based event

By EMMA CIESLIK

As WorldPride begins, the Washington LGBTQ+ community is eager to welcome our queer neighbors from around the country and around the world. From the ASL Open Mic to the Art Tour of Queer Icons and Trailblazers, WorldPride is hosting a diverse selection of events catered to the varied interests, identities, and actions of the wider LGBTQ+ community.

Faith communities from across the Washington, D.C. area have planned individual and interfaith events for LGBTQ+ visitors. Faith communities acknowledge that religion is not a vital part of all LGBTQ+ peoples’ lives. Around the world, queer people have been hurt by religious institutions (through conversion therapy, colonial violence, and other forces of harm). At the same time, for many LGBTQ+ individuals, faith is an important way in which they navigate the world, make meaning, and connect with others who have shared experiences.

A clear statement of faith and spirituality was launched this week at WorldPride. The Lavender Interfaith Collective’s call to action for WorldPride was published yesterday in the Blade

This call was released to counteract the virulent increase in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and violence. The message of the interfaith call to action calls everyone to the essential work of sustaining queer joy as celebration, resistance and liberation. The call to action opens with the clear affirmation that “across faiths, identities, and nations, we are united by one unshakable truth: every person is worthy, every voice sacred, every body divine. Our unity is not rooted in a single tradition but in a collective belief in the sacred worth of every person.”

Hosting both faith and interfaith events this year highlights the region’s commitment to queer-affirming, multi-faith community, such as the Pride Interfaith Service, whereas others, such as the Interfaith

Community Tour at the Rainbow History Project’s Pickets, Protests, and Parades: The History of Gay Pride in Washington exhibition, are tailored to this particularly historical moment and looking back on the rich history of D.C.’s LGBTQ+ community.

In order to raise awareness for what is scheduled, here is a list of the broad strokes of faith-based events that are scheduled for WorldPride this year. This list is not comprehensive because faith is multi-faceted and applies to any experience that a person views as sacred, which can include everything from protesting to prayer to cheering on your favorite drag king. So in many ways, whatever you hold sacred this Pride is a faith-based event.

May 16-January 4: LGBTJews in the Federal City

Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum, 575 3rd Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20001

Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum’s “LGBT Jews in the Federal City” explores a turbulent century of celebration, activism, and change in the nation’s capital. This landmark exhibition is the first of its kind to explore DC history, Jewish history, and queer history together, drawing from the Museum’s robust LGBTQ+ archive. Immerse yourself in historical and contemporary photography, artifacts, and oral histories. Learn about legal milestones, far-ranging protests, vibrant cultural life, and change in religious spaces.

The exhibition will open in time for Washington, D.C.’s observation of its 50th Capital Pride celebration and as the city hosts WorldPride for the first time, offering an unprecedented opportunity to infuse Pride with local Jewish history.

June 6, 9 am-4 pm: Trans Visibility, Empowerment, Aid and Wellness Day

National City Christian Church Washington, DC

Coordinated by National Trans Visibility March and the United Church of Christ

A day dedicated to mental, spiritual, financial, and emotional empowerment through gatherings, and workshops. For people of faith, they may specifically be interested in the Empowerment Service, scheduled from 1:40-2:40 pm at the United Church of Christ, Washington, DC. This is a session dedicated to spiritual and emotional well-being.

Find a breakdown of the events at this link: https://www.ntvmarch.org/upcomingevents/ntvm-empowerment-day-and-labor-of-love-awards-reception.

June 6, 6-9 pm: World Pride Shabbat Service and Dinner

Adas Israel Congregation Washington, DC

Brought to you by Bet Mishpachah Join Bet Mishpachah, DC’s LGBTQ+ Synagogue, the World Congress of LGBT Jews, Washington Hebrew Congregation, GLOE, Sixth and I, The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, NJB+, and Temple Sinai for World Pride Shabbat hosted at Adas Israel Congregation. Join us for a joyous celebration of love, unity, and community. Come together for drinks, snacks, and a warm atmosphere to honor our LGBTQ+ Jewish community.

Following the happy hour, we will gather for a Pride Shabbat service led by Rabbi Jake Singer-Beilin and featuring clergy from around the Washington community. Let’s raise a glass to inclusivity and acceptance! Immediately following the service will be a Shabbat dinner. Space is limited, so register as soon as possible.

Please register at this link: https://www. adasisrael.org/form/world-pride-shabbat. html

June 6, 7:30 pm: Lavender Light Gospel Chorus (NYC) + three more choruses National City Christian Church Washington, DC

Please join a celebration featuring the Lavender Light Gospel Choir (New York, NY), Rock Creek Singers (Washington, DC), Seasons of Love (Washington, DC), and Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus.

June 7, 9:30-12:30 am: Eid al-Adha for All: An Inclusive Celebration for Queer Muslims & Allies

Foundry United Methodist Church Washington, DC

Coordinated by QTAPI Pride Coalition/ AQUA DC

Location: Foundry UMC1500 16th Street Northwest, Wash. DC 20036

Join Hidayah US and DC Queer Muslims, in partnership with AQUA DC and API Pride, for an inclusive Eid al-Adha prayer service in celebration of World Pride 2025. Taking place on Saturday, June 7 at Foundry United Methodist Church, this gathering will include a khutbah (sermon), congregational Eid salah (prayer), and a reception with light refreshments and community tabling. This event aims to create a safe space for queer Muslims to celebrate this important holiday together.

The prayer will follow an open arrange-

ment where attendees may stand wherever they feel most comfortable, regardless of gender or sexual identity. This event is free and open to LGBTQ+ Muslims and allies, ages 18 and older (or younger if accompanied by a guardian).

All attendees must agree to the event’s safeguarding policies, which include a commitment to respect the Muslim and LGBTQ+ communities and a prohibition on audio or video recording during the event. Let’s come together to honor traditions, build connections, and share in the spirit of love and acceptance. We look forward to seeing you there! Then join us to march in the Parade afterwards!

Please register at this link: https://www. eventbrite.com/e/eid-al-adha-for-all-an-inclusive-celebration-for-queer-muslims-allies-tickets-1363795000559?aff=GeneralEmailInvitation

June 8, 2-3:30 pm: Join QTAPI for King Kamehameha Lei Draping Ceremony

US Capitol Building, Statuary Hall, 1st Street Southwest, Washington, DC 20515 Join QTAPI Coalition, the first and only explicitly queer delegation, to present leis at the King Kamehameha Lei Draping Ceremony at the U.S. Capitol; an annual event held to honor King Kamehameha I, the first monarch and unifier of the Hawaiian Kingdom. This traditional ceremony typically takes place in June to coincide with King Kamehameha Day celebrations in Hawaii. The ceremony is centered around the statue of King Kamehameha I, which is part of the National Statuary Hall Collection in the U.S. Capitol and the only monarch in the collection.

After cultural performances and keynotes from dignitaries and the Hawaii congressional delegation, the statue is adorned with beautiful and long lei, symbolizing respect and admiration for the great king. All are welcome to join in on celebrating and highlighting native Hawaiian, and Polynesian culture, history, and ritual! This ceremony is attended by Hawaii officials, including members of Hawaii’s Congressional delegation, Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustees, and state and county officials, in addition to other US territory delegates and DC officials.

Registration required to enter Statuary Hall, dress code: Hawaiian business casual. Indicate “AQUA - API Pride” for “Organization or Group.”

Please register at this link (by June 1st): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/ 1FAIpQLScQeHr4mfM0h4JXOk2c-4INiM6VG5i7XRWtFfjmL05WAHSvPQ/viewform

The Washington National Cathedral’s premiere of ‘Our Wildest Imagining,’ a choral anthem commissioned in honor of the Right Rev. V. GENE ROBINSON, was held earlier this week. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Here comes the Pride: Freddie Lutz, Johnny Cervantes to wed during WorldPride parade

‘Love is good for business’

By JOE REBERKENNY | jreberkenny@washblade.com

For 28 years, Freddie Lutz and Johnny Cervantes have been through nearly everything together. From starting one of the most successful and well-known LGBTQ bars in the DMV — Freddie’s Beach Bar and later opening a second location in Rehoboth — to navigating a pandemic and even overcoming death threats for supporting the LGBTQ community, the pair has been through a lot.

So it only makes sense for them to take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and get married in the middle of the WorldPride parade as it makes its way down 14th Street.

For the longest time, the couple had contemplated getting married, but according to Lutz, none of those times felt quite right.

“When they passed gay marriage in Virginia, I asked him if he wanted to get married the following day,” Lutz told the Blade. “And [Cervantes] said, ‘No, but you can take me to Tiffany’s.’”

Cervantes shared that although the thought had crossed his mind, he had seen the two as committed long before the courts deemed them worthy.

“I don’t think it was until about 2009 that we really considered marriage,” Cervantes said. “We had gone to some fundraiser where Gavin Newsom was speaking — he was such an advocate for gay rights and gay marriage, that that’s what kind of got us both thinking. Like any other marginalized group, you learn to feel that you’re not worthy, that you’re not entitled to certain rights. However, his speech at that time got us realizing that we were worthy and were entitled to marriage.”

“We still hadn’t taken advantage of marriage because it’s like—we have our daily lives together, both in Arlington and in Rehoboth,” Cervantes added. “I think spiritually, we have been committed as if we were married to each other. Going through a ceremony wouldn’t change things.”

Another—and seemingly bigger—concern the pair had about throwing a wedding was who would make the guest list—and which one of their friends would have to sit out due to the nature of hosting such an event.

“We’ve thought about getting married a few times over the past 28 years, but we know so many people that I said to him, ‘Oh my gosh, where would we cut off the invitation list?’ I’d have a lot of pissed off people at me. This way, we’re literally inviting the entire world,” Lutz said.

And invite the world they have. As their home becomes the center of the gay universe this week with WorldPride coming to Washington, the pair decided to get married with some special help and support from the Equality Chamber of Commerce DC (ECCDC).

“If you know Freddie, the idea of his wedding being in the middle of a Pride parade embodies the joy of who he is and his whole spirit,” said Kat Dean, director of the Equality Chamber Foundation. “It was this perfect alignment of continuing to lift up queer economic empowerment and give the spotlight back onto him. I mean, this is what we do as a chamber. Our whole purpose is to continue to uplift businesses—and this is a great way for us to uplift a cornerstone of queer businesses in the area. He’s brought a lot of joy and community into a lot of people’s lives. This is our way of kind of thanking him for the work

that he’s done by serving the community.”

When asked what has been the most exciting part of making this idea a reality, Dean—one of the float’s original concept creators and one of the people responsible for the Pride Parade wedding idea—was ready with an answer.

“To watch the design that’s being built by this incredible designer, and seeing that concept start to come to life—it’s been, honestly, a lot of joy when a project like this unfolds,” she said. “Kevin Fenton is the designer from Walla Design that has helped with the marketing and the branding of this. He’s been really integral in pushing out the message and has done a really fabulous job. We’ve received some donated material as well and some support from the community. But really, it’s less about the organizations that have been helping, and more about the individuals who are helping to build the float, to get it up there. There’s some people from our board, some volunteers from our community—a bunch of people coming together to help make this super duper fun.”

This project has been in the works since February, according to Dean, and was inspired by her own recent path to marriage.

“We knew that we, ECCDC, were going to have a float in the parade. We got approved at the beginning of the year that we were actually able to have a float,” Dean said. “I believe it was because of our February Chamber Connect [the monthly networking series], that was conveniently at Freddie’s. But that was not the correlation at the time. It was at Freddie’s in Arlington, but no direct tie-in at all that it had come out.”

“My partner and I had just decided to get engaged and get married,” she added. “The chamber was still coming up with what the idea was for the float, and one conversation led to the next, and the topic of gay marriage came

up. The day after the Chamber Connect, I sent out an email—I think at like 6:30 in the morning—to a couple people that I started talking to, including our executive director, and said, ‘Hey, here’s a rough idea following our conversation from last night,’ and everyone just jumped on it.”

As discussions of logistics continued, Dean and her wife took some time to get married ahead of the chaos of WorldPride. This led them to a mini-honeymoon in Rehoboth, where they met Lutz.

“We connected with Freddie and we were talking to him about our wedding. My wife and I were actually in Rehoboth, and we were having a little ‘mini-moon’ there after we just got married. We were telling him about the wedding and the decision of why we wanted to get married sooner rather than later.”

“He told me that he had had similar thoughts with his partner of 28 years, and they were deciding to do the same thing. And after a couple orange crushes, I turned and looked at him, and I said, ‘Hey, how about you do this in the middle of the Pride parade? We’ve got a chapel already being built.’ It was fate!”

Lutz explained that this organic conversation between the two sparked an unexpected but perfect alignment of dreams and opportunity.

“I have a second Freddie’s location in Rehoboth Beach, and I’m literally down there two weeks ago, and I’m chatting this girl up at the bar, and she says, ‘I’m with the Equality Chamber of Washington. We are doing a wedding chapel float in the WorldPride Parade,’” Lutz said. “And I said, ‘Wait, what? That’s my all-time dream—to get married on a Pride float with Johnny.’ I couldn’t believe it. I’ve been actually thinking about doing a wedding float with Freddie’s for years—I’ve been talking about it for years. So she says to me, ‘We’re going to be marrying several couples on the float. Would you like to be one of them?’ And I said, ‘No, but if you’ll do just us and let me put Freddie’s signage on the float, I’ll do it.’”

“I do think I probably owe that couple [Dean and her wife] a nice wedding gift,” Lutz added, laughing.

The meeting of Dean and Lutz in an LGBTQ bar—which ultimately led to the wedding coming to fruition—closely mirrors how the soon-to-be-wed grooms first met.

The couple met in another of Washington’s best-known LGBTQ institutions—JR.’s.

“I was actually meeting with a group of people, and we were celebrating my birthday and my friend Dylan’s birthday,” Lutz said. “We all met for a drink at JR.’s, and then went to dinner at Trumpets. Johnny was sitting way down at the end of the table, and I kept looking at him, and that’s how we met.”

The opportunity Lutz and Cervantes had to meet—specifically at an LGBTQ-run business—is exactly the message Dean hopes to highlight with the float and with ECCDC overall.

“We keep going with this tagline—‘Love is good for business,’” Dean said. “Support of queer economic power. But it’s also to remind you guys that we’re here to support you and support our community in whatever it is that they’re doing. We’re just really excited to share in the joy and share in Pride with everyone.”

FREDDIE LUTZ accepting a Pride award from the National Landing BID with his fiancé JOHNNY CERVANTES (Photo courtesy of Freddie Lutz)

Welcome To Summer – Fairfax Style

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ACROSS PUTT

50 concerts. 25 venues. 30 choruses. 16 days.

Experience the power of music as LGBTQ+ and allied choruses and groups gather with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, DC to celebrate love, diversity, strength, and pride. The festival will include John Bucchino’s A Peacock Among Pigeons and the world premiere of Our Wildest Imaginings, a new work by acclaimed composer Dominick DiOrio, at select performances. FREE concerts every day.

KINETIC Presents to offer six WorldPride nightlife events

By EVAN CAPLAN

WorldPride has arrived! Dozens of events are happening across D.C. over the next week, from the free weekend gatherings on Pennsylvania Avenue to marches, parades, sporting events, and conferences.

In the evening, parties abound and KINETIC Presents steps into the spotlight. Capital Pride Alliance has partnered with longtime local party producer KINETIC Presents, D.C.’s homegrown nightlife brand led by producers Dougie Meyer, Zach Renovates, and Jesus Quispe (aka “Mother Fantasy”), to host six official events for WorldPride DC 2025, including the highly anticipated Fabric of Freedom: Massive Main Event. Taking place in D.C. from Thursday, June 5, to Sunday, June 8, this landmark celebration promises an unparalleled fusion of music, entertainment, and community on a global scale. Renovates also owns Bunker and the new District Eagle.

scene. In partnership with KINETIC Events and the LatinX History Project, El Mozo will present “Yes to All,” an electrifying party celebrating inclusivity.

On Friday, June 6, the weekend’s energy intensifies with UNCUT XXL, a circuit event featuring internationally renowned DJs Alex Lo, Eliad Cohen, and Las Bibas from Vizcaya.

“WorldPride is about bringing communities together for an unforgettable experience,” Renovates said. “With legendary global brands, top-tier talent, and a city ready to shine, this will be a Pride like no other.”

The KINETIC weekend begins on Thursday June 5 with the El Mozo party, which focuses on Latin circuit music. El Mozo is an LGBTQ+ entertainment brand out of Colombia’s circuit

“I’m incredibly excited to perform at Washington WorldPride,” says Cohen. “The last time I played in D.C. was unforgettable, the energy, the people, the love, it was all next level. Now, with WorldPride bringing together people from all over the world to celebrate who we are, it feels even more special.”

Saturday, June 7, marks the weekend’s flagship event, Fabric of Freedom: Massive Main Event. This indoor-outdoor space spans more than 100,000 square feet of dance floors across three stages: the WE Party Main Stage with world-renowned DJs; the Cherry Fund Stage with music curated by Cherry Fund; and the DiscoVERS Stage is set to be an “immersive disco haven” with DJs spinning nu-disco and disco house under lights with surprise pop-up performances.

The grand finale on Sunday, June 8, unites KINETIC Presents with Matinée, the legendary Barcelona-based festival

Chris Beagle Group

that has dominated the international club scene for more than 26 years. Together, they will present LaLeche!, with more international DJs.

For those unwilling to let the night end, the AFTER WORLD: DC 2025 PRIDE AFTERS PASS grants access to two exclusive after-hours experiences running from 4-9 a.m. on June 7 and 8. Both events are immersive, high-energy dance parties featuring a world-class DJ lineup in an electrifying setting.

“As the producers of KINETIC Presents, we approached this WorldPride lineup with a mission to create an unforgettable, diverse, and high-energy experience that reflects the global spirit of Pride,” says Meyer. “This year, we took things to the next level by focusing on bigger production, more elaborate themes, and an even wider range of musical styles to cater to the diverse tastes of our audience. We also prioritized global representation, bringing in talent from different corners of the world to truly embody the essence of World Pride.”

“This is more than just a weekend of parties—it’s a global movement uniting people in Washington, D.C., to celebrate love, diversity, and Pride on an unprecedented scale,” says Meyer.

Cohen concluded that “Coming to D.C. for this event is deeply meaningful to me. We’ve come so far as a community, but as we know, there’s still work to do, especially in times when our rights and identities are being challenged. Pride is our time to stand united, shine brighter than ever, and remind the world that we are here, we are proud, and we are unstoppable.”

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IN-PERSON ENROLLMENT POP-UPS

MON, JUN 9

9:30am – 3:30pm Cleveland Park Library

3310 Connecticut Ave, NW

WED, JUN 18 9:30am – 3:30pm Southwest Library

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TUE, JUN 10 9:30am – 3:30pm Francis Gregory Library 3660 Alabama Ave, SE

WED, JUN 25 9:30am – 3:30pm Cleveland Park Library 3310 Connecticut Ave, NW

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June 28

Signature Theatre & Wolf Trap Present Broadway in the Park

Lindsay Mendez and Jessie Mueller

July 29

Pink Martini

30th Anniversary Tour Featuring China Forbes

James Blunt

Back To Bedlam 20th Anniversary Tour

Forest Blakk

June 18

Buddy Guy

Christone “King sh” Ingram

June 21

HAUSER

June 25

DISPATCH

John Butler (with Band)

G. Love & Special Sauce

July 5

June 29

The Roots with special guest Nai Palm

August 1

One Night Only Sutton Foster & Kelli O’Hara National Symphony Orchestra

Rick Spring eld with John Waite, Wang Chung & Paul Young

July 6

Straight No Chaser

July 9

Iron & Wine

I’m With Her

July 15

Jean-Yves Thibaudet plays Gershwin

National Symphony Orchestra

July 18

July 11

The Swell Season

August 5

Jacob Collier Sammy Rae & The Friends

Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue

JJ Grey & Mofro

July 24

Disney ’80s-’90s Celebration in Concert

National Symphony Orchestra

July 26

Back to the Future in Concert

National Symphony Orchestra

August 2

Yacht Rock Revue

August 3

July 19

An Evening with David Sedaris

September 2 + 3

John Legend Get Lifted 20th Anniversary Tour

The Concert: A Tribute to ABBA

August 17

Train

Edwin McCain

August 20

James Taylor & His All-Star Band

Tiny Habits

August 21, 23 + 24

…and many more!

Premier Sponsor 2025 Summer Season

Atlas Presents Tara Hoot: A Hoot for the Holidays.

Photo by David Starry.

CALENDAR |

By TINASHE CHINGARANDE

Friday, June 06

“Center Aging Friday Tea Time” will be at 12 p.m. in person at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. For more details, email adam@thedccenter.org.

Pizza Diversity will host “Sip & Pizza Night - A Class For the Culture” at 6 p.m. at Penn Randall Place. This event is no gimmicks, just great pizza, real connection, and community. Tickets cost $92.55 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.

Saturday, June 07

GoGay DC will host “LGBTQ+ Community Brunch” at 11 a.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant. This fun weekly event brings the DMV area LGBTQ+ community, including Allies, together for delicious food and conversation. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

“World Pride Women, Sapphics, LGBTQ Rooftop Party” will be at 9 p.m. at Baby Shank Rooftop Bar and Lounge. This will be an exciting women’s party at World Pride! Celebrate love, dance to amazing beats by some of the nation’s hottest LGBTQ DJs. Tickets are available on Eventbrite.

Dance With pride will host “WorldPride Weekend: Ultimate Pregame” at 7 p.m. at Ultrabar. This will be the ultimate LGBTQ+ pre-game destination. Get ready to ignite your evening with infectious energy, dynamic beats, unforgettable performances, and an atmosphere that gets you ready for an unstoppable night of celebration and fun. Tickets start at $13.26 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.

LGBTQ People of Color Support Group will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This peer support group is an outlet for LGBTQ People of Color to come together and talk about anything affecting them in a space the strives to be safe and judgment free. There are all sorts of activities like watching movies, poetry events, storytelling, and just hanging out with others. For more details, visit thedccenter.org/poc or facebook.com/centerpoc.

Sunday, June 08

Brandan Robertson will host a WorldPride book launch event for his book “Queer and Christian” at 10:30 a.m. at St. Thomas Episcopal Church. This is a groundbreaking book exploring the intersection of queer identity and Christian faith. The event kicks off with Brandan Robertson preaching at the 10:30 a.m. service, followed by a dynamic discussion with Brandan, moderated by Rev. Thomas Bowen, former Senior Advisor for Public Engagement at the Biden White House, at 12 p.m. Attendance is free and more details are available on Eventbrite.

Monday, June 09

“Center Aging Monday Coffee & Conversation” will be at 10 a.m. on Zoom. This is a social hour for older LGBTQ+ adults. Guests are encouraged to bring a beverage of choice. For more details, email adam@thedccenter.org.

Tuesday, June 10

Trans Discussion Group will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This group is intended to provide an emotionally and physically safe space for trans people and those who may be questioning their gender identity/expression to join together in community and learn from one another. For more details, email info@thedccenter.org.

Coming Out Discussion Group will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This support group is a safe space to share experiences about coming out and discuss topics as it relates to doing so. For more details, visit the group’s Facebook.

Thirst and Paint will host “Free Gay Sip and Paint” at 6:30 p.m. at Green Lantern. This is catered to the LGBTQ community. Allies are also welcome. Outlines and paint instructions will be provided as will the paint, canvas and brushes. Drinks are available from the private bar. With three hours of expressive painting, your night will be filled with creativity, sexiness and fun. Tickets cost $23.18 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.

Wednesday, June 11

Job Club will be at 6 p.m. on Zoom. This 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.

Thursday, June 12

The DC Center’s Fresh Produce Program will be held all day at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. 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.

Virtual Yoga with Charles M. will be at 7 p.m. on Zoom. This is a free weekly class focusing on yoga, breath work, and meditation. For more details, visit the DC Center for the LGBT Community’s website.

OUT & ABOUT

Trans Unity Coalition celebrates Pride with march, workshops

Trans Unity Coalition, a transgender non-profit registered in multiple states, will host a series of Pride events to celebrate the resilience, beauty, and fierceness of D.C.’s queer community.

On, Sunday, June 15, the organization will host “U.S. Capitol Rally & White House March for Transgender Unity” at 9:30 p.m. starting at the U.S. Capitol. There will be speakers to discuss hope, strength, joy, collective pride, and what America’s transgender community needs to do going forward.

From Monday, June 16 to Friday, June 20, there will be an advocacy workshop hosted virtually. This virtual workshop will teach members lessons in advocacy, and how to independently engage with their elected officials. This is free to all who wish to gain these skills.

On Monday, June 23, there will be an all-day “Congress Lobby Day” at the U.S. Capitol. This is not a demonstration, but rather pre-scheduled meetings with members of Congress. The goal is to discuss the ongoing and emerging needs of America’s transgender community, build more networks with lawmakers, and empower attendees to learn engagement tools they can take with them going forward.

For more details about all the events, visit Trans Unity Coalition’s website.

Trans Unity Coalition will host ‘U.S. Capitol Rally & White House March for Transgender Unity’ on Sunday at 9:30 p.m. starting at the U.S. Capitol. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

A hilarious ‘Twelfth Night’ at Folger full of

‘elegant kink’

Nonbinary actor Alyssa Keegan stars as Duke Orsino

By PATRICK FOLLIARD

Nonbinary actor Alyssa Keegan (they/them)loves tapping into the multitudes within.

Currently Keegan plays the melancholic Duke Orsino in Folger Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s romantic comedy “Twelfth Night.” Director Mei Ann Teo describes the production as “sexy, hilarious, and devastating” and full of “elegant kink.”

Washington-based, Keegan enjoys a busy and celebrated career. Her vast biography includes Come From Away at Ford’s Theatre; Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Helen Hayes Award, Best Actress) and Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive, both at Round House Theatre; Diana Son’s Stop Kiss directed by Holly Twyford for No Rules Theatre Company; and Contractions at Studio Theatre, to name just a few.

In addition to acting, Keegan works as a polyamory and ethical non-monogamy life and relationship coach, an area of interest that grew out of personal exploration. For them, coaching seems to work hand in hand with acting.

WASHINGTON BLADE: You’re playing the lovesick Orsino in Twelfth Night. How did that come about?

ALYSSA KEEGAN: The director was looking to cast a group of actors with diverse identities; throughout auditions, there were no constraints regarding anyone’s assigned sex at birth. It was really a free for all.

BLADE: What’s your approach to the fetching, cod-piece clad nobleman?

KEEGAN: Offstage I identify as completely nonbinary; I love riding in this neutral middle space. But I also love cosplay. The ability to do that in the play gives me permission to dive completely into maleness.

So, when I made that decision to play Orsino as a bio male, suddenly the part really cracked open for me. I began looking for clues about his thoughts and opinions about things like his past relationships and his decision not to date older women.

Underneath his mask of bravura and sexuality, and his firmness of feelings, he’s quite lonely and has never really felt loved. It makes sense to me why his love for Olivia is so misguided and why he might fall in love with the Cesario/Viola character.

BLADE: As an actor, do you ever risk taking on the feelings of your characters?

KEEGAN: Prior to my mental health education, yes, and that could be toxic for me. I’ve since learned that the nervous system can’t tell the difference between real emotional distress and a that of a fully embodied character.

So, I created and share the Empowered Performer Project. [a holistic approach to performance that emphasizes the mental and emotional well-being of performing artists]. It utilizes somatic tools that help enormously when stepping into a character.

BLADE: Has changing the way you work affected your performances?

KEEGAN: I think I’m much better now. I used to have nearly debilitating stage fright. I’d spend all day dreading going onstage. I thought that was just part of the job. Now, I’ve learned to talk to my body. Prior to a performance, I can now spend my offstage time calmly gardening, working with my mental health clients, or playing with my kid. I’m just present in my life in a different way.

BLADE: Is Orsino your first time playing a male role?

KEEGAN: No. In fact, the very first time I played a male role was at the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va. I played Hipolito in Thomas Middleton’s The Revenger’s Tragedy.

As Hipolito, I felt utterly male in the moment, so much so that I had audience members see me later after the show and they were surprised that I was female. They thought I was a young guy in the role. There’s something very powerful in that.

BLADE: Do you have a favorite part? Male or female?

KEEGAN: That’s tough but I think it’s Maggie the Cat. I played the hyper-female Maggie in Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at Round House. In the first act she didn’t stop talking for 51 minutes opposite Gregory Wooddell as Brick who barely had to speak. That lift was probably the heaviest I’ve ever been asked to do in acting.

BLADE: What about Folger’s Twelfth Night might be especially appealing to queer audiences?

KEEGAN: First and foremost is presentation. 99% of the cast identify as queer in some way.

The approach to Shakespeare’s text is one of the most bold and playful that I have ever seen. It’s unabashedly queer. The actors are here to celebrate and be loud and colorful and to advocate. It’s a powerful production, especially to do so close to the Capitol building, and that’s not lost on any of us.

‘Twelfth Night’ Through June 22

Folger Theatre | 201 East Capitol St., S.E. | $20-$84 | Folger.edu

ALYSSA KEEGAN (Photo courtesy Folger Theatre)

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Rehoboth Beach’s Clear Space Theatre summer 2025 season preview

Main stage musicals include ‘Hairspray’ and ‘Rent’

By ABIGAIL HATTING

The Clear Space Theatre Company summer season in Rehoboth Beach kicks off in a few short weeks. This year’s mainstage musicals include “Hairspray,” “Beautiful: the Carole King Musical,” and “Rent.”

“Hairspray” will run from June 24-Aug. 30, with “Beautiful” from June 27-Aug. 28 and “Rent” from July 2-Aug. 26. Clear Space is a repertory theater, meaning that a cast of rotating artists will appear in all of these musicals. Tickets can be purchased at clearspacetheatre.org.

Clear Space was founded in 2004 and is considered Delaware’s second-largest professional non-profit theater and the state’s most prolific producer of professional theater. The “clear space” name refers to a “focus on the process, knowledge, and humanity of arts performance: the idea that we find ourselves in what appears on the stage,” according to its website.

Joe Gfaller, managing director of Clear Space, said the theater has a responsibility to produce work for everyone in the region, which gives them the creative space to do more than just one thing.

“That’s what makes everything at Clear Space so joyful and inventive,” Gfaller told the Washington Blade. “We know that this community that we’re a part of includes all kinds of people, all backgrounds, all experiences, and it’s critical for us to present a variety of work that’s going to move each of those people.”

cals and for cabaret shows.

Gfaller said the musical “Rent” “speaks to what musical theater is capable of doing” and is a piece that is “deeply grounded” in the experiences of the LGBTQ community.

“There’s always going to be a piece of that in the work that we do because we know that the community that we serve here in Rehoboth Beach and beyond has a lot of folks who are connected meaningfully to the queer community,” he said.

In addition to the three main stage musicals, Clear Space offers Saturday morning children’s theater productions and Sunday cabarets, which will feature Tony and Emmy nominated artists, a “RuPaul’s Drag Race” star, and other popular entertainers this year.

“What we’re always looking to do as we create our full season, including the summer, is to produce work that’s going to delight and excite and engage the audiences that are here in Rehoboth Beach and coastal Delaware,” Gfaller said. “There’s always a mix of old and new, of plays and of musicals. There’s really something for everyone across our season for each year.”

Summer flex passes are available for purchase as well, which allows patrons to see three or more productions in the summer repertory season and save 15% off the price of single tickets. Passes can be used for the three main stage musi -

Another facet of the company, the Clear Space Arts Institute offers voice, dancing, and acting classes during the summer. This year, many are at capacity and a waitlist is being offered.

The Rebecca Luker Theatrical Partnership was developed within the last few years to honor the life and career of Luker, a Broadway star, after she passed away in 2020. The partnership aims to create professional leadership opportu

nities in the theater for individuals from underserved communities.

“Through the Rebecca Luker Theatrical Partnership, CSTC is paving a path forward to create a more inclusive space for future arts leaders of color while honoring the company’s mission and Ms. Luker’s commitment to racial justice,” a press release from Clear Space said.

Clear Space has been growing, according to Gfaller.

Over the last 21 productions, 17 have sold out all performances. Though the theater seats just 170, it saw more than 24,000 attendees over the course of one year. Gfaller is excited that there’s been so much growing enthusiasm and wants patrons to feel joyful and connected to each other after watching the shows.

“We want people to fall in love with seeing great live theater … in an intimate space. You can see amazing things on Broadway, and you might need to bring your opera glasses to see what’s going on,” Gfaller said. “What’s wonderful at Clear Space is you are no more than three to six rows from the stage anywhere you sit in the theater, and there is something so much more magnetic and dynamic and inspirational about seeing theater in that context, because you feel that you’re there in the room with the artists, while the artists are making it happen. And there’s really nothing that compares to that.”

Rehoboth’s Clear Space Theatre summer season is about to begin. (Photo courtesy of Clear Space)

Making a Statement

From the red carpet to the museum, get an up-close look at a rst-of-its-kind collaboration between quillwork artist Joe Big Mountain (Mohawk/Cree/Comanche) and haute couture brand Gucci. See two gowns worn by Oscar-nominated actor Lily Gladstone (Siksikaitsitapi [Blackfeet]/Nimiipuu [Nez Perce]) at the 96th Academy Awards and the Vanity Fair Oscars party.

Lily Gladstone at the 96th Academy Awards. Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Queer movies and shows to watch this summer

‘Brokeback’ returns, a Sally Ride doc, and much more

By JOHN PAUL KING

Summer is upon us, and so is Pride month, which means a whole crop of queer-flavored movies and shows are ready to blossom onto our nearest screen over the next few weeks; and as always, the Blade is here with a handy guide to help you fill out your watchlist.

I Don’t Understand You

First up is this pitch-black horror comedy starring Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells as a gay American couple (and soon-to-be-adoptive-daddies) celebrating their 10th anniversary with a trip to Italy. Unfortunately, neither of them speaks Italian, and the resulting language barrier creates a series of mishaps and misunderstandings that turns their dream vacation into a farcical traveler’s nightmare. Co-created by real-life gay couple Brian Crano and David Joseph Craig (who also directed), it’s got an authentic queer voice behind it, and a pair of talented and funny lead actors to make it work; it’s also got a nice collection of good reviews behind it from its debut at 2024’s SXSW and other festivals, which makes it a strong opener for your summertime slate. 6/6, in theaters

Loulou

Directed by Noëlle P. Soulier, this thoughtful trans coming-of-age/coming-out story centers on a closeted 17-yearold teen (Kevin Curtis) struggling with her identity while trying to cope with harassment at school and the pressure of living with her strict Catholic parents (Desean Terry and Reiko Aylesworth). Pushed to the church, she finds unexpected solace, encouraging her to start a journey toward self-acceptance – something that includes a new relationship with her own ex-bully (Spencer Belko), who has been struggling with some identity issues of his own. Also starring Patrika Darbo as a sympathetic nun, this gentle story about trans experience seems like a welcome beacon of support at a time when we really need one. 6/6, VOD

Sally

Directed and produced by Cristina Costantini, this documentary from National Geographic explores the life and career of Sally Ride, who became the first American woman to blast off into space. It’s not just the story of her historic achievement, however, but the story of her 27-year romance and relationship with life partner, Tam O’Shaughnessy, who tells the full story of America’s LGBTQ astronaut for the very first time. 6/16, NatGeo; 6/17, Hulu, Disney+

Brokeback Mountain

No, that’s not a misprint and you’re not having a flashback to 2005, because the game-changing Ang Lee-directed drama about two cowboys in love is returning to theaters for a series of special screenings to celebrate its 20th anniversary. If you’re anything like us, you probably “wish you could quit” this powerful, heartbreaking, and tragically beautiful masterpiece – but we all know we never will. Why not celebrate that special bond by seeing it again on the big screen? Beginning 6/20, in theaters

The Gilded Age (Season 3)

Back for another round of sumptuously costumed, lavishly decorated intrigue among the ostentatiously wealthy upper class of late 19th-century New York (and those entangled in their world), the newest installment of this intrinsically queer period soap opera finds a definite shift in dynamics taking place after last season left the major players of the “old guard” weakened and the bourgeois “new money” crowd poised to take their place at the top of the high society pecking order. Promising the return of its sprawling cast – which includes queer fan favorites like Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Carrie Coon, Nathan Lane, and more, not to mention an ever-expanding host of Broadway greats to fill out the supporting cast and guest star roster – as well as the savvy perspective of show creator Julian Fellowes (“Downton Abbey,” which also returns later this year for a swan song on the big screen) to ensure its status as both artful social observation and “guilty pleasure” escapism, it’s probably already on your list if you’re a fan. If you’re not, there’s still time to catch up with the first two seasons before this one drops. 6/22, HBO Max

King of Drag

Move over, RuPaul, because the first major Drag King competition series is making its debut on queer streaming service Revry, where it plans on “serving you bold, brilliant, and unapologetic talent like never before” and celebrating “masculinity in all its forms.” Hosted by legendary trans New York drag king Murray Hill, it will feature regular judges Gottmik, Sasha Velour, Tenderoni, Wang Newton, and Revry co-founder Damian Pelliccione, as well as a list of guest judges that includes Jackie Beat, Cole Escola, Landon Cider, Lisa Rinna, and more. 6/22, Revry

Ironheart

Queer Marvel fans will certainly be on board for this new miniseries from the MCU, which is set after the events of the film “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” and follows young genius inventor Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) as she embraces her evolution into the titular superhero in her hometown of Chicago. Reportedly establishing the lead character as bisexual, the series (created by Chinaka Hodge) also continues the Marvel franchise’s efforts toward diversity and inclusion with the introduction of a transgender character and the casting of transmasculine actor Zoe Terakes and “Drag Race” star Shea Couleé in supporting roles. “Hamilton” and “In the Heights” star Anthony Ramos co-stars as Parker Robbins (aka “The Hood”). 6/24, Disney+

The Ultimatum: Queer Love (Season 2)

For fans of reality TV competition, this popular show – a spin-off from “The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On” – returns with a set of six new couples (made up of women and

non-binary people), who must put their love to the test by moving in with other partners to determine if they’re ready for marriage — or simply ready for someone else. 6/25, Netflix

Hot

Milk

Adapted from the 2016 novel by Deborah Levy, this coming-of-age drama from filmmaker Rebecca Lenkiewicz follows Sofia (Emma Mackey) as she accompanies her domineering, wheelchair-bound mother (Fiona Shaw) to a questionable clinic in Spain in search of treatment. and is tempted by a tantalizing new life in the form of a local seamstress (Vicky Krieps). With a literary pedigree to balance its air of soft-core steaminess, this one appeals to us on the basis of its captivating cast alone. 6/27, limited theaters

M3GAN 2.0

The hot movie ticket this summer is likely to be for this sequel to 2022’s campy comedic cult horror hit, in which a murderous rogue AI-powered doll goes on a rampage after becoming self-aware before being destroyed – or at least, apparently. Three years later, M3GAN’s creator (Allison Williams) is now an advocate for oversight on Artificial Intelligence, but when a new and deadly android (Ivanna Sakhno) is created as a military weapon from her stolen plans, she must risk resurrecting her original invention in order to stop an even greater threat to humanity. Violet McGraw returns as Williams’ now-teenaged niece, as do Amie Donald and Jenna Davis as the title character’s body and voice, respectively. 6/27, in theaters

Ponyboi

Highly anticipated is this neo-noir thriller from director Esteban Arango, written by and starring intersex actor, filmmaker, and activist River Gallo, which is finally getting a theatrical release nearly a year and a half after its acclaimed debut at the 2024 Sundance Festival. Adapted and expanded from a 2019 short film by Gallo, it follows a young intersex sex worker (Gallo), whose messy personal life – his best friend (Victoria Pedretti) is pregnant, and the father is his pimp/boyfriend (Dylan O’Brien) – gets even messier when a drug deal gone bad puts him on the run from the mob. Gallo’s performance has earned copious praise, and the fact that it’s a whole movie centered on an intersex person –surely a rarity, if not a first, in commercial American filmmaking – makes it even more of a must-see. 6/27, in theaters

Sorry, Baby

Another Sundance favorite makes its way to theaters in the form of this dark comedy-drama from first-time writer/ director/star Eva Victor, who plays Agnes, a woman still recovering from a sexual assault by a trusted figure in her past, who has tried to move on but realizes how “stuck” she still is after a close friend makes a milestone announcement . Despite the heavy subject matter, it’s earned its acclaim –and the resultant buzz that enticed top flight distributor A24 to snap up the rights – by approaching it with a hefty dose of absurdist humor, as it peels back the onion of the “bad thing” that happened and finally sets Agnes on a course toward healing through a series of five “chapters” in her life. It’s been described as a “trauma-dy” – and frankly, we think that’s enough to make it irresistible. 6/27, in theaters

CONTINUES ON PAGE 94

A scene from ‘Sally,’ a new documentary about Sally Ride narrated by her longtime partner. (Image courtesy of National Geographic Disney)

Freakier Friday

You might be tempted to say this is the sequel that nobody asked for – but you know you’re going to be there for it. The perennial parent/child identity swap franchise (spawned by a sharp-witted novel from Broadway royalty Mary Rodgers) reinvents itself yet again with the return of Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan as a mother and daughter who, decades after having swapped bodies due to a mystical incident involving a fortune cookie, find themselves once again switching places on the eve of a milestone wedding. We have no idea if there’s any queer-relevant story elements here; we just know most of us will want to be there for it, if only for the nostalgia and the undying appeal of its stars. 8/8, in theaters

Lurker

Touted as “a screw-turning psychological thriller made for the moment” and directed by Alex Russell (writer/producer of the acclaimed shows “The Bear” and “Beef”), this dark pop cultural commentary focuses on a young LA loner (Théodore Pellerin) who has a chance encounter with a rising pop star (Archie Madekwe) and uses it to work his way into his “entourage” – only to find himself caught up in an ever-escalating competition for attention, access, and proximity to “fame” that soon becomes “a matter of life and death.” A buzzy, paranoid, and grimly exhilarating exploration of the music industry, fandom, and “our universal search for validation,” this creepy but enticing suspenser scores extra points from us for leaning into a homoerotic subtext and serving up the sweaty wrestling scenes to prove it. 8/22, in theaters

Honey Don’t!

The second of a planned “Lesbian B-Movie Trilogy” from filmmaker Ethan Coen and his wife Tricia Cooke (which began with last year’s “Drive Away Dolls”), this neo-noir-ish dark comedy stars Margaret Qualley (“The Substance”) as a lesbian private eye who is led by a case into a series of strange deaths centered around a mysterious church. It’s the kind of movie for which the less you know about it, the better it probably plays, so we won’t say much more – except that its cast includes heavyweights Aubrey Plaza, Billy Eichner, and Chris Evans. We say, “honey, DO.” 8/2, in theaters

Twinless

Coming on the cusp of fall, filmmaker James Sweeney’s eagerly awaited black comedy (do we detect a common thread in this summer’s selection, or is it just us?) is yet another Sundance darling, bolstered even further by the controversial gay sex scenes that were leaked online by fans of teen-heartthrob-turned-A-lister Dylan O’Brien, who co-stars with Sweeney himself in this oddball story about two young queer men who meet in a support group for bereaved twins and form a sexually intense friendship with each other. Praised by critics for its “seamless” integration of queer themes into a compelling (if unusual) narrative, there’s been a lot of delay and changed plans around its official release date – but now it’s officially set to be our final treat for a summer full of queer entertainment. 9/5, in theaters

Latinx Pride Party

La Fiesta: The Official Latinx Pride Party was held at Bunker on Thursday, May 29. The event was hosted by Lady J Monroe and featured performances by Mia Carlisle, Stefon Royce, Evry Pleasure and Alexis Carter St. James.

‘La Fiesta’ held at Bunker (Washington Blade photos by Robert Rapanut)

The best U.S. cities for LGBTQ homebuyers in 2025

Where strong equality scores, vibrant culture, attainable prices converge

By SCOTT HELMS

Buying a home has always been a landmark of security and self-expression. For LGBTQ+ people, it can also be a powerful act of claiming space in a country where housing equality is still a work in progress. The good news? This year offers more options—and more protections—than ever. A record-breaking 130 U.S. cities now score a perfect 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index (MEI), meaning their local laws, services, and political leadership actively protect queer residents, reports.hrc.org. Meanwhile, national housing analysts at Zillow expect only modest price growth this year (about 2.6 percent), giving buyers a little breathing room to shop around.

Below are eight standout markets where strong equality scores, vibrant LGBTQ+ culture, and relatively attainable prices converge. Median sale prices are from March 2025 Zillow data.

1. Minneapolis–St. Paul, MN

Median sale price: $317,500

Twin Cities residents benefit from statewide nondiscrimination laws that explicitly cover sexual orientation and gender identity, a thriving queer arts scene, and dozens of neighborhood Pride celebrations beyond the mega-festival each June. Buyers also appreciate Minnesota’s down-payment assistance programs for first-time and BIPOC purchasers—many LGBTQ+ households qualify.

2. Philadelphia

Median sale price: $227,667

Philly combines East Coast culture with Mid-Atlantic affordability. “Gayborhood” anchors like Giovanni’s Room bookstore mingle with new LGBTQ-owned cafés in Fishtown and South Philly. Pennsylvania added statewide housing protections in 2024, closing the legal gaps that once worried trans and nonbinary buyers.

3. Pittsburgh

Median sale price: $221,667

Don’t let the steel-town stereotype fool you—Pittsburgh’s MEI score is 100, and its real-estate dollar stretches further than in comparable metros. Lawrenceville and Bloomfield have become hubs for queer-owned eateries and co-working spaces, while regional employers in tech and healthcare boast top Corporate Equality Index ratings.

4. Tucson, Ariz.

Median sale price: $328,333

modations, contracting, and employer requirements—shielding homebuyers who choose in-town neighborhoods like Midtown or East Point.

7. St. Petersburg, Fla.

Median sale price: $354,667 Yes, Florida’s statewide politics are turbulent, but St. Pete has long held firm on LGBTQ+ equality. The city’s Pride festival draws nearly a million visitors, and local ordinances bar discrimination in housing and public services. Waterfront bungalows in Kenwood and more affordable condos near Uptown give first-time buyers options.

8. Denver

Median sale price: $563,500

Colorado passed some of the nation’s strongest gender identity housing protections in 2024, and Denver’s queer community remains one of the most visible in the Mountain West. Although prices run higher, buyers gain exceptional job growth and one of the country’s largest Gay & Lesbian Chambers of Commerce.

This desert city punches above its weight in LGBTQ+ visibility thanks to the University of Arizona, a nationally ranked Pride parade, and some of the country’s most picturesque outdoor recreation. Arizona’s statewide fair-housing statute now explicitly lists gender identity, giving buyers added recourse if discrimination occurs.

5. Madison, Wisc.

Median sale price: $413,867

Madison blends progressive politics with a top-five public university and a booming tech corridor. Local lenders routinely promote inclusive marketing, and Dane County offers one of the few county-level LGBTQ+ home-ownership programs in the nation, providing up to $10,000 in forgivable assistance for low-to-moderate-income couples.

6. Atlanta

Median sale price: $359,967

The cultural capital of the Southeast delivers queer nightlife, Fortune 500 jobs, and a web of supportive nonprofits such as Lost-n-Found Youth. While Georgia lacks statewide protections, Atlanta’s 100-point MEI score covers public accom -

Smart Strategies for LGBTQ+ Buyers & Sellers

1. Build Your Dream Team Early

Work with an equality-focused real-estate pro. The easiest way is to start at GayRealEstate.com, which has screened gay, lesbian, and allied agents in every U.S. market for more than 30 years.

Choose inclusive lenders and inspectors. Ask whether each vendor follows HUD’s 2021 guidance interpreting the Fair Housing Act to cover sexual orientation and gender identity.

2. Know Your Rights—And Limitations Federal law bars housing bias, but enforcement can lag. Document everything and report issues to HUD, your state civil-rights agency, or Lambda Legal.

In states without full protections, rely on city ordinances (check the MEI) and add explicit nondiscrimination language to your purchase contract.

3. Evaluate Neighborhood Fit

Use local data: crime stats, school ratings, transit, and MEI scores of nearby suburbs. Spend time in queer-owned cafés, bars, and community centers to gauge true inclusivity.

4. For Sellers: Market With Pride—And Professionalism

Highlight proximity to LGBTQ+ resources (community centers, Pride festivals) in your listing remarks.

Stage neutrally but inclusively—rainbow art is great, but removing personal photos can protect privacy during showings.

The landscape for LGBTQ+ homeowners is evolving fast. By coupling inclusive laws, supportive culture, and attainable prices, cities like Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and Tucson stand out for 2025. No matter where you land, surround yourself with professionals who value every part of your identity. Start your journey at GayRealEstate.com, lean on the resources above, and claim your corner of the American dream—on your own terms, and with pride.

SCOTT HELMS is president and owner of Gayrealestate.com

Philadelphia is among cities that rank highest for LGBTQ homebuyers. (Photo public domain)

BETSY TWIGG

Associate Broker | Licensed in Virginia 703.967.4391 (CELL ) betsy.twigg@corcoranmce.com

Corcoran McEnearney. REALTORS 3135 Langston Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201 betsytwigg.com Equal Housing Opportunity

WITH GROWING THREATS TO LGBTQ+ LIVES, WE STAND STRONG FOR THOSE WHO’VE SERVED.

As the nation’s largest organization of LGBTQ+ service members, military spouses, veterans, their families, and allies we provide a united voice for the LGBTQ+ military and veteran community. Our mission is to educate, advocate, and champion for equal rights and well-being, and create a more inclusive and supportive military community.

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Join us for Episcopal worship in Alexandria, VA. Whether you are visiting for World Pride or live in the area, Immanuel Church-onthe-Hill welcomes you! June 8 services at 8 am and 10:30 am at 3606 Seminary Road, Alexandria, VA. See the website for our full schedule. We respect the dignity of every human being, all are welcome. www.immanuel-on-the-hill.org

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Residential & Commercial Cleaning, Reasonable Rates, Free Estimates, Routine, 1-Time, Move-In/Move-Out 202-486-6183

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People. Individual/Couples counseling with a volunteer peer counselor. GMCC, serving our community since 1973. 202-580-8661

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legal services. Catelyn represents LGBTQ clients in DC, MD & VA interested in adoption or ART matters.

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Law Offices, Slattery Law, LLC. 240-245-7765

Catelyn@ModernFamilyFormation.com

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