BLAZER MEDIA - DC Blade March 2017 [Publication] by AZER CREATIVE TEAM

MARCH 17,

2017

VOLUME 48

ISSUE 11

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AMERICA’S LGBT NEWS SOURCE

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WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

Trumpcare’s ‘devastating’ impact on those with HIV Concerns over PrEP coverage, treatment of trans patients By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com The Republican plan to repeal and replace Obamacare with the American Health Care Act continues to worry advocates seeking to ensure access to health care for LGBT people and people with HIV — a concern that a recent report from the Congressional Budget Oﬃce has validated. According to CBO, 14 million people would lose insurance coverage in 2018 if the American

Health Care Act were to become law as a result of the elimination of the individual mandate under Obamacare. But that number would climb to 21 million in 2020, then to 24 million in 2026 following repeal of the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare. In 2026, CBO estimates 52 million people would be uninsured, compared with 28 million who would lack insurance that year under current law. As President Trump pushes for the proposal and continues to call Obamacare a “disaster,” a major source of fear for advocates of LGBT people and people with HIV is the rollback of CONTINUES ON PAGE 14

PRESIDENT TRUMP’s eﬀort to repeal the ACA is raising concerns among HIV and transgender patients.

Judge releases Casa Ruby attacker Visitor arrested after smashing door, assaulting employee By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com A D.C. Superior Court judge on Tuesday released a 20-yearold man from jail pending trial and ordered him to stay away from the LGBT community center Casa Ruby following his arrest one day earlier for allegedly smashing the center’s front door and assaulting and threatening a transgender employee.

3 OTHER LGBT CENTERS VANDALIZED IN DISTURBING TREND, PAGE 15 D.C. police on Monday charged Andrew J. Cook of Southeast Washington with destruction of property, simple assault, and making threats to do bodily harm in connection with an incident on Sunday afternoon, March 12, at the Casa Ruby oﬃces at 2822 Georgia Ave., N.W. A police arrest aﬃdavit says Cook told a transgender woman he allegedly assaulted during the incident, “I’ll kill CONTINUES ON PAGE 15

D.C. police charged Andrew J. Cook with destruction of property, simple assault and making threats to do bodily harm. PHOTO COURTESY OF CASA RUBY

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Blade announces plan to launch newspaper in Los Angeles.

Joshua Johnson on his new show and pressures of succeeding an NPR legend.

Cher isn’t the only reason to visit National Harbor’s hottest attraction.

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Blade to launch newspaper in Los Angeles The Washington Blade, the nation’s first LGBT newspaper, last week announced plans to launch a new publication, the Los Angeles Blade, on March 24. The Los Angeles Blade will cover Los Angeles and California news, politics, opinion, arts and entertainment and will feature national and international coverage from the Washington Blade’s award-winning reporting team. Troy Masters, a veteran of LGBT media, was named publisher and editor of the new venture. Veteran Los Angeles journalist Karen Ocamb was named senior contributing writer. “More than ever before, the health, safety and well being of every LGBTQ American and immigrant depends upon media outlets dedicated to finding and reporting the most important LGBTQ news,” Masters said. “For that reason, I am now working with the Washington Blade, an internationally respected and LGBTQ-owned media brand that has served and supported the community for nearly 50 years. “With exclusive access to the best and brightest LGBTQ writers and reporters in the nation, the Los Angeles Blade has us covered from WeHo to Dupont Circle, and from freeway to Beltway.” Masters has worked in LGBT media for nearly 30 years. He founded Lesbian and Gay New York, or LGNY, in 1989. It was relaunched as Gay City News in 2002. He left Gay City News in 2015, where he worked as associate publisher, to relocate to Los Angeles and launch the Pride LA. “We’re excited to bring the Blade’s nearly 50-year commitment to journalistic excellence to Los Angeles,” said Washington Blade Editor Kevin Naff, who will serve as national editor of the Los Angeles Blade. “We’ve assembled a top-notch, experienced team that knows and loves L.A. and they will deliver compelling stories, breaking news as well as advertising solutions for local businesses.” The first edition of 20,000 copies will hit the streets March 24 at Los Angelesarea bars, restaurants, gyms and other locations popular with area LGBT residents. It will begin on a bi-weekly schedule with plans to publish weekly in the near future. Visit losangelesblade.com for updated local, national and international news and features. For more information, call Troy Masters at 917-406-1619. STAFF REPORTS

Gay ex-mayor pleads guilty in meth-for-sex case A Fairfax County Circuit Court judge startled onlookers on Monday when she ordered the gay former mayor of Fairfax City, R. Scott Silverthorne, held in jail while he awaits sentencing in June after he pled guilty to one count of distributing methamphetamine.

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Silverthorne was arrested last August in a police sting operation after he provided methamphetamine to an undercover detective posing as a willing sex partner in exchange for what he thought would be permission to participate in an orgy with other men at a hotel in Tysons Corner, Va. Police said they targeted Silverthorne for the sting after learning through sources that he was allegedly distributing meth through a gay sex hook-up website in exchange for sexual encounters. The Washington Post reported that a prosecutor identified the site in court on Monday as Bare Back Real Time. Circuit Court Judge Grace Burke Carroll scheduled a sentencing hearing for Silverthorne on June 9. But instead of allowing him to remain free on his own recognizance while awaiting sentencing, as he has since the time of his arrest, she ordered him held in custody immediately. Less than a week after his arrest in August Silverthorne announced his resignation as mayor. He had been elected to a third term as mayor three months before his arrest. He served nine terms on the Fairfax City Council, from 1990 to 2008, before winning election as mayor. His arrest shocked colleagues in the city government and many of his constituents, who have praised him as a dedicated public official credited with bringing about positive change in Fairfax City. LGBT activists in Northern Virginia, including Fairfax County, said they were not aware that Silverthorne was gay and that he had not been involved with LGBT advocacy groups during his tenure in public office. Silverthorne’s attorney, Brian Drummond, told the Washington Blade in August that nearly all of Silverthorne’s colleagues on the Fairfax City Council and others who knew him in Fairfax political circles knew he is gay. “It was the worst kept secret in Fairfax,” Drummond said. “He had actually come out some years ago” but didn’t make a “great announcement.” Drummond couldn’t immediately be reach this week to determine if he thought the judge might have sent him to jail prior to sentencing because of a bias against him based on his sexual orientation. LOU CHIBBARO JR.

House panel kills LGBT protections in D.C. schools bill The Republican-controlled U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform last week voted to kill an amendment to a D.C. school voucher bill calling for protecting LGBT students from discrimination in private and religious schools that receive government funding. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.) introduced the amendment at a March 10 committee markup hearing on a bill reauthorizing the Scholarships for Opportunity Results Act, known as SOAR. Congress first passed the controversial SOAR Act in 2003 to provide federal funds for school vouchers to pay the tuition for low-income D.C. students to enroll in private and religious schools. The law only applies to D.C. Some LGBT activists have opposed the voucher program because it provides government funds for religious schools that are exempt from the city’s Human Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity among other categories of protections. Watson Coleman’s amendment called for inserting the terms sexual orientation and gender identity into the list of protected classes under the SOAR Act. The committee, which is chaired by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), defeated the amendment by a vote of 22 to 17. Those voting no included 22 of the 24 Republicans who sit on the committee. Two of the GOP members, Rep. William Hurd (R-Texas) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) did not vote. On the Democratic side, 17 of the 18 Democrats on the committee vote for the amendment. Rep. Gerald Connelly (D-Va.) did not vote. Among those voting for the amendment was Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) who is allowed to vote in committee but not on the House floor. Norton has been a longtime supporter of LGBT rights. Stephanie Franklin, a spokesperson for the D.C. Office of Human Rights, which enforces the city’s Human Rights Act, said the act would apply to non-religious private schools receiving SOAR Act funds through student tuition. Franklin said the OHR has interpreted the Human Rights Act to also apply to religious schools under certain circumstances. She said the act would allow religious schools to limit hiring of employees and the acceptance of students to those who are members of their schools’ religious denomination. But she said once an employee is hired or a student is accepted the Human Rights Act could in some circumstances prevent the schools from discriminating against such employees or students. “However, we must decide on a case-by-case basis,” Franklin said. LOU CHIBBARO JR.

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Two ‘credible’ gay candidates may run for Md. guv Madaleno, McIntosh considered Annapolis insiders By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com Maryland State Sen. Richard Madaleno (D-Montgomery County), the ﬁrst out gay member of that body, raised eyebrows last week when he told the Baltimore Sun he’s considering running next year for governor against Republican incumbent Larry Hogan. Madaleno’s expression of interest in the race for governor came four months after Maryland State Del. Maggie McIntosh (D-Baltimore City), who’s an out lesbian, announced in November that she was considering running either for governor or state comptroller. LGBT activists in Maryland, who have been strong supporters of both Madaleno and McIntosh, would be placed in an awkward position if both lawmakers emerge as candidates in the Democratic primary for governor in the spring of 2018. Other Maryland Democrats who have expressed interest in running for governor are considered strong supporters of LGBT rights, creating a potential primary contest in which LGBT voters would have to choose among friends. Among them are Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker, former

Gay state. Sen. RICH MADALENO is considering a run for governor. WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY JEFF SURPRENANT

NAACP national CEO Benjamin Jealous, and U.S. Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.). Jeﬀrey Slavin, the gay mayor of Somerset, Md., and the third vice chair of the Maryland Democratic Party, said

both Madaleno and McIntosh would be viewed as highly credible and qualified contenders should they formally declare their candidacy for governor. “They are Annapolis insiders,” Slavin said. “They are policy wonks and they have huge followings,” he said. “And they have been recognized leaders in a wide range of issues and areas. No one could say they are a single-issue candidate.” McIntosh, 68, began her tenure in the Maryland House of Delegates in 1995 when she was appointed to fill a vacant seat after the incumbent resigned to take another job. She was elected to a full, fouryear term two years later and has won reelection every four years since that time. She currently serves as chair of the House of Delegate’s Appropriations Committee, which is considered one of the chamber’s most important committees, and previously has served as chair or a member of committees considered important. Madaleno, 51, first won election to the Maryland Legislature in 2002 for a seat in the House of Delegates 18th District in Montgomery County. He won election to the State Senate from that same district in 2006. As a budget analyst prior to entering the legislature, Madaleno has emerged as a recognized expert on fiscal matters as a lawmaker. He currently serves as vice chair of the State Senate’s Budget and Taxation Committee.

“Out of all the other candidates mentioned, Maggie and Rich know the ins and outs of Annapolis better,” said Slavin. Patrick Wojahn, the gay mayor of College Park, Md., said he has known McIntosh and Madaleno through his former role as an official with the statewide LGBT group Equality Maryland and considers them highly qualified for the office of governor. “I think it’s great if not just one but two openly LGBT people run for governor,” said Wojahn. “I think they are both great.” Added Wojahn: “I have not decided who to support. I’m looking at all of the candidates.” Maryland transgender advocate Dana Beyer, who ran an unsuccessful challenge against Madaleno in the 2014 Democratic primary, said Madaleno’s and McIntosh’s entrance into the governor’s race would be a good thing for LGBT rights. “I think it’s great that two qualified and credible LGBT candidates are considering running for governor,” said Beyer, who noted she too has yet to decide who she will support. If McIntosh and Madaleno enter the gubernatorial race they would not be the first openly LGBT candidates to do so. In 2014, then Maryland State Del. Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery County) gave up her seat to run in the Democratic primary for governor. She lost to then Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown who subsequently lost in the general election to GOP contender Hogan.

Anti-LGBT hate crimes in D.C. up 59% in 2016 Grand jury hands down indictments in trans murder case By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com The number of anti-LGBT hate crimes in the District of Columbia increased last year by 59 percent, from 37 cases reported in 2015 to 59 reported in 2016, according to the city’s annual bias-related crime report. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Acting D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham, who released the report at a news conference last week, reiterated the city’s commitment to combat hate crimes against each of the eight categories of bias that the report monitors each year. The release of the report came two days after a D.C. Superior Court grand jury handed down an 18-count indictment against three men who have been charged with the July 4, 2016 shooting death of transgender woman

Deeniquia “Dee Dee” Dodds, 21. Five of the counts, including ﬁrstdegree felony murder while armed, robbery while armed, conspiracy and assault with a dangerous weapon, are listed in the indictment as hate crimes based on Dodds’ “actual or perceived” gender identity or expression. Defendants Jolonta Little, Monte T. Johnson, and Cyheme Hall each pled not guilty at an arraignment on Friday morning. The three are being held without bond and are scheduled to return to court for a status hearing on April 20. In the city’s hate crimes report released March 10, the category of an individual’s “Ethnicity/National Origin” emerged as the largest percentage jump in hate crimes (300 percent) from three in 2015 to 12 in 2016, the report shows. “Religion” based hate crimes represented the second largest percentage increase (260 percent) from ﬁve in 2015 to 16 in 2016. The report shows that although hate crimes targeting people based on their “Gender identity/Expression” and “Sexual

Orientation” came in third and fourth place in the percentage increase last year, they continued their multi-year trend of comprising the largest number of hate crime cases. The number of anti-transgender hate crimes (gender identity/expression) increased by 90 percent last year — from 10 in 2015 to 19 in 2016, the report shows. The number of anti-gay, lesbian or bisexual related hate crimes (sexual orientation) increased by 48 percent, from 27 in 2015 to 40 in 2016, according to the report. The number of race-related hate crimes dropped from 19 reported in 2015 to 14 in 2016, the report shows. The other categories include: • Disability — zero in 2015, one in 2016 • Political Aﬃliation — two in 2015, two in 2016 • Homelessness — zero in 2015, one in 2016 “In Washington, D.C. we value diversity and inclusivity and want all of our residents and visitors to feel safe,” Bowser said at the news conference, which was held in the city’s Historic Synagogue at 600 I Street, N.W.

“No matter your race, your faith, your sexual orientation, your gender identity, your background – you should be able to live, work and play in Washington, D.C. without fear of violence or discrimination,” she said. Bowser and Newsham, who Bowser nominated last month to be the city’s permanent police chief, called on those who feel they may be victims of a hate crime to report those crimes to police. “We want to make it absolutely clear that we value the District’s diversity and that we will not tolerate hatred in our community,” Newsham said. Acting D.C. Police Lt. Brett Parson, who oversees the police special liaison units, including the LGBT Liaison Unit, said police analysts consider it unclear whether the actual number of hate crimes in the city increased or whether more victims are reporting those crimes. He noted that in 2015 every oﬃcer on the force participated in a re-training course on bias-related crimes to enable them to better understand how to recognize such crimes and encourage citizens to report them.

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NATIONAL NEWS

S.D. guv signs first anti-LGBT law of 2017 Allows agencies to deny child placement to gay parents By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard has signed into law a measure allowing taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny services and child placement to LGBT families out of religious objections, making him the first governor in 2017 to sign an anti-LGBT law. Daaugard signed the measure, Senate Bill 149, with little fanfare Friday after the Republican-controlled legislature approved it by significant margins. The new law prohibits the state from taking adverse action against child placement agencies that discriminate against LGBT families, including the elimination of tax-exemptions, the imposition of fines, the cancelation of contracts or discrimination against the agency in a state benefit program. Laura Durso, vice president of the LGBT research and communications at the Center for American Progress, said in a statement Daugaard signed legislation “shamefully targeting LGBT parents and vulnerable kids.” “SB 149 allows religiously affiliated foster care and adoption agencies to

South Dakota Gov. DENNIS DAUGAARD (R-S.D.) signed an anti-LGBT law

turn away qualified LGBT parents and single moms who simply want to start families and give young people a safe, loving home,” Durso said. “Same-sex couples are six times as likely to foster than different-sex couples are, and this bill proves once again that opponents of equality are happy to put children at risk and deny them permanent homes to further their anti-LGBT agenda.” Many child placement agencies are faith-based organizations, such as Catholic adoption agencies, but the new law makes no distinction between agencies that are religious or otherwise affiliated. According to the Associated Press, Daugaard said before signing the bill he was concerned private child-placement

agencies could be subject to a lawsuit if they denied placement to people in a “protected class,” such as members of the LGBT community. He said he hopes the new law would forestall that. Catholic adoption agencies in Massachusetts, Illinois, California and D.C. ended adoption services after lawmakers in those jurisdictions enacted marriage equality, saying they couldn’t place children with LGBT parents. Although the organizations said they were forced to close because of same-sex marriage, they ended services on their own. Last year, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law similar legislation allowing agencies to deny child placement to LGBT families for religious reasons. Other states that have similar laws, according to the AP, are North Dakota and Virginia. Libby Skarin, policy director of the ACLU of South Dakota, said in a statement she’s “deeply disappointed” Daugaard signed the measure despite pleas from these organizations to veto it. “This discriminatory legislation takes South Dakota in the wrong direction, and sends the message that our leaders are more concerned with the desires of religious agencies than the rights of individuals and children in our state,” Skarin said. Daugaard’s decision to sign the antiLGBT measure into law contrasts with his veto last year of legislation that would have allowed South Dakota schools to deny transgender kids access to the

public restroom consistent with their gender identity. Local and national child welfare experts sent letters opposing SB 149, such as The Adoption Exchange, Child Welfare League of America, National Association of Social Workers and Voice for Adoption. Others who opposed the measure were family law experts and South Dakota pediatricians. James Esseks, director of the ACLU’s LGBT Project, said in a statement Daugaard’s decision to sign the bill is “deeply troubling” because it’s “only one of many bills moving through state legislatures across the country that authorizes taxpayer-funded discrimination against LGBT Americans.” “These laws run contrary to one of our core American values: The rule of law, which means we are all held to and protected by the same laws,” Esseks added. “These religious exemptions laws run contrary to this belief by encouraging people to pick and choose which laws they are going to follow based on their religious beliefs.” Other states that are considering antiLGBT bills that would allow discrimination in the name of “religious freedom” are Texas, which is considering Senate Bill 892 and House Bill 1805; Oklahoma, which is considering House Bill 1507; and Alabama, which is considering Senate Bill 145. The Washington Blade has placed a request with Daugaard seeking comment on his decision to sign the legislation.

Sen. Hassan denounces Trump’s anti-trans attacks ‘Students subjected to devastating levels of bullying’ By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com Frustration with President Trump was palpable at the Human Rights Campaign’s annual spring convention last week as speakers, including Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), criticized his administration for actions against the LGBT community. The newly seated New Hampshire Democrat lambasted Trump in a keynote speech before an estimated 400 people at the convention for, among other things, his Cabinet choices, whom she said were “consistent opponents of LGBT equality.” Hassan had particularly harsh words for U.S. Attorney General Jeﬀ Sessions, saying he’s already harmed LGBT people by revoking along with Trump the Obama-era guidance from the Justice and Education

Departments assuring transgender kids have access to restrooms in schools consistent with their gender identity. “So let’s be clear: Every student deserves the right to learn in an inclusive, safe environment, but there is clear evidence that transgender students are subjected to devastating levels of bullying and discrimination in schools,” Hassan said. “Our government should be focused on ensuring that all students are safe and it is unacceptable that the administration would prioritize rolling back protections for our most vulnerable students.” Pledging to continue her work in the U.S. Senate as an LGBT rights supporter, Hassan touted her vote in 2009 as a state legislator in favor of marriage equality legislation, which made the Granite State among the ﬁrst in the country to allow same-sex couples to marry. One day after the Republicancontrolled legislature in New Hampshire tabled legislation that would have expanded transgender rights, Hassan also expressed disappointment that her

home state didn’t take the opportunity to expand rights for LGBT people. “I’m disappointed that yesterday the New Hampshire House voted to table legislation designed to enact additional protections for transgender citizens in our state, but I know that legislators will continue fighting for transgender rights,” Hassan said. Speakers addressed attendees of the Human Rights Campaign’s spring equality convention at the Renaissance Hotel in D.C. the day after the organization led a citizen lobby in which the estimated 400 supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in support of LGBT rights. A member of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation board, Michael Smithson, invoked the administration during his remarks, correcting his terminology to “regime” after being corrected by attendees. When he asked who’s angry, hands from nearly every attendee went up. Smithson got the same response from the audience when he asked who’s afraid, and, finally, who’s fired up.

Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, told the audience the LGBT community is “under siege” under a president who’s “hell-bent on undoing all our progress” seen under President Obama. “We have a temporary tenant in the White House, but he’s temporary, and our job is ultimately to evict that tenant down the street,” Griffin said. Acknowledging just about everyone predicted LGBT people would be “in a far different place today” after the election, Griffin said he recently got a call from 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton thanking him for the LGBT community’s support during the campaign. “She wanted you to know what it meant for her...to see such profound turnout, such energy from our community,” Griffin said. “She actually said, ‘Chad, I have to tell you, no matter what state I went to, I saw HRC stickers and hats and logos. They were on the front row, they were behind me on stage, they were on rope lines. I saw your folks everywhere and I’m grateful.’”

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DeVos meets with transgender rights advocates Move follows withdrawal of Obama-era guidance By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com Representatives from a trio of LGBT organizations and families with transgender kids met last week with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos in the aftermath of the Justice and Education Departments revoking Obama-era guidance assuring transgender students access to the bathroom consistent with their gender identity. Mara Keisling, executive director of National Center for Transgender Equality, said the meeting came about as a result of the Trump administration rescinding the guidance, which informed discriminating against transgender students would violate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. “They made an arbitrary, political, ideological decision to hurt trans youth, so we wanted to talk to them about enforcing the law that they’re statutorily required to enforce,” Keisling said. The meeting was set up as a result of eﬀorts by Equality Michigan, which is the state LGBT group for DeVos’ home state of Michigan and where she once served as head of the Michigan Republican Party. According to Equality Michigan, the Education Department informed the organization on Friday she had agreed to the meeting. Stephanie White, executive director of Equality Michigan, said her organization sought out the meeting to convey the “profound negative consequences” of the withdrawal of the guidance protecting transgender students. “We also ensured that the secretary heard from transgender students and their parents directly about the impact of discrimination and harassment at school,” White said. “We wanted her to understand that these are life and death issues for transgender young people across the country and that we will not waver or compromise in our commitment to ensuring that every student, regardless of their gender identity, is provided with equal protection and opportunity to thrive.” In a statement, DeVos said she’s “grateful for the opportunity” to speak with families and LGBT rights supporters “about their concerns, thoughts, fears and suggestions.” “Every school and every school leader has a moral responsibility to protect all students and ensure every child is respected and can learn in an accepting environment,” DeVos said. “I remain committed to advocating for and ﬁghting on behalf of all students. Today’s meeting was compelling, moving

A trio of LGBT advocates met with Betsy DeVos over withdrawing guidance protecting trans students. PHOTO BY GAGE SKIDMORE; COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

and welcomed, and part of an ongoing dialogue with families and students throughout the country.” Discussion consisted of two consecutive meetings — one between DeVos and transgender families, the other between DeVos and representatives from LGBT groups — which each lasted about an hour, sources familiar with the meeting said. Those in attendance at the latter meeting, according to sources, included DeVos and four Education Department officials as well representatives from GLSEN, the National Center for Transgender Equality and Equality Michigan. Eliza Byard, executive director of GLSEN, said in a statement LGBT groups addressed the immediate consequences of withdrawing the guidance and “ways that she might be able to mitigate the pain, fear, and confusion that decision has caused.” “Above all, we ensured that DeVos heard – directly from us – that we will not budge or compromise when it comes to the full support and protection that all of our children, including LGBTQ youth, deserve from this administration, from the Department of Education and from its Office for Civil Rights,” Byard said. The meeting, Keisling said, yielded no firm policy commitments. Nonetheless, Keisling said it was “a good first meeting” because “it’s always good when people are willing to sit down and talk, when people are willing to be told that what they did was really bad.” “Right now, we’re limited in what we can do with the federal government, but this was one thing we could do,” Keisling said. “We could bring families, and that was really the important thing here. I think so many people were just outraged that they took a policy that had taken a decade or more to craft and do the groundwork,

and then just threw it out in less a week of Attorney General Sessions being in office. He came into office and immediately started shooting at trans people, and she was only in office a couple weeks more than that.” Transgender rights supporters insist that even without an affirmative ruling from the Supreme Court, the prohibition on sex discrimination under Title IX based on legal precedent bars schools from discriminating against transgender students or denying them access to the restroom consistent with their gender identity. According to media reports in the Washington Post and the New York Times, DeVos objected to rescinding the nondiscrimination guidance for transgender students before ultimately agreeing to allow it to happen. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions needed her consent to move forward because the guidance was issued jointly by both their departments and President Trump had to intercede, forcing DeVos to accept the revocation of the guidance or else resign, the Times reported. Keisling said DeVos didn’t say anything about objections she had to withdrawing the guidance because the meeting wasn’t focused on the process getting there, but protecting transgender students going forward. “I’ve heard the rumors, too, that she was against and Sessions for it, but the bottom line is she signed,” Keisling said. “He signed it, she signed it, so it doesn’t really matter to me whether she wanted to sign it because she signed it.” The meeting, Keisling said, was with DeVos as opposed to Sessions or White House officials because the Obama-era guidance came from the Education Department and the Education Department would be responsible for putting it back in place.

“That’s where the guidance is, that’s who has to enforce Title IX and that’s who allegedly cares about students,” Keisling said, adding she was unsure if any effort was made for LGBT groups to meet with Sessions. None of the LGBT groups issued any notice the meeting would take place prior to the time it happened, although the Education Department did include a notice on DeVos’ weekly schedule she’d meet with “Equality Michigan leadership and parents” in a closed press meeting. After the meeting GLSEN issued a general news statement, followed by the National Center for Transgender Equality. Keisling said not issuing a public notice prior to the DeVos meeting is consistent with the practice of her organization, which she said typically doesn’t promote meetings with administration officials. “We’re there to actually get work done, not to have a photo op,” Keisling said. “I wouldn’t have wanted this to be a photo op. In fact, I probably wouldn’t have gone if this was a photo op. We’re not in the business of making people feel better after they do something bad, so that wasn’t about it. This was about having her listen to families.” A controversial figure who’s reviled by many in the LGBT community, DeVos has faced criticism before and after the time of her confirmation, encountering in her few first days in office protesters, including a gay refugee from Afghanistan turned citizen, who followed her until she entered her vehicle during a visit to a D.C. public school. Cathy Renna, a GLSEN spokesperson, referred to DeVos’ public schedule when asked why the organization issued no statement about the meeting prior to the time it took place. White said the organization has a general practice of not issuing notices for meetings.

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Mariela Castro: Marriage does not stop hate crimes Caribe Aﬁrmativo’s “House of Peace” (“Casa de Paz” in Spanish) in Soledad, Colombia. WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Colombia LGBT group opens four ‘Houses of Peace’ SOLEDAD, Colombia — A Colombian LGBT advocacy group has opened four “Houses of Peace” (“Casas de Paz” in Spanish) in support of the implementation of a peace agreement between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Caribe Afirmativo announced last September that it would open four “Houses of Peace” in Soledad, a city that is located adjacent to Barranquilla, Ciénega in Magdalena Department, Carmen de Bolívar in Bolívar Department and Maicao, a town in La Guajira Department that is less than 10 miles from the Venezuelan border. The announcement took place less than three weeks before Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and FARC Commander Rodrigo “Timochenko” Londoño signed a peace agreement in the city of Cartagena that specifically acknowledged LGBT Colombians as victims of the conflict and called for their participation in the country’s political process. Caribe Afirmativo Director Wilson Castañeda, who is one of three Colombian LGBT rights advocates who participated in the peace talks that took place in Havana, was among the more than 2,500 people who attended the ceremony. Colombian voters on Oct. 2, 2016, narrowly rejected the agreement against the backdrop of anti-LGBT rhetoric from religious and conservative groups that opposed it. Santos and Londoño on Nov. 24, 2016, signed a second peace agreement — which also contains LGBT-specific references — in the Colombian capital of Bogotá. Lawmakers late last year passed a controversial law that provides amnesty to FARC rebels who carried out minor crimes during the conflict. The guerrillas have moved into resettlement areas the Colombian government created under the agreement, although the FARC has criticized them because of a lack of food and water and basic infrastructure. The guerrillas also began to disarm earlier this month under U.N. supervision. The “Houses of Peace” opened in late November. Each house has a regular schedule of events, workshops and meetings at which LGBT groups, trans women and local residents can discuss preventing violence, fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic and other issues. Caribe Afirmativo Director Wilson Castañeda told the Washington Blade the project will last four years. He said each of the four houses costs 7 million Colombian pesos ($2,333.73) a month in terms of rent, the salaries of those who manage them and event facilitators and basic materials. Castañeda told the Blade that Caribe Afirmativo uses some of this money to pay for transportation and food for visitors who are poor. “It is LGBT people’s contribution to the construction of peace,” Saul Castellar of Caribe Afirmativo told the Blade on Monday during an interview at his office in the city of Barranquilla. Ludwin Cabas, a business owner who manages the “House of Peace” in Soledad, agreed. “The ‘House of Peace’ is a space to help to those people who, in one form or another, had problems during the armed conflict in Colombia,” he told the Blade on Tuesday during an interview in Soledad as Castellar listened. “It is not only for the LGBT community, but also for the affected population,” added Cabas. MICHAEL K. LAVERS

The daughter of Cuban President Raúl Castro on Saturday said hate crimes remain a problem in countries that have extended marriage rights to same-sex couples. EFE reported Mariela Castro, who directs Cuba’s National Center for Sexual Education that is known by the Spanish acronym CENESEX, made the comments in the Mexican city of Guadalajara after organizers of a film festival honored her for her work to promote LGBT-specific issues on the Communist island. The Spanish news agency said hate crimes were among the topics about which she specifically spoke. “We don’t like to copy anyone,” said Mariela Castro as she discussed why Cuba has yet to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples, according to EFE. “We want to be creative and look for what truly fits into the possibility of social acceptance and our reality.” Mariela Castro, who is former Cuban President Fidel Castro’s niece, has publicly spoken in support of marriage rights for same-sex couples. She and Evan Wolfson, founder of Freedom to Marry, were in the audience when Tico Almeida, the gay Cuban American president of Freedom to Work, gave a speech in Havana last May that focused on the issue and other LGBT-specific advocacy efforts in the U.S. Mariela Castro later had lunch with Almeida and Wolfson. LGBT rights advocates who work independently of Mariela Castro and CENESEX in December 2015 launched a campaign that urged Cubans to sign a petition in support of marriage rights for same-sex couples. They hoped it would spur members of the Cuban National Assembly to publicly debate the issue at their annual meeting last December. The meeting began slightly more than a month after Fidel Castro died. Mariela Castro, who is a member of the National Assembly, has not spoken publicly in support of the campaign that appears to have stalled. “The main goal is not marriage; it is one of the goals,” she said in Mexico, according to EFE. “For us the main goal is to achieve equal opportunities, which was achieved in the process of working on discrimination against women.” Gays and lesbians can legally marry in Mexico City and several states in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and a number of islands in the Caribbean that include Guadeloupe, Martinique and Saba. Same-sex couples have been able to enter into civil unions in Chile since October 2015. The country’s president, Michelle Bachelet, has pledged to introduce a marriage bill in the Chilean Congress later this year. Independent Cuban activists with whom the Blade routinely speaks say they are ostracized and face harassment and even arrest for publicly criticizing Mariela Castro or her father’s government. Reported rates of violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity on the Communist island are nevertheless lower than in Brazil, Colombia and other Latin American countries in which gays and lesbians can legally marry. MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Pope Francis to visit Colombia CARTAGENA, Colombia — The Vatican on March 10 announced that Pope Francis will travel to Colombia in September. Francis is scheduled to arrive in the Colombian capital of Bogotá on Sept. 6. He is expected to visit the cities of Villavincencio, Medellín and Cartagena before returning to Rome on Sept. 11. “To have the pope with us for four days, to know that he is coming exclusively to Colombia and that he will guide us as Colombians through our faith is a privilege that ﬁlls us with gratitude,” said Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on Saturday during a press conference in Bogotá with Cardinal Rubén Salazar, who is the archbishop of Bogotá, and other oﬃcials from the Vatican and the Colombian Roman Catholic Church. “We of course rejoice for the millions of Colombians who profess the Catholic faith but also for all of those who see the great spiritual leader of our time in his image and in his words.” Pope John Paul II visited Bogotá, Medellín, Cartagena and several other Colombian cities in 1986. Pope Paul VI traveled to Bogotá in 1968. MICHAEL K. LAVERS

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Advocates fear impact of ACA repeal on HIV, trans patients CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

Medicaid, which as health coverage for lowincome Americans provides care for more than 40 percent of people with HIV and many transgender people. CBO estimates the American Health Care Act would decrease direct spending in Medicaid by $880 billion over the 2017-2026 period resulting in 14 million fewer Medicaid enrollees by the end of that period. Carl Schmid, deputy director of the AIDS Institute, said he couldn’t overstate the calamity passage of the American Health Care Act would mean for people with HIV. “I hate to use the word devastating, other people have used it,” Schmid said. “The CBO score is not surprising at all because it’s what we had said that the biggest impact, they’re really cutting back, scaling back coverage in Medicaid. They’re removing all these people from the Medicaid rolls.” Schmid said the American Health Care Act would also remove the Medicaid requirements that the states provide 10 essential health beneﬁts, including prescription drugs, which means “we don’t know what the states will provide” to people with HIV. Also at risk under the plan, Schmid said, is access to preventative services, like HIV testing, or access to PrEP as a means of HIV prevention for low-income people on Medicaid. “PrEP is covered by most plans right now,” Schmid said. “Medicaid plans and qualiﬁed health plans. If people don’t have coverage, they can’t access the medications, and the federal government’s not paying for PrEP by the CDC or the Ryan White program. Ryan White is just for people who are HIV positive.” One aspect of Obamacare that LGBT supporters value is Section 1557, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in health care. The Obama administration interpreted that provision to bar discrimination in health care against transgender people, including by denying them gender reassignment surgery. A court order has enjoined enforcement of that regulation, but advocates insist transgender people can sue under the underlying law if they face discrimination in health care. Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said the provision is safe for the time being because it couldn’t be eliminated through the budget reconciliation process planned for the American Health Care Act, but nonetheless transgender people would face other problems. “That really doesn’t matter because the repeal bill would make it so much harder for trans people to get insurance though the continuous coverage requirement,

U.S. House Speaker PAUL RYAN (R-Wis.) originated the American Health Care Act before Trump endorsed it. WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

the gutting of Medicaid and several other aspects, that protecting from discrimination would move to a lesser concern,” Keisling said. “Trans people would be among those most hurt.” In the individual market, CBO estimates the Republican plan would reduce premiums by an average of 10 percent, but there’s a wide fluctuation in estimated payments for older people and younger people. For a person making $26,500 a year, the yearly net premium would be $1,450 if that person were 21 years old, $2,400 if that person were 40 years old and $14,600 if that person were 64 years old. Under the legislation, premiums for older people could be five times larger than those for younger people in many states, but the size of the tax credits for older people would only be twice the size of the credits for younger people. CBO estimates the American Health Care Act would result in greater cost savings than Obamacare for the federal government. Under the Republican proposal, the agency projected a reduction in the federal deficits by by $337 billion over the 2017-2026 period. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer defended the American Health Care Act on Tuesday by dismissing the CBO’s estimates that the number of uninsured people would increase, asserting its estimate during the Obama era that 24 million people would have coverage under Obamacare in 2016 was “way off.” “They were off by 13 million people — over 50 percent,” Spicer said. “In fact, only 10.4 million people were actually covered. Reports now suggest that that number has dwindled down to 9 million. CBO coverage estimates are consistently wrong and, more importantly, did not take into consideration the comprehensive nature of the three-pronged plan to repeal and replace Obamacare with the

American Health Care Act.” The second prong to the administration’s approach to health care reform is regulatory relief aimed at reducing costs by 10 percent in the individual markets. The third is additional legislation to undo Obamacare that can’t be done through the regulatory process, which only requires a majority vote for passage in the U.S. Senate as opposed to 60 votes to overcome as a filibuster. Phill Wilson, CEO of The Black AIDS Institute, said in a statement the White House attack on the CBO’s calculations is “spin” because the American Health Care Act will increase premiums, reduce benefits and replace subsidies with tax credits. “Particularly if you’re a person living with HIV/AIDS, a poor person, a person with other chronic illnesses, or an older American — regardless of what lie the administration or the Congress tries to sell to you — ask yourself this: Is my health insurance likely to be more robust, better and cheaper under the new plan than it was under the Affordable Care Act?” Wilson said. “Then mobilize accordingly.” Under questioning from CNN’s Jim Acosta, Spicer conceded millions of people won’t have health coverage as a result of the American Health Care Act, but insisted “you have to look at the current situation.” “If you could bring down cost and choices and allow people to find a plan that fit their budget, that was tailored to their needs, there is actually a higher likelihood that they will find something that they want at a price that they can afford — as to right now, which is I get a plan that I’m forced to buy that has a deductible that I can’t afford, but I’ve got a cute little plastic card that I can wave around,” Spicer said. Schmid rejected the argument health care plans can’t be used now because premiums and deductibles are too high, noting for many people, such as those on Medicaid, it’s either this coverage or nothing at all. “We agree that there are problems with high deductibles,” Schmid said. “That’s why we want to repair the Affordable Care Act, but taking away coverage from people is even worse. And he mixes up Medicaid. Medicaid doesn’t have premiums and deductibles and so that’s the biggest problem. They keep on saying it doesn’t work. You have deductibles. Well, that’s only the qualified health plans. Medicaid doesn’t have premiums, doesn’t have deductibles. They have minor copays and they’re limited by law, and they’re minimal.” As part of an effort to derail repeal, Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), have sought to vilify the proposal by calling it “Trumpcare” much like Republican

opponents of Affordable Care Act dubbed the Democratic plan Obamacare — a nomenclature President Obama ultimately accepted as his own. Spicer, however, sought to put some distance between Trump and the Republican proposal by rejecting the Trumpcare label for the American Health Care Act, saying the issue at hand isn’t labels, but health care reform. “The Obama administration didn’t label it Obamacare, they called it the ACA,” Spicer said. “I mean, this is the American Health Care Act. The president is proud of it. The president is proud of the fact that we’re working with Congress. But this is a bill that is not his, it’s a joint effort that we’ve worked with the House and the Senate on. He’s proud of it. He’s proud of the impact that it’s going to have on American patients. So I don’t think this is about labels and names, this is about getting a job done.” The office of U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who was the originator of the American Health Care Act before Trump endorsed it, didn’t respond to the Washington Blade’s request to comment on the impact the plan would have on LGBT people and people with HIV. Gregory Angelo, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, said he’d withhold formal comment on the American Health Care Act, citing on ongoing review of the American Health Care Act on LGBT people and people with HIV. “I will say that I continue to get messages from LCR members across the country whose premiums have skyrocketed or whose healthcare plans have been canceled as a result of Obamacare,” Angelo said. “Clearly there has to be a better way.” Because of opposition on all sides, passage in the Republican-controlled Congress will be an uphill fight. Democrats, including the conservative Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) seem locked in opposition to the American Health Care Act. On the other side of the aisle, the farright House Freedom Caucus opposes the measure because it doesn’t go far enough, as do Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.), whose states have enacted some version of the Medicaid expansion. Schmid said he doesn’t think the current version of the American Health Care Act would make it through Congress, saying Republicans are “running scared” over the prospects of the bill becoming law. “I think what they’ll do is make some changes, but I don’t see how this is going to pass even in the House, let alone the Senate,” Schmid said. “It’s ripping coverage away from people with health care, and we can’t do that. What we say is people with HIV need consistent care, and you cannot risk taking away their medications or health care. Not even for a single day.”

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LGBT community centers vandalized in disturbing trend By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com In addition to the attack at D.C.’s Casa Ruby, at least three LGBT community centers have been vandalized in recent attacks that could be part of a national trend of rising hate seen since President Trump’s election. In the last few weeks, vandals smashed a window at the office of Equality Florida in Orlando, the city where last year a shooter took the lives of 49 people and wounded 53 others at a gay nightclub, and windows were smashed at the headquarters in Asbury Park of the New Jersey LGBT Garden State Equality. In Tulsa, Okla., 13 shots were fired from a pellet gun at the Equality Center on Monday just hours before a man came into the lobby yelling profanities and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric at front-desk staff. According to Tulsa World, the Equality Center had never been the target of vandalism in the 12 years since Oklahomans for Equality moved into the building. “We’re getting reports like this from all over the country,” Toby Jenkins, the Equality Center’s executive director, was quoted as saying. “Gay community centers being vandalized; welcoming churches being vandalized; gay businesses being vandalized. Now it’s happened in Tulsa.” The trend of attacks on LGBT centers echoes anti-Semitic attacks since the inauguration of President Trump, who ran

a campaign rooted in animosity toward minority groups, such as Muslims and immigrants. Trump also won with the support of white nationalists like David Duke, who as former Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan has advocated antiSemitic and racist ideology. The anti-Semitic attacks have been especially prominent in recent weeks. Last month, bomb threats forced evacuations at Jewish schools and community centers on a single day in 11 states. Within the course of one week, nearly 100 tombstones were found overturned at a Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia and more than 150 tombstones were vandalized at a St. Louis Jewish cemetery. Other minority groups are also facing attacks. Just this week in Washington State, a man still not apprehended by law enforcement shot a Sikh man in his driveway after telling him to “go back to your country.” The incident is being investigated as a hate crime. Accompanying the vandalism at the LGBT community centers is ongoing violence against transgender people, which has existed long before Trump took oﬃce. At least seven transgender women, six black, have been murdered so far in 2017. Daniel Pinello, a political scientist at the City University of New York, said the attacks on LGBT centers as well as mosques and synagogues are “no surprise” because the nation is so deeply

divided after Trump’s election. Pinello said the Women’s March on Washington “marked a high point of overt opposition to the new president” and demonstrations continue on the left, such as the newly formed anti-Trump Indivisible movement. But these progressive demonstrations, Pinello said, could “provoke their own backlash on the right.” “As a result, mosques and synagogues and LGBT centers provide ready targets for whatever rage ﬂares up among ultra-conservatives,” Pinello said. “Their retaliation is particularly rife when the opportunity for signiﬁcant policy changes by the new administration seems on the verge of being squandered because of too many daily hiccups by Donald Trump and the White House. In truth, I wouldn’t be surprised if these homophobic and anti-Semitic and Islamophobic attacks continue at a brisk pace as the Indivisible and related movements openly progress in response to the current regime.” Facing calls to denounce the anti-Semitic attacks, Trump has repudiated them on repeated occasions, most notably last late month at the beginning of his speech before a joint session of Congress. “Recent threats targeting Jewish Community Centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries, as well as last week’s shooting in Kansas City, remind us that while we may be a nation divided on policies, we are a country that stands united in condemning hate and evil in all

its forms,” Trump said. Kelly Love, a White House spokesperson, said in response to the Washington Blade’s request for comment on the attacks on LGBT centers Trump’s condemnation of bigotry extends to this vandalism. “President Trump condemns hate and evil in all of its very ugly forms, including attacks against the LGBT community,” Love said. Amid the attacks on LGBT centers, Jewish cemeteries and mosques, a Quinnipiac poll published Thursday found Americans believe hate is on the rise in the United States since the election of President Trump. The poll found 63 percent of American voters believe the level of hatred and prejudice has increased and 77 percent of voters think prejudice against minority groups in the U.S. is a “very serious” or “somewhat serious” problem. The poll found concern about antiSemitism in particular has jumped in the last month. The poll found 70 percent of American voters believe the speciﬁc issue of prejudice against Jewish people is a “very serious” or “somewhat serious” problem. That’s up from 49 percent in a Feb. 8 Quinnipiac University Poll. American voters, the poll found, are divided on President Donald Trump’s response to bomb threats against Jewish community centers and vandalism of Jewish cemeteries. The poll found 37 percent of Americans approve and 38 percent disapprove.

Attacker released, ordered to stay away from Casa Ruby CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

your mother fucking ass! Y’all tranny mother fuckers think somebody won’t fuck y’all up!” Casa Ruby founder and executive director Ruby Corado told the Washington Blade Cook had been an occasional visitor to Casa Ruby over the past several weeks and was known to employees and some clients. Corado said Cook identified as being straight and had expressed interest in meeting transgender women who go to Casa Ruby for various services. “By law we cannot tell non-LGBT people not to come in,” Corado said. Corado said witnesses told her Cook became violent during the March 12 incident when he was asked to leave because he was bothering people there. Acting D.C. Police Lt. Brett Parson, who oversees the police LGBT Liaison Unit, said officers investigating the case flagged it as a possible anti-transgender hate crime. But during a presentment hearing in Superior Court on Tuesday, March 14, prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s office did not list the incident as a hate crime and filed

Ruby Corado said the attack on the center temporarily shattered her eﬀorts to make Casa Ruby a ‘safe space’ for vulnerable members of the LGBT community. WASHINGTON BLADE FILE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

just one of the three police charges against Cook – felony destruction of property. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jelahn Stewart, a spokesperson for the oﬃce, said prosecutors routinely ﬁle the most serious charge against a defendant in a

case like this when it first comes to court. She said additional charges could be filed later, including a possible designation as a hate crime, when the case goes before a grand jury for an indictment. Stewart noted that the felony destruction of property charge was more serious than the charges of simple assault and making threats to do bodily harm, which are misdemeanors. During the March 14 hearing Judge Sean Staples agreed to a defense request that Cook be released on his own recognizance on the condition that he stays away from the block on which Casa Ruby is located and from all Casa Ruby employees and clients. Cook had been held overnight in jail following his arrest on Monday. The judge also ordered Cook to return to court on April 3 for a preliminary hearing, where prosecutors are required to present evidence showing probable cause exists that Cook committed the offense with which he is charged. The police arrest affidavit says the trans woman who was assaulted, who is identified as Victim 1, told police Cook became angry because he believed the

women and others at Casa Ruby had been “talking about him.” It says that’s when he shouted antitransgender names and made threats against those present in the room where the altercation unfolded. “Victim 1 states the altercation became physical when Suspect 1 [Cook] approached her and hit her in the head with his index finger,” the affidavit says. “Suspect 1 then walked away from Victim 1, grabbed a bar of soap from a table and threw it at Victim 1, hitting her right shoulder. No injury resulted.” According to the affidavit, Cook then exited the building, and a witness to the incident immediately locked the door. Another witness quoted Cook saying as he walked out of Casa Ruby, “I’ll fuck this place up! I’ll make sure none of y’all have a place to go!” Minutes later Cook returned and kicked the door frame, causing damage, the affidavit says. It says he then grabbed a brick and threw it at the double pane glass door, shattering the exterior layer of glass.

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The LGBT Health Resource Center of Chase Brexton Health Care is slated to host four events from March 25-30 to recognize LGBT Health Awareness Week. “The activities we have planned are about visibility and building community,” said Nate Sweeney, executive director of the LGBT Health Resource Center. “We want to provide a safe space and lessen the stigma that many in the LGBTQ community face when trying to obtain fair and inclusive health care.” On March 25, there will be a BreastFest Cancer Screening at American Radiology Services (3700 Fleet St., Suite 110, in Baltimore). BreastFest provides lesbian, same-gender-loving, bisexual and queer women over 40 with breast cancer screenings by appointment. This event is trans inclusive for anyone in need of breast tissue screening. March 28 will feature a Trans vs. Bureaucracy Workshop from 6-8 p.m. at Chase Brexton’s Mount Vernon Center (first floor community room; 1111 N. Charles St.). This workshop provides documents and counsel for trans patients of Chase Brexton who are navigating the legal processes of name/gender marker change. The workshop will include a round-table discussion to share the personal narratives of trans individuals and their experiences navigating bureaucracy. Bisexual Speed Dating will take place on March 29 from 6-9 p.m. at Flavor (15 E. Centre St. in Baltimore). This evening event aims to bring bi people together for potential friendship or romance. There is a $10 cover, with proceeds supporting LGBT cancer screenings. On March 30, there will be a screening of “You Are Not Alone” on from 6-9 p.m. at Chase Brexton’s Mount Vernon Center. “You Are Not Alone” is an award-winning documentary featuring stories of gay black men struggling with depression. The film will be followed by a discussion of the film, battling stigma and building community. The event is free. Sweeney adds, “It is important for people to have the opportunity to be with those who are going through the same thing or have similar experiences. That is why our events this year are centered on particular identities within our community. We are thrilled to be working with great partners like FreeState Justice, the Center for Black Equity, the Baltimore Transgender Alliance, Baltimore TransMen Inc, the STAR TRACK program at University of Maryland and others to not only bring attention to some of the health disparities that our communities face, but to do something about it.”

Town hall meeting on PrEP on tap

A town hall meeting on HIV Prevention and Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) will take place on March 29 from 6:30-8 p.m. at First and Franklin Presbyterian Church, 210 W. Madison St. in Baltimore. The event, hosted by AIDS Action Baltimore, is intended for men who have sex 5130 Wisconsin Ave. NW • DC • (202) 966-6400 • www.JosephGawlers.com with men and for transgender individuals. The latest information on preventing HIV and the use of PrEP will be oﬀered and discussed. Food and refreshments ADVERTISIN G be P provided. ROOF will ISSUE DATE: 10.26.12 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: BRIAN PITTS (bpitts@washblade.com) Sponsors include the Center for Black Equity-Baltimore, the GLBT Community Center of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins Center for AIDS Research & REACH HIV, REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. wille bed considered and STAR TRACK Adolescent Health Program, University of Maryland School of adviC e Proof • m i a t ifinal o and N will • beL submitted i t i Gfor apublication t i o Nif revision • a isPnot P submitted e a L Swithin • 24 C hours o LofL a B o r a t i o N the date of proof. Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is Medicine. responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users

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The Frederick Center will celebrate its ﬁfth anniversary with a carnival fundraiser on Saturday, March 18 from 7-11p.m, at the Delaplaine Arts Center, 40 Carroll St. in Frederick. Elegant attire, masks and costumes are encouraged for the Brazilian-themed event. There will be dancing to a DJ and light Brazilian hors d’oeuvres will be available. In addition, Brazilian dancers, drag and other entertainment will be featured. One drink token is included per person then a cash bar. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit thefrederickcenter.org. STEVE CHARING

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18 • M A R C H 17, 2017

H E A LT H N E W S

March is Bisexual Health Awareness Month ATLANTA — Bisexual individuals comprise nearly half of those who identify as LGBT, but only about 28 percent of bisexuals disclose their sexuality, according to the Movement Advancement Project. This can lead to significant health disparities, which led the Bisexual Resource Center to denote March as Bisexual Health Awareness Month, the Georgia Voice reports. The Project, located in Boston, launched Bisexual Health Awareness Month in 2014 with the intention to raise awareness of social, health and economic issues that affect the bisexual community. “The first campaign theme, ‘Bi the Way, Our Health Matters Too!’ encompassed mental health, sexual health, nutrition and sexual violence,” said spokesperson Laura DelloStritto. “The campaign was so effective in engaging people to share statistics and resources that the BRC continues to celebrate Bisexual Health Awareness Month each March.” The 2017 theme is social health, including friends, family, partners and community. Each week, the Project tunes its social media channels to feature statistics, resources and action steps related to each topic, Georgia Voice reports. DelloStritto said bisexual individuals are more likely to suffer mood and anxiety disorders, and be more economically disadvantaged, than gay and lesbian people. Bisexual women in particular face disparities such as higher rates of cancer, heart disease and obesity, compared to heterosexual women. Bisexual men are also less likely to get tested for HIV, according to Human Rights Campaign.

U.K. group: lesbians need cervical screenings LONDON — LGBT groups are warning lesbians they have been misinformed if they’ve been told they don’t need cervical screenings, the Daily Telegraph reports. According to LGB&T Partnership, an alliance of gay non-proﬁts, 37 percent of women who have sex with women have been told they don’t need screenings. About half of all eligible lesbian and bi women have never had pap smears, Partnership staﬀ reports. The human papilloma virus (HPV), which causes most cervical cancers, is passed through intimate skin-to-skin contact. The partnership surveyed women on their experiences with sexual health care as part of the inaugural National Lesbian and Bisexual Women’s Health Week, which aims to highlight that “lesbian, bisexual and other women who have sex with women (WSW) are experiencing a range of health inequalities and both face barriers to accessing health care and are having poor experiences when they do.” “(WSW) lack acknowledgement both in mainstream society and LGBT communities, and to the NHS we are largely invisible,” writes Elizabeth Barker in the forward of a new report published in November. “It is unacceptable that (WSW) continue to experience discrimination and that thoughtlessness compromises our health care.” Other issues highlighted by the partnership’s report are that 21 percent of bisexual women and 12 percent of lesbians reported a long-term mental health problem, compared with 4 percent of heterosexual women, and that 29 percent of lesbian and bisexual women report more binge drinking compared with 12 percent in the general population of women, the Telegraph reports.

New online resource for U.K. gay, bi men

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LONDON — Two leading charities have launched an online counseling service for gay and bisexual men to get support around drugs, sex and alcohol, Pink News, a British LGBT news outlet, reports. Terrence Higgins Trust and London Friend launched the new service via Friday/Monday, a website that oﬀers information about sex and drugs for gay and bisexual men. The new project includes an online support group and one-to-one virtual counseling, which the charities hope will make it easier for men in rural areas to access support. People will be able to see their counselor on the screen, or up to 10 people in a support group, while they talk through their issues around drugs or alcohol. Cary James, head of Health Promotion at Terrence Higgins Trust, said, “We’re delighted to be working with London Friend to deliver this important and much needed project. Mainstream services often don’t meet the needs of gay men whose drug and alcohol use is linked to their sex life,” according to Pink News. The project was awarded funding by the Public Health England HIV Prevention Innovation Fund. Find out more and sign up on the Friday/Monday website at fridaymonday.org.uk.

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F I T NES S

M A R C H 17, 2017 • 19

Right after your workout Recovery work begins while you’re still at the gym When we exercise, we’re putting our bodies through a traumatic experience. Thousands of microtears to our muscles, intense fatigue, a depletion of our glycogen stores, dehydration and more. You have a lot to do to get your body ready for the next day’s DAVID MAGIDA is founder of Elevate Interval Fitness, a member of the Reebok Spartan Race Pro training. You can’t just wake up Team and author of “The Essentials of Obstacle the next day and assume you’ll Racing: A Beginner’s Guide.” You can catch a class automatically be ready to go at with him at Elevate on 14th Street or at its new location in the Mosaic District in Fairfax, Va. 100 percent efficiency. So here are a few tips that can accelerate your recovery, allowing you to be less sore, more energetic and ready to get after it as soon as possible. Hydrate: In addition to the eight cups of water per day that your body needs for proper function, keep in mind that you might sweat out an additional 16-64 ounces of water during the course of your workout. So be sure to immediately start replenishing fluids when you begin training. Recovery drinks: Once your workout is over, you want to start replenishing as quickly as you can. Remember those micro-tears? You want as much time for your body to repair those as possible. Consuming a post-workout drink that includes protein and BCAAs (Branch Chain Amino Acids) will kick start that recovery process. Additionally, you’ll have used a great deal of your fuel reserves, so carbohydrate intake is critical as well. Aim for a ratio of 3:1 carbohydrates to protein after your workout to replenish and rebuild. Compression gear: Post workout your muscles will begin to tighten up. The next day, you may even be so sore that you struggle to get out of bed. The muscles get very tight as they repair themselves. So keeping the muscles warm will keep them more supple and help maintain your range of motion, enabling you to train the next day. It can also improve circulation, bringing critical nutrients to your muscles in greater supply. Sleeping in compression gear can be helpful for the muscles for a gentler wakeup and if you’re still tight when you get to your training session, wearing them can keep you more mobile as well. Roll/massage/stretch: In the same vein as utilizing compression gear to stay loose, foam rolling, self-massaging and stretching are key to prepping your body for the next day. Rolling and massage are good for both breaking up the knots that can form in your muscles once recovery begins, as well as loosening up your fascia, the layer that surrounds your muscles. Imagine taking a handful of the sleeve of your shirt and twisting it. Your arm doesn’t move so freely when it’s all wound up. Now release that sleeve and your range of motion returns. Proper muscle function requires this. Stretching, the age-old technique, does a quality job of loosening the deep muscle but you’ll need some assistance from pressure-based techniques like rolling and massage to maximize the benefits. Active recovery: One of the most overlooked aspects of recovery is what we call “active recovery.” Most people finish a workout and the next morning they wake up to incredible soreness and say, “There’s no way I can train today.” That, is the biggest mistake you can make. Your soreness will only get worse as your muscles tighten throughout the day. Active recovery is about pushing through the first few minutes of discomfort on another session of some kind and finding that the exercise makes you limber and loose and feeling better than ever. Great forms of active recovery include yoga, running, swimming, cycling and more. None of these forms of workout should be used exclusively, but instead are really quality bounce-back days to allow your body to prepare for its next difficult effort, while building some light cardiovascular or flexibility fitness. Training hard and being unbelievably sore do not necessarily have to go hand in hand. Utilize a few rapid recovery tips and you’ll find your body bouncing back quicker, more energized and ready to for your next session.

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The Trump ‘Doesn’t’ Care Act Millions stand to lose coverage under new health plan

PETER ROSENSTEIN is a D.C.-based LGBT rights and Democratic Party activist. He writes regularly for the Blade.

Among the lies Donald Trump told on the campaign trail were those about what he would do about repealing and replacing the Aﬀordable Care Act. Those lies — or as Kellyanne Conway calls them “alternative facts” — continued well after he was elected into the ﬁrst weeks of his new administration when he admitted he didn’t know what the hell he was doing when it came to healthcare. We all remember his bluster during the campaign when he declared he will have a replacement for the ACA, which will give healthcare to everyone and it will be cheaper and better. On Jan. 15, the Washington Post reported, “Presidentelect Donald Trump said in a weekend interview that he is nearing completion of a plan to replace President Obama’s signature health-care law with the goal of “insurance for everybody,” while also vowing to force drug companies to negotiate directly with the government on prices in Medicare and Medicaid.” Then on Jan. 18 it

was reported “Speaking with Axios, Trump applied a bit more restraint regarding the prospects of his plan’s promise to provide every American with health care. “Well, we want people taken care of ... There will be nobody dying on the streets in a Trump administration.” Finally on Feb. 28, Trump said, “Now, I have to tell you, it’s an unbelievably complex subject,” and added, “nobody knew health care could be so complicated.” Well Trump didn’t know but every American and individual involved in working on and passing the Affordable Care Act, and even Republicans who couldn’t figure out a replacement for it in the past six years, knew. On March 7, Speaker of the House Paul ‘can’t add’ Ryan (R-Wisc.) and his Republican colleagues introduced their secret congressional plan to repeal and replace the ACA, which they call the American Healthcare Act. I have dubbed it the Trump ‘Doesn’t’ Care Act since the president has now said he fully supports it. This legislation takes money from the poor and gives it to the rich. It will mean less healthy children and families so the rich can get a cut in their taxes. The Congressional Budget Office estimate shows 14 million will lose their healthcare next year and 24 million by 2026. Even with this possibility, Tea Party Republicans are indicating they won’t be satisfied until every poor person loses their healthcare. No one really debates the fact the Affordable Care Act needs tweaking. But the axe Republicans are taking to it if this bill were to pass as introduced, which based on comments by a number of Republican senators is highly unlikely, would be catastrophic to millions.

The parts of the bill causing the most concern for Republican senators are the changes to the Medicaid program. There are 31 states that expanded their Medicaid programs under the ACA, which extended new coverage to nearly 11 million low-income adults. If you end or cut that program drastically it would leave many of those millions of people without healthcare. That is a real problem for many GOP governors and the senators like Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) from red states. The Ryan bill would “overhaul the whole program, which covers more than 70 million people, by sending states a fixed amount of money per enrollee, known as a per-capita cap.” GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski said, “her party must find a “fair and humane” way to treat those who gained coverage through Medicaid expansion.” She added, “In Alaska, we’ve got 27,000 people that are now eligible for coverage that didn’t have it before and really have no place else to turn and so I’m trying to figure out a way that treats these people in a fair and humane manner.” Sen. Orrin Hatch, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, said, “the intra-party division over Medicaid was a “problem.” Hatch added, “The Democrats aren’t going to help us. So it is a problem.” It can only be hoped with the release of this bill the millions of Americans who got their insurance through the ACA will finally realize electing a billionaire with no understanding of government or healthcare was a mistake. Voting for Trump, or not voting, and putting this bully who believes it is OK to lie your way to the top in business or government in the White House is turning out to be a disaster. E DIT OR IA L CA RT O O N

202-747-2077 E-MAIL news@washblade.com INTERNET washingtonblade.com PUBLISHED BY Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. PUBLISHER LYNNE J. BROWN lbrown@washblade.com ext. 8075 EDITORIAL EDITOR KEVIN NAFF knaff@washblade.com ext. 8088 FEATURES EDITOR JOEY DIGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com ext. 8081 SR. NEWS REPORTER LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com ext. 8079 NEWS REPORTER CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com ext. 8083 REPORTER & INTERNATIONAL NEWS EDITOR MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com POP CULTURE REPORTER MARIAH COOPER PHOTO EDITOR MICHAEL KEY mkey@washblade.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS PETER ROSENSTEIN, MARK LEE, LATEEFAH WILLIAMS, KATE CLINTON, KATHI WOLFE, RICHARD J. ROSENDALL, MAXIMILLIAN SYCAMORE CREATIVE DESIGN/PRODUCTION AZERCREATIVE.COM SALES & ADMINISTRATION DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING STEPHEN RUTGERS srutgers@washblade.com ext. 8077 SR. ACCT. EXECUTIVE BRIAN PITTS bpitts@washblade.com ext. 8089 ACCT. EXECUTIVE SIRIWAT PATHARAPANUPATH spath@washblade.com ext. 8078 JOE HICKLING jhickling@washblade.com ext. 8094 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION PHILLIP G. ROCKSTROH prockstroh@washblade.com ext. 8092 NATIONAL ADVERTISING RIVENDELL MEDIA 212-242-6863; sales@rivendellmedia.com For distribution, contact Lynne Brown at 202-747-2077, ext. 8075. Distributed by MediaPoint, LLC All material in the Washington Blade is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the Washington Blade. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. Although the Washington Blade is supported by many fine advertisers, we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by the Washington Blade, but the paper cannot take responsibility for its return. The editors reserve the right to accept, reject or edit any submission. A single copy of the Washington Blade is available from authorized distribution points, to any individual within a 50-mile radius of Washington, D.C. Multiple copies are available from the Washington Blade office only. Call for rates. If you are unable to get to a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a 52-week mailed subscription for $195 per year or $5.00 per single issue. Checks or credit card orders can be sent to Phil Rockstroh at prockstroh@washblade.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to the Washington Blade, PO BOX 53352 Washington, DC 20009. The Washington Blade is published weekly, on Friday, by Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. Individual Subscriptions are $195 per year for 52 issues (only $3.75 per issue mailed to you USPS). Rates for businesses/institutions are $450 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and additional mailing offices. Editorial positions of the Washington Blade are expressed in editorials and in editors’ notes as determined by the paper’s editors. Other opinions are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Washington Blade or its staff. To submit a letter or commentary: Letters should be fewer than 400 words; commentaries should be fewer than 750 words. Submissions may be edited for content and length, and must include a name, address and phone number for verification. Send submissions by e-mail to knaff@washblade.com.

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TCM’s Robert Osborne loved movies like no other Affable host connected us to cinematic world

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

“Movies are your church!” a date told me once when she couldn’t get my attention away from “The Philadelphia Story,” which was playing on Turner Classic Movies. Robert Osborne, the charming, erudite, but never pompous, primary host of Turner Classic Movies was the high priest for all of us who worship the silver screen — from queers like me growing up in small towns to drag queens in urban gay bars to hetero suburban grandmothers. Osborne, 84, died on March 6 in his

sleep in his New York City home, theater director and producer David Staller told the Los Angeles Times. The LA Times, the Washington Post and other publications reported that Staller was Osborne’s life partner for 20 years. Osborne’s New York Times obituary described Staller as “a longtime friend.” When asked why this term was used to describe Staller, Richard Sandomir, who wrote the obit, told the Times public editor, “I reached out to David Staller and ultimately ‘close friend’ was how he said he wanted to be identified.” (The Washington Post obituary ran a correction that said Staller was a “friend.”) The mystery surrounding Osborne’s life seems fitting. Sitting in our living rooms, lying in bed, our eyes glued to TCM, it felt as if we knew Osborne. It seemed as if Osborne, our affable uncle, boyfriend, or pal, had stopped by to banter wittily oneon-one with us about the movies. What did it matter if we didn’t know about his personal life? If we thought (hoped) that someone who so knew and loved Tinsel Town and its stars was queer? In a mere

one or two-minute intro to “All About Eve,” Osborne not only brought Margo Channing into our homes, he made us feel as if we had a personal connection to Bette Davis. There are (and will be) other movie hosts. Alec Baldwin, Drew Barrymore and Ben Mankiewicz, among others, have talked knowledgeably and amusingly about movies on TCM. Yet, it’s hard to think of anyone who is as sophisticated, urbane or in love with movies as Osborne was. Former Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales aptly called him “an avatar of erudition.” As Staller told the LA Times, “It’s diﬃcult to imagine a planet without him. He made the choice to call it a day, and he wants everyone to know that he’ll see them at the after party.” Osborne, who was with TCM from its launch in 1994, was a Hollywood Reporter columnist. He was dubbed the “oﬃcial biographer” of the Academy Awards for the books that he wrote on the Oscars. For the past 11 years, Osborne greeted celebs as they entered the red carpet at the Oscars. He grew up in Colfax, Wash., a small

town. All everyone talked about there was crops, he told interviewers. “I’d see Clifton Webb and Gene Tierney in ‘Laura’ and Bette Davis in ‘All About Eve,’” he told the New York Times, “and I’d think, ‘those people are so much more interesting than what I’m living around in this town.’” Osborne was friends with Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland and many other stars. Though he loved them, he sometimes spoke his mind. When he ﬁrst met Davis, he wondered if he’d made the wrong impression. It was in 1977, and he urged her to see “Star Wars.” “She said, ‘I hate that kinda movie,’” he told CBS’s Sunday Morning. “I said, ‘Oh, but it’s really good,’ And she said, ‘I HATE that kind of movie!’ And I said, ‘I can’t believe you would say something as stupid as that!’... I looked at her, and I knew I had her. And that’s what she was waiting for: A challenge. And we were friends from then on.” Our celluloid dreams — of Fred and Ginger, Bette and Joan, Audrey and Kate are essential to us. Thank you, Robert, for connecting us with our dreams. R.I.P.

O U R B USI NES S MATTERS

A defeated politician’s job search and its symbolism LGBT cultural acceptance and civic assimilation is an adjustment for some

MARK LEE is a long-time entrepreneur and community business advocate. Follow on Twitter: @MarkLeeDC. Reach him at OurBusinessMatters@gmail.com.

Former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory announced last week that he was having diﬃculty acquiring a new job. The once-popular governor indicated that the controversy surrounding passage of HB2, requiring transgender persons to use the bathroom corresponding to the biological sex indicated on their birth certiﬁcate when at schools and government buildings, had created obstacles for him on the job market as a result of his backing the bill. Despite an unexpectedly strong ballot sweep by Republicans in the November

election, including a surprisingly sizable rejection of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, McCrory became the Tar Heel State’s first top officeholder to lose a reelection bid since 1850. His defeat was attributed to the unpopular “bathroom law” he vehemently supported. McCrory lamented in an interview last Friday that the issue “has impacted me to this day, even after I left office. People are reluctant to hire me, because, ‘oh my gosh, he’s a bigot’.” The significance of McCrory’s described dilemma is not that he will remain unable to find satisfactory employment, or that he should be denied the opportunity to earn a living to the benefit of himself and his family, despite continuing to doubledown on his advocacy for the law. His acknowledgment, however, does serve as a signifier of the broad-based affirmation of LGBT equality nationwide. North Carolina businesses, joined by regional and national companies alongside other private sector enterprise and organizations, have led the still-continuing effort to overturn the law, which has reportedly cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue and the loss of thousands of jobs. The NCAA, as it had previously threatened in other jurisdictions, announced the cancelation of all championship events

scheduled for the state through 2022 at an estimated quarter-billion-dollar economic detriment, unless the law is repealed. Strong polled majorities and supermajorities of Americans now support wide-ranging LGBT civil protections along with marriage equality. Even bathroom selection self-determined by gender identity enjoys nationwide majority endorsement, as the country takes a closer look at, and grows more comfortable with, the issue. At least 19 states and more than 100 cities extend a complement of legal protections to transgender persons. Those achievements in the arena of LGBT equality and acceptance have been won less by government mandate and more by public persuasion. Although comprising only a modest four-percent of the U.S. population for all LGBT community components combined, with a limited corresponding degree of political clout, the pace toward full equality most everywhere continues to accelerate. This relatively rapid communal success poses a fundamentally unfamiliar conundrum for many, especially older gays and lesbians with memories of a time in history and an experience of hardship largely foreign to those younger today. The challenge for some is not only to fully embrace the substantially broad at-

tainment of equal treatment and civic acceptance, but to also transition from old patterns of estrangement to accepting cultural assimilation. Identity politics will undoubtedly lessen and divergent attitudes will certainly increase, requiring a communal adjustment in perspective regarding what it means to be gay. If not, we’ll merely mimic McCrory’s whining with our own vocalized victimization. Are there items on the “gay agenda” that still need attention? Sure. But the victories that have been won surpass any illusory conveyance via conventional edict or collective instruction by society at large. Government is never the provider of genuine equality, only the lagging indicator that the citizenry has authentically evolved before the bureaucracy. Diversification — whether regarding lifestyle preferences, geographic residency, or political positions — will increasingly become self-evident along the way. That will require a shift in thinking, an allowance for differences, and a seeming break-up of longstanding cultural identity. We won’t think the same any more than we look alike. It should become something we celebrate, not something we begin to fear. Pat McCrory may have been unprepared for the new culture in which he finds himself, but there’s no reason we should.

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Campers at Synetic Theater this summer will learn and perform ‘The Wild and Wacky Wizarding World of Wiley Skylar!’ PHOTO COURTESY OF SYNETIC THEATER

Oﬀ to summer camp

MANY SCHOOLS, THEATERS AND MORE OFFER LGBT-AFFIRMING OPTIONS By MARIAH COOPER mcooper@washblade.com Although winter weather is hanging on tight at the close of the season, summer is rapidly approaching. Instead of fighting to find ways to entertain the kids at home, local camps have done the hard work for you. Kids can ride horses, learn beauty tricks, conduct science experiments or perform in a musical. With programs for all types of interest, the only battle is choosing which camp to try this summer. Adventure Theatre offers Summer Musical Theater Camp for grades one-six in Glen Echo Park for a two-week session and for grades six-12 in Wintergreen Plaza for a three-week session. This summer campers will Campers will perform “Return of the Glass Slipper,” “Thwacked!” and “Tom Sawyer” among others. D.C area theater professionals and artists guide campers in daily rehearsals. Family and friends can watch the completed shows at the end of the camp session. Grades six-12 can choose from Contemporary Musical Theater Study and On-Camera Musical Theater Study. Contemporary Musical Theater Study includes a day trip to New York City. Sessions for grades one-six range from $800-850. Grades six12 sessions range from $1,200-1,330. For details, visit adventuretheatre-mtc.org. The Beauvoir School (3500 Woodley Rd., N.W.) splits its camp programs into age-appropriate activities. Fireflies (Rising Pre-K), Blue Jays (rising Kindergarten), Box Turtles (rising first graders), Koalas (rising second-third Graders), Broad Bears (rising fourth-fifth graders) and

CITs (rising sixth-12 graders). Each level focuses on a type of program from art to outdoor activities. CITs prepare students to become counselors by giving them hands-on leadership experience with campers. Blue Jays, Box Turtles and Koalas can also choose a Make-YourOwn Camp option that lets campers pick their A.M. and P.M. activities. A swimming option is also available. For a list of prices, visit summer.beauvoirschool.org. Camp RimRock for Girls (343 Camp Rim Rock Rd., Yellow Spring, W.Va.) is a sleepaway camp for girls in rising first grade through rising 10th grade. General camp is for rising second through 10th graders. Campers can participate in horseback riding, sports, aquatics, performing arts and arts and crafts. General Camp sessions is for two-week sessions for $2,750 or fourweek sessions for $5,000. Riding Speciality Camp is for rising fourth through 10th graders. This program focuses only on horseback riding for one week for $1,500. Mini Camp is also available for first time sleep-away campers in rising first, second and third grade for $1,500. For a list of dates, visit camprimrock.com. Circle Yoga (3838 Northampton St., N.W.) offers programs for children ages 6-12 for full-day camp and children ages 4-7 for half-day camp. Children can participate in yoga and movement, crafts and creative arts, group games, camp songs, relaxation and journaling. Full-day camp is from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. and is $365 per week. Half-day camp is from

9 a.m.-noon and is $250 per week. For information, visit circleyoga.com. Green Acres School (11701 Danville Dr., North Bethesda, Md.) offers Kreative Kangaroos for pre-K students which lets them engage in outdoor play, swimming, dancing and carpentry. Junior camp is for kindergarten through second grade and activities include drama, music, dance, swimming and cooking Senior camp is for grades three through six and includes robotics, rock band, workshop, filmmaking, photography and cooking. For a list of pricing and session times, visit greenacres.org. The Lowell School (1640 Kalmia Rd., N.W.) offers programs for campers starting at age 2-15. Best Buddies is for rising first and second graders and programs include African Drum Fun, Beginning Robotics, among others. Summer Stage is for rising third-eigtht graders and includes Gotta Have Glee, a program that focus on popular music like Taylor Swift and “The Lion King.” Tweens N Teens is for ages 12-14 and has programs such as Gaming and Apps Basics and Amazing Race, which challenges campers to find little-known locations in and around D.C. For a complete list of sessions, programs and prices, visit lowellschool.com. Synetic Theatre (1800 S Bell St., Arlington, Va.) lets campers stage and perform an original play, “The Wild and Wacky Wizarding World of Wiley Skylar!” The play was written for the campers with original musical numbers and an original score. There is one summer intensive

session for students 12-18 from June 1223 for $350. Multiple sessions are available for students 6-14 for $900. Camp Creation and Imagination is for children ages 4-6 from June 12-23 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuition is $400 and includes snack. A.M. care and lunch add-ons are available for all programs except summer intensive. For more details, visit synetictheater.com/camps. Washington Performing Arts has Capital Jazz Camp from June 26-July 8 for children in rising grades three through eight with minimum one-year instrumental experience. Capital Strings Camp is from June 26-July and is for children in rising grades three through six. No experience is required. Capital Voices Camp runs from July 10-21 and is for children in grades four12 with basic vocal training experience. Summer Steps with Step Afrika is for rising campers in grades four-12 with basic dance experience. Each camp is $350 and locations vary. For more information, visit washingtonperformingarts.org. The YMCA in D.C. has camp programs for a traditional experience such as sports, theater, art, swimming, dance and technology. Campers wanting a more specialized course can register for beauty school, creative writing, gardening, among numerous other programs. Camp Letts (4003 Camp Letts Rd., Edgewater, Md.) is the YMCA’s sleep-away camp which oﬀers activities such as horseback riding and kayaking. For more details on camp programs and for a list of prices, visit ymcadc.org and campletts.org.

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G A Y F A MI LI E S

Gayby has dozens of funny T-shirts and onesies for children of rainbow parents. PHOTO COURTESY OF GAYBY

We are family

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Trained facilitators lead the Arlington Support Group and confidentiality is maintained. For further information about the Arlington Support Group, contact us at arl.pflag@gmail.com. Our groups meet on the second Sunday of each month, from 3 – 4:30pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Arlington, at George Mason Drive & Route 50. A.L.Y. is a group for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Questioning Youth and Allies in grades 7-12. Our goal is to give LGBTQ youth a safe place to gather. Trained facilitators lead the youth group. Confidentiality maintained. For more info, contact: aly.pflagdc@gmail.com. Our Washington DC Chapter of PFLAG may be reached at 202-638-3852.

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It’s not a pleasant topic, but it’s an important one. “LGBTQ Intimate Partner Violence: Lessons for Policy, Practice and Research” by Adam Messinger, was released in January. Messinger, assistant professor of justice studies at Northeastern Illinois University, examined about 600 research publications on the topic spanning a 40year period for what he claims is “the first book to review nearly all published research on LGBT intimate partner violence.” The book promises “key findings and theories weaving together the voices of those touched by (LGBT intimate partner violence) with broader patterns through survey research” and identifying “notable gaps in the literature and important avenues for future research.” It retails for $65 and is available on Amazon. On a lighter note, Gayby offers baby and toddler apparel with slogans and graphics such as “I love my lesbiaunt,” “I love my moms,” “daddy is my princess and “raised by bears” and perhaps the piece de resistance — “I’d be older if I hadn’t been frozen.” T-shirts and onesies are available for babies, toddlers and kids. Most are $28. There are even two designs (“I heart my dads” and “I heart my moms”) for dogs. Details at gayby.lgbt.

Out former “Glee” star Chris Colfer, author of the bestselling kids’ series “The Land of Stories,” has released a teen novel called “Stranger Than Fanfiction,” which follows four college-bound friends as they gear up for a cross-country road trip, their last hurrah before life sets them out on different journeys. The 304-page book explores themes of gender and sexual orientation. It retails for $18.99 but Amazon is currently running a discount. And as always, Rainbow Families offers various resources for local LGBT families. Upcoming events include “Playdates & Playmates” in Bethesda and Gaithersburg on March 25; in D.C., Laurel and Fairfax County on April 1; in Alexandria and Bowie on April 8 and more. Its Maybe Baby series continues through spring for those considering a family. An adoption support group will be held on Sunday, April 2. Details at rainbowfamilies.org. It’s not new, but one of the best books we’ve seen on LGBT families is the 2013 book “Family Pride: What LGBT Families Should Know about Navigating Home, School and Safety in Their Neighborhoods” by Michael Shelton. It’s readable, practical and has a bounty of great information. Used copies are available on Amazon starting at a penny.

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M A R C H 17, 2017 • 25

Inspiring events A S.C. COURT RULING, AN ALLY-RUN GRANT PROGRAM AND MORE OFFER HOPE FOR GAY FAMILIES By DANA RUDOLPH This time of year is often a hard one. Where I live, any day might be a snow day, with my son home from school and the sidewalks needing to be shoveled. The usual routine of laundry and groceries and dinner doesn’t stop. In recent weeks, too, I have been distracted by the news stories of a government chipping away at the rights of LGBT people, immigrants and others. How not to be overwhelmed by it all? Here are some of stories about LGBT families making the past few weeks just a bit warmer. A U.S. District Court in South Carolina has ruled that it is unconstitutional for the state to refuse to put same-sex spouses on their children’s birth certificates. The plaintiffs, Casy and Jacqueline Carson, are a lesbian couple who married in Washington, D.C., before their home state of South Carolina recognized marriage for same-sex couples. When Jacqueline gave birth, they indicated on hospital forms that they were married, but then received birth certificates naming Jacqueline as the “mother” with “no father listed” in the space for the other parent. The state had previously said it would only issue birth certificates with both same-sex spouses if they got adoptions or court orders, an extra burden not required of differentsex spouses. The couple could not afford this. Casy is a National Guard veteran who left active duty in 2013 because of a serious injury. Jacqueline is a teacher. Without Casy on the birth certificates they had trouble getting her Veterans Administration and Social Security benefits for their children. Additionally, they worried that Casy could be kept from getting either routine or emergency medical care for the twins and that their children would feel stigmatized when they were old enough to understand their birth certificates. They filed a lawsuit last May, backed by Lambda Legal and South Carolina Equality. In her ruling Feb. 15, Judge Mary Geiger Lewis wrote that the state’s action violates their rights under the 14th Amendment and their “fundamental right to marriage and other protected liberties.” This decision makes me hopeful for the outcome of another case that could have even greater visibility. The National Center for Lesbian Rights last month appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking to overturn an Arkansas Supreme Court decision that denied same-sex parents the right to be on their children’s birth certificates. To assist, Family Equality Council is preparing a “Voices of Children” amicus brief, seeking stories from older or adult children of same-sex parents in any state who have

or had birth certificates without both samesex parents listed. They prepared a similar brief for the winning federal marriage equality cases in years past; seeing them do so again gives me hope. If you would like to contribute, contact Director of State Policy Denise Brogan-Kator at denisebk@ familequality.org. I’m also inspired by the nearly 800 parents of transgender children, part of HRC’s new, nationwide Parents for Transgender Equality Council, who sent a letter to President Donald Serving the LgBt coMMunity for ALMoSt 20 yeArS. noW in Dc, MD & vA! Trump condemning the Justice Department’s announcement that it will no longer try to 827 Woodside Parkway • Silver Spring, MD 20910 overturn a district court’s hold on protections p: 301.221.9651 • f: 240.491.9551 for transgender students that were jfairfax@jenniferfairfax.com • www.jenniferfairfax.com instituted by the Obama administration. The department’s action means the hold stays in place and the protections remain in limbo. Finally, a story of allies. After spouses Becky and Kipp Fawcett depleted their savings adopting their children, they wanted to help other families who might be facing even greater financial obstacles, Becky told me in a phone interview. She hoped to offer her services as a publicist pro bono to an adoption-grant organization. She discovered, Cosmetic, Implants, Sleep Apnea, Sedation however, that none of the organizations she CALL TODAY • WEEKEND HOURS • MULTILINGUAL found welcomed same-sex or single parents, and all charged application fees. Those “We believe we can make the weren’t the kind of organizations she wanted dental experience better.” to support. She and Kipp therefore decided to start helpusadopt.org, an “equality-based adoption grant program.” Since 2007, they have awarded 208 grants of $,500 to $15,000, for a total of more than $1.8 million dollars, to those seeking to complete an adoption. Grantees have included same-sex and single parents as well as different-sex and trans parents. “We take our diversity very seriously here,” she says. DentalBug Staff 2016-2017 A total of 16 percent of their grant money ADVERTISING has gone to LGBT parents and she’d like to PROOF ISSUE DATE: 02.11.16 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: PHIL ROCKSTROH (prockstroh@washblade.com) increase that number. They#1award grants three times a year; their spring application REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. Proof will be considered final and will be submitted for publication if revision is not submitted within 24 hours of deadline is April 15. the date of proof. Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts REVISIONS omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is The media is full of stories that may responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users REDESIGN can link through the advertisement. Advertiser represents that its advertisement will not violate any criminal laws or TEXT REVISIONS rightly concern and frighten us. We should any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair IMAGE/LOGO REVISIONS competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation Jeanette of anti-discrimination law or regulation, Suh not ignore them but neitherNO should we feel John or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the Tsaknis ADVERTISER SIGNATURE REVISIONS DMD DDS washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all By signing proof you are agreeing to your contr Indra this Mustapha that all is lost. We are still winning some liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred washington blade Maria Hodas DDS, MSnewspaper. This includes but is n by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations payment and insertion schedule. DDS and warranties. court battles, still fighting back when we lose and still have allies. Most importantly, whether we are LGBT parents or parents of LGBT children or both, we are strengthened by the bonds of love and family. Nothing is going to change that.

Family Building through: • Adoption • Donor Agreements • Surrogacy

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DANA RUDOLPH is the founder and publisher of Mombian (mombian.com), a GLAAD Media Award-winning blog and resource directory for LGBT parents.

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Making waves on the airwaves

NEW ‘1A’ HOST JOSHUA JOHNSON TALKS ABOUT HIS JOURNALISM LENS, HOW HE BALANCES TOPICS AND WHAT IT’S LIKE TO SUCCEED AN NPR LEGEND By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com

It was last Halloween weekend when Joshua Johnson got the call that he’d been named Diane Rehm’s successor. Rehm, who began her eponymous National Public Radio call-in show in 1979, retired in December and as of Jan. 2, WAMU broadcasts a new show, “1A” in what had been “The Diane Rehm Show’s” timeslot. Johnson subbed for Rehm two days last September and shadowed her another day. Based in San Francisco for the last six-and-a-half years where he was morning news host for KQED while also teaching podcasting at the University of California (Berkeley), Johnson was in Palm Springs visiting friends with Joe Gallagher, his boyfriend of a year and a half, when he got the call. He says it’s a moment he’d been working toward since age 6. “This wave of peace washed over me and I just got very calm,” says the 36-yearold South Florida native. “It was like my ﬁsts ﬁnally unclenched after weeks of waiting. I didn’t have that moment of, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to do the show.’ It was just kind of like, ‘Finally — I’ve been waiting on this for my entire life and now it’s going to happen.” “1A” is a live, two-hour daily WAMU radio program distributed nationally by NPR each weekday at 10 a.m. that seeks to “provide deep conversation about the thorniest issues of our time delivered with insight, intimacy and personality.” It’s both a new, freestanding show but also a successor to the Rehm show, whose “legacy of civil dialogue and analysis” its team hopes to continue. Producers were initially almost certain they’d hire a woman to succeed Rehm. “We weren’t 100 percent sure, but you know, sort of in the high 80s or 90s,” says Rupert Allman, “1A’s” executive producer. Johnson won the search team over, Allman says, with his “huge relatability.” “There was something about his own

We’ve found interesting ways to talk about what’s going on in the world and to divert from the headlines that have everyone’s attention to talk about other topics that may be getting lost in the shuﬄe around the new administration. And we’ve also found ways to take a breath and just do topics that are fun or diﬀerent as a little relief from the top of the news cycle, so I think it’s been good. BLADE: What’s your strategy to turn this into more of a Johnny Carson-toJay Leno kind of succession as opposed to, say, a Pat Sajak kind-of thing? JOHNSON: The only thing we can do is control each day’s program and that’s what I try to focus on. I never worry about the 37 years that came before me. That’s Diane’s legacy and that’s solid and done. …. If you worry too much about the distant future, you miss the opportunity to really knock out today. JOSHUA JOHNSON says launching a new daily two-hour radio show is a ‘mountain of work even under the best of circumstances.’ PHOTO COURTESY OF NPR

curiosity and his manner that was really appealing,” he says. “Especially the idea that he was very much interested in civil dialogue, taking time to develop arguments and not always chasing the next shiny ball. Those pieces came together and the stars began to align and that was it.” Nobody’s universally loved in this era of Internet trolling, but early signs are strong for Johnson. “1A” is being carried on 204 stations with more expected in April (“The Diane Rehm Show” was carried on 198) and WAMU says the show was the No. 1 regional performer in its time slot throughout January, the latest month for which ﬁgures were available. WAMU says

it expects the show will have a weekly audience of about 2.5 million soon based on early numbers. Johnson, as loquacious as you’d expect, sat with the Blade in a WAMU conference room on Feb. 16. His comments have been edited for length. WASHINGTON BLADE: How do you feel it’s going so far? JOSHUA JOHNSON: It’s going well. Very, very busy. There’s no lack of things to talk about for sure, but it’s good. Launching a national show, any new show, is a heavy lift to say the least, but we have an amazingly good team and we’ve had lots of support from listeners and stations.

BLADE: Has the learning curve been about what you thought it would be? JOHNSON: I tried to come in with very few expectations other than it would be really, really hard and it has been. …. But we’ve gone down from me working like 16-17-hour days to more like 12-13, so that’s a big step forward. … It’s just a mountain of work even under the best of circumstances. BLADE: What’s been your favorite episode so far? JOHNSON: I don’t have one. We did a Sunday show a few weeks ago on the immigration ban and we just let stations air it if they wanted to. … But we probably haven’t done my favorite show yet or even conceived of it. I think for me to start grabbing onto favorites at this point would set the bar too low for what we CONTINUES ON PAGE 38

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Q U E E RY : 2 0 Q U E ST I O N S F O R V I N T E ST A

VIN TESTA How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell? I have been out since February 2010. I was a junior in college and (sigh) I came out on Facebook. I was fortunate to have supportive family and friends, so I would say the hardest person to tell was myself. So many people knew before I was conﬁdent and comfortable enough to say it.

WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

By JOEY DiGULIELMO joeyd@washblade.com Though he’s in St. Petersburg, Fla., on St. Patrick’s Day proper for a work conference, Vin Testa, president of the Dignity Washington board, says it was important for the local LGBT-affirming Catholic group to have a presence in Washington’s official St. Patrick’s Day parade Monday. He says despite the cold, the reception they got from the crowd “was wonderful.” “People were cheering and waving and they made us feel very welcome,” says the 27-year-old Wallingford, Conn., native (who’s one-quarter Irish). It was Dignity Washington’s third time in the parade. “It’s very important for people to know that LGBT-identifying people want to be part of the greater church community,” Testa says. “We practice our faith just as any other Catholic would.” Testa says he used to see St. Patrick’s Day as a party opportunity when he was younger. He still likes to remember to wear green and enjoys the spirit of the day. Having grown up Catholic, Testa found Dignity online while looking for affirming churches. He makes announcements at each week’s Mass, held every Sunday at 6 p.m. at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church (1820 Connecticut Ave., N.W.). Details at dignitywashington.org. Testa teaches 11th grade math and special ed at D.C. Public Schools. A former Blade “most eligible single,” Testa is now “seeing someone” but leaves it at that. He lives in Capitol Heights, Md., and enjoys dancing and kickball (“Is eating a hobby?”) in his free time.

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Who’s your LGBT hero? My cliché LGBT heroes are Ellen and RuPaul — Ellen for her kindness and Ru for his courage. But my true heroes are those who came before us and actually had to ﬁght for equality — Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, Harvey Milk, etc. What’s Washington’s best nightspot, past or present? I will always have a place in my heart for Apex because it was my ﬁrst D.C. gay bar experience. Since that closed, I have enjoyed Cobalt and Town the most. Describe your dream wedding. A big wedding at the National Cathedral followed by a reception full of dancing and celebration. And a sushi chef. What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about? Any issue that involves resistance against the new regime. What historical outcome would you change? The outcome of the 2016 election. What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime? The death of Michael Jackson. I remember exactly where I was, who I was with and how people around me began to react. On what do you insist? Respect and timeliness. What was your last Facebook post or Tweet? At the time I write this, it was homage to my mother for International Women’s Day, indicating how hard she has worked to get where she is today. If your life were a book, what would the title be? “You Wouldn’t Believe it But it’s True”

If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do? Convince Justin Timberlake to change. What do you believe in beyond the physical world? I would like to believe that we encounter all those who left the physical world before us. Part of me also believes in reincarnation and having several chances in the world. What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders? Unite. When you say “equality for all,” mean it. Don’t ﬁght for gay, white, cismale equality, while ignoring women, the transgender community, people of color, etc. We can only rise when we lift each other. What would you walk across hot coals for? Student loan forgiveness. What LGBT stereotype annoys you most? It’s not a stereotype — it’s more of a truth — but I’m tired of the racism within the LGBT community. Sometimes it’s veiled by “preference”; other times it’s quite blatant. What’s your favorite LGBT movie? I have loved “To Wong Foo” for years, but even more so since I got to meet Julie Newmar a couple of years ago at RuPaul’s DragCon. She signed a picture for me and I had her write, “To Vin, Thanks for everything, Julie Newmar.” What’s the most overrated social custom? Bachelorette parties (sans gay men) at gay clubs. What trophy or prize do you most covet? If I weren’t a teacher, I would be an actor, so I covet the Oscar. What do you wish you’d known at 18? I wish I had known that it was OK to come out then, instead of later. Why Washington? I always say that Washington is the perfect amount of city. It has an excellent balance of busyness and history. I also have never felt more comfortable, conﬁdent and more loved than I have since I’ve been in Washington.

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PHOTO BY MARGOT SCHULMAN

DEBRA MONK as Mrs. Elva Miller in ‘Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing.’

Signature’s ‘Mrs. Miller’ more than a one-note joke play By PATRICK FOLLIARD Her voice was accurately compared to “roaches scurrying across a trash can lid,” but that never stopped Mrs. Elva Miller from singing her heart out. And despite or because of her lousy voice and matronly appearance, she became a singing phenomenon recording bad covers of contemporary pop hits during the increasingly turbulent mid-to-late 1960s. Prior to cutting four albums (the ﬁrst, “Mrs. Miller’s Greatest Hits,” sold more than 250,000 copies over three weeks in 1966), 50-something Mrs. Miller lived a quiet life with her much older husband in conservative Claremont, Calif., where she sang in the choir and occasionally recorded hymns and children’s songs at her own expense. Then an enterprising record producer recognized the comic possibilities of her bad voice and secured Mrs. Miller a contract with Capitol Records to make albums featuring train wreck interpretations of “Downtown,” “Moon River,” “Monday, Monday” and more. The public ate it up — for a while. In James Lapine’s entertaining new play with music “Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing,” now making its world premiere at Signature Theatre, the playwright/director pits his real-life title character against the changing times. While those around her are aﬀected by the burgeoning sexual revolution, black power and anti-war movements, Mrs. Miller (Debra Monk) remains unchanged. She adheres to the older values of country, God and family. Backed by a trio of initially squeaky clean jingle singers (Kaitlyn Davidson, Kimberly Marable, and Jacob ben Widmar), Mrs. Miller is on a roll. Her popular albums lead to night club dates, TV appearances including “The Ed Sullivan Show,” and a USO tour in Vietnam with Bob Hope. The matronly dressed lady with the neatly set dark hair and ever present handbag who wails in shrill, vaguely operatic tones is

easily mocked. But is she in on the gag? The show is filled with great ‘60s tunes played by a terrific four-piece band led by Matt Hinkley perched up high behind a scrim. Wonderfully campy productions numbers like Mrs. Miller’s take on Nancy Sinatra’s anthem “These Boot Are Made for Walking” are choreographed by Josh Prince. Her improbably whimsical nightclub costumes ranging from fringes and go-go boots to green beret and camouflage dress come compliments of Jennifer Caprio. But “Mrs. Miller” is not a one-note joke piece. When her caterwauling grows a little tiresome, Monk is suddenly bathed in a warm spotlight and switches to her true clear and melodic singing voice demonstrating how Mrs. Miller hears her own voice. It’s both touching and a relief. Deftly staged by Lapine, the quirky biographical dramedy boasts an engaging and dynamic book. Lapine has won three Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical three times, for “Into the Woods,” “Falsettos” and “Passion.” He’s known for collaborating with out composers Stephen Sondheim and William Finn. The interesting material is further elevated by Monk’s captivating, textured performance. She makes it clear that behind the nice manners and tight smile lies something much more complicated. Surrounding the preternaturally upbeat Mrs. Miller are her sad sack niece Joelle (Rebekah Brockman) who blossoms from wallflower to a socially conscious feminist, and Simon (Corey Mach), her sunny accompanist-turnedconflicted weed-smoking producer. And there’s her casually bigoted husband played brilliantly by Tony winner Boyd Gaines who grows increasingly frail and miserable tucked away in a Claremont nursing home. � CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM ‘MRS. MILLER DOES HER THING’ Through March 26 Signature Theatre 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington $40-99 703-820-9771 Sigtheatre.org

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24 hours at MGM National Harbor Amenity-rich urban resort wows By KEVIN NAFF knaﬀ@washblade.com

MGM’s new National Harbor is a stunning piece of modern architecture just outside D.C. PHOTO COURTESY OF MGM NATIONAL HARBOR

The proximity of MGM’s National Harbor casino and hotel to D.C. makes it the perfect choice for a quick getaway. And if you’re looking for high-end restaurants and retail, a stunning spa and ﬁtness center, a selection of indoor/ outdoor bars, or a state-of-the-art theater, then you won’t be disappointed. Oh, there’s a casino, too. A piece of advice before planning your visit: Skip Friday and Saturday, when the casino draws large crowds. Visit on a Thursday or Sunday for a quieter, easier time of enjoying the many amenities here. I arrived on a Thursday afternoon and departed Friday after lunch. Here’s how I spent a 24-hour staycation:

THURSDAY 1 p.m. Check-in. The hotel’s secondfloor lobby overlooks a bustling groundfloor atrium and offers a VIP check-in

lounge complete with Champagne and a buffet of snacks. It’s clear from the outset that this will be a pampered, high-end experience with five-star service. Opt for a spacious one-bedroom corner suite with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking D.C.’s monuments. It’s perhaps the only time bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Beltway below won’t stress you out, as you take in the city’s monuments and the planes taking off at National Airport. A peerless view of D.C. 1:30 p.m. Lunch at National Market, a food hall dining concept featuring nine upscale casual eateries, including Amos Los Tacos, Bahn Mi Vietnamese Kitchen and Honey’s Fried Chicken and Donuts. I opt for a sandwich from the District Deli but only eat half because the culinary options here are impressive — don’t fill up on lunch. 2:30 p.m. A workout at the fitness center, where cardio equipment is

arranged in front of those ﬂoor-to-ceiling windows. Who needs TV when you have this view? All the latest cardio equipment is featured, along with free weights and a separate yoga studio. Dab your sweat on chilled towels. 4 p.m. After a shower and catching up on work (free WiFi in all rooms, natch), I meet my husband for a stroll around the expansive outdoor promenade, which circles the perimeter of the casino and ends in the back of the property where a towering video screen and upbeat music greet us on an unseasonably warm February day. We stop for a game of outdoor Bocce and watch a group of tourists play a round of corn hole. There are several outdoor bars and lounge areas and, again, that view of the city. 6:30 p.m. Next on our itinerary: a hand-crafted cocktail at Felt, a lounge in the center of the casino action featuring friendly mixologists, comfy couches and

cocktails mixed tableside. There are oversized TVs for watching games and live music and DJs are featured later in the evening. With a little liquid courage, we hit the casino floor for some poker and roulette. All the usual slots and table games are here, from separate areas for high-end gamblers (we met a guy who just lost $30,000) to penny slots. After winning $20, we’re late for dinner. 8 p.m. Dinner at Voltaggio Brothers Steak House. This is a splurge for sure, with filets starting at $50 and appetizers around $20. Don’t be intimidated by the impressive wine list as a wine steward will guide you. The setting is quiet and comfortable, meant to replicate a home; the food features Maryland influences. Bryan and Michael Voltaggio are best known for their stint on Top Chef; their CONTINUES ON PAGE 31

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MGM’s spa oﬀers an array of services and the locker rooms feature steam, sauna and hot tubs. PHOTO COURTESY OF MGM NATIONAL HARBOR

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 30

Volt restaurant in Frederick, Md., remains a culinary hotspot. The steak house at MGM offers a range of cuts, including American Wagyu strips and flat irons and dry-aged ribeyes, NY strips and T-bones. We opt for eight-ounce prime filets and the sauces sound so tempting that we order all three: house-steak sauce, beernaise and sea bean chimichurri. The big-eye tuna starter is a take on steak tartar and not to be missed. An array of sides is offered a la carte; the young broccoli is grilled perfectly with charred lemon and garlic aioli, but the potato gratin steals the show with gruyere and thyme. After all that, we’re too full for dessert. If there’s a quibble here — and, really, it’s minor — the service is on the aggressive side. We had four servers helping us, they were all terrific, but a tad obtrusive. In all, a five-star dining experience. Make a reservation for a special occasion and expect to spend a few hundred dollars with wine. 10 p.m. After lingering over dinner, we decide to walk off some of those calories and stroll through the busy casino and again outside on the promenade before heading to a comfy king-size bed in our

nearly 1,000-square-foot suite. The room features modern décor and those windows wrap around to the bathroom and into a massive shower the size of some city bedrooms.

FRIDAY 7 a.m. After a restful sleep, we order room service from a menu devised by celebrity chef and “Chopped” veteran Marcus Samuelson. We opt for the yogurt and egg white omelette, which are delivered within 30 minutes, hot and delicious. 9 a.m. It’s off to the spa for a 50-minute rebalancing massage. After changing into a plush terry robe, I’m escorted to the gentlemen’s waiting area featuring leather lounge chairs, big-screen TVs and the day’s newspapers. There are several massage options, including a sports massage, hot stone and something called “sensational fusion massage” with “percussive movement and customized flow.” Will have to go back and try that one. After your massage, retreat to the locker room area where you’ll find a eucalyptus steam room, dry sauna and hot tub. Showers are spacious and feature all the products you need to get cleaned

up for the day. The spa is immaculate and well appointed featuring Clarins skincare products. 11 a.m. Property tour. By now I’ve seen most of the resort, but am curious about the specialty suites and, of course, the theater that’s already attracting A-list performers like Sting, Bruno Mars and, of course, Cher (March 17-26; Aug. 31-Sept. 10) . With 3,000 seats, there’s not a bad vantage point in the theater, which features a hydraulic system enabling all sorts of seating configurations, from boxing in the round to stadium-style for concerts. If you can spring for the private box seats, you’ll find your own bar and catering and the option to watch from your perch above or to move up front and watch from the floor. Because of MGM’s connection to its Vegas properties, the National Harbor location is drawing big-name talent to this intimate venue. Where else can you see such big names in such a small setting? If you’re a high-roller or looking for a spectacular way to wow clients, consider booking one of the MGM’s suites. The presidential suite is nearly 2,500 square feet with two king bedrooms and plenty of dining and lounge space. The chairman’s

suite is a whopping 3,210 square feet and a one-of-a-kind place to impress clients. 12:30 p.m. Lunch at Marcus. After an indulgent 24 hours, it’s time to go but not before a quick lunch at Marcus. Start with Aunt Mabel’s cornbread and the deviled eggs with duck salame and chicken cracklin. Sammy’s chicken and waffles are tempting, but we opt for slightly more sensible salads. The service is friendly and efficient and the décor bright and upbeat. The modern American menu offers pork chops, blackened catfish, steak frites, paella, burgers and more. MGM National Harbor is an impressive addition to this growing area of P.G. County that already offers Tanger outlets and the nearby Gaylord property. There’s a free shuttle to both from MGM. If you’re not a gambler, this modern urban resort features plenty to do. The outdoor lounge areas will surely be popular Sunday Funday destinations all spring and summer and with so many dining options, you can try a different restaurant on subsequent visits. Keep an eye on the theater schedule — it’s impressive and diverse (Sarah Silverman performs April 22; Ricky Martin is here May 5-6, followed by the Temptations and Four Tops on May 13; Idina Menzel arrives July 9).

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the

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

YOUNG

DUBLINERS

W/ JOHN BYRNE BAND 16

THURSDAY MARCH

By MARIAH COOPER

SOULE MONDE

FEAT. RUSS LAWTON & RAY PACZKOWSKI

OF ANASTASIO BAND

FRIDAY MARCH

SAT, MARCH 18

A GREAT BIG WORLD

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN G. YOUNG

“AN EVENING WITH IAN & CHAD” W/ ALLIE MOSS

Reel Aﬃrmations hosts double bill

SUN, MARCH 19

AN EVENING WITH

RHONDA VINCENT AND THE RAGE THURS, MARCH 23

LAITH AL-SAADI W/ SARAH BORGES THURS, MARCH 23

LIVE NATION & THE HAMILTON PRESENT

YACHT ROCK REVUE

(AT THE FILLMORE SILVER SPRING) FRI, MARCH 24

RED BARAAT FESTIVAL OF COLORS

NIGHT I

Reel Affirmations screens “BWOY” and “The Watermelon Woman” at Human Rights Campaign (1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) on Friday, March 24. “BWOY” tells the story of a man (Anthony Rapp) who becomes involved in an online love affair with a young, Jamaican man (Jimmy Brooks). The film is written and directed by John G. Young. Classic lesbian film “The Watermelon Woman” screens from 9:30-11:30 p.m. The film, restored for its 20th anniversary, stars Cheryl Dunye as she begins researching an actress, known as the “Watermelon Woman,” and discovers the actress was a lesbian. Rayceen Pendarvis hosts both screenings. General admission tickets are $12. VIP tickets are $25 and include VIP seating, one complimentary cocktail, beer or wine and movie candy or popcorn. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit reelaffirmations.org.

W/ GANAVYA AND SHILPA RAY SAT, MARCH 25

RED BARAAT FESTIVAL OF COLORS

NIGHT II

W/ DJ AYES COLD AND THE KOMINAS TUES, MARCH 28

CHUCK PROPHET & THE MISSION EXPRESS AND THE BOTTLE ROCKETS THURS, MARCH 30

AN EVENING WITH

BRASS-A-HOLICS FRI, MARCH 31

THE HAMILTON LIVE AND WPA PRESENT

THE KNIGHTS & CHRISTINA COURTIN W/ HOLLY BOWLING: A PART OF

THE 2017 SHIFT FESTIVAL OF AMERICAN ORCHESTRAS SAT, APRIL 1

RODNEY CROWELL W/ SCOTT MILLER SUN, APRIL 2

THE HILLBENDERS PRESENT

THE WHO’S TOMMY: A BLUEGRASS OPRY

THEHAMILTONDC.COM

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BOULDER PHILHARMONIC

Shift Festival unites North American orchestras The Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) and Washington Performing Arts present “Shift: A Festival of American Orchestra” March 28-April 1. Orchestras collaborate to spotlight North American orchestras of all sizes. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Boulder Philharmonic, the Knights and North Carolina Symphony will perform. On Tuesday, March 28 at 10 a.m. there will also be a free symposium at the Library of Congress featuring a group of panelists discussing the challenges orchestras face. Tickets are $25 for the performances. For a list of show times and more details, visit kennedy-center.org.

PHOTO BY BRIAN WALMER; USED WITH PERMISSION

Stevie Nicks, Heart’s Ann Wilson to perform Legendary rock divas Stevie Nicks and Ann Wilson of Heart visit the area with their respective tours. Nicks brings her “24 Karat Gold Tour” to Royal Farms Arena (201 W Baltimore St., Baltimore) on Sunday, March 26 at 7 p.m. Nicks will perform hits from her work as a solo artist and from Fleetwood Mac, along with deeper album cuts she hasn’t performed live on other tours. Tickets range from $49-150. For details, visit royalfarmsarena.com/events/detail/ stevie-nicks. Wilson drops by the Birchmere (3701 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria, Va.) on Wednesday, March 29 at 7:30 p.m. She will perform Heart hits as well as her own recordings. Tickets are $110. For more information, visit birchmere.com.

Different Drummers celebrates gay composers D.C.’s Different Drummers presents its “Glitter and be Gay” concert celebrating LGBT composers at the Church of the Epiphany (1317 G St., N.W.) on Saturday, March 25 at 7 p.m. Music from LGBT composers from different centuries and spanning various styles will be performed. Composers whose work will be honored include Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, Ronald Fallas, Julie Giroux, Jennifer Higdon, Elton John and more. Tickets are $20. For more information, visit dcdd.org.

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architectural digest WOrthy! Live-action ‘Beauty’ offers first out Disney character By BRIAN T. CARNEY Disney’s live action remake of its animated 1991 blockbuster “Beauty and the Beast” is thoroughly enchanting and the story is queerer than ever. The new version will never replace the bold originality of the first animated movie to be nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture, but a strong cast and a rewritten book offer some fresh insights into the old French fairy tale. The new script by Stephen Chbosky and Evan Spiliotopoulos fleshes out some of the stock characters and fills in some of the plot holes from Linda Woolverton’s original story. For example, Belle’s father Maurice is now an artist who has been forced to flee Paris. In addition to her love of reading, Belle is now an inventor who tries to teach the girls who are barred from the village school. The Enchantress plays a bigger role in the story and more is revealed about the Beast’s family and the lives of the servants who become enchanted along with their master. The Academy Award-winning score by Alan Menken (music) and the late Howard Ashman (lyrics) remains largely intact and still dazzles. Menken’s music soars and Ashman’s quicksilver lyrics are witty and insightful. Several new songs are added: the wistful “How Does a Moment Last Forever” for Maurice, which is beautifully reprised by Celine Dion during the closing credits; the moving “Days in the Sun” for the enchanted objects; and the power ballad “Evermore” for Beast, which is nicely reprised by Josh Groban in the closing credits. The lyrics for the new numbers by Tim Rice are pedestrian but effective, but Menken’s new melodies fit seamlessly into the score. The only musical misstep is the dreadful pop remix of the title song sung by Ariana Grande and John Legend over the middle section of the closing credits.

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Director Bill Condon (“Dreamgirls” and “Gods and Monsters”) handles the material with a sure hand. With only a few exceptions, the live action sequences blend seamlessly with the CGI. Unfortunately, the climactic fight between Open sunday 1-4pM Gaston and Beast (as well as the battle between Beast and the wolves) looks DAVE LLOYD & ASSOCIATES cartoonish and Mrs. Potts’ face doesn’t 4701 Old Dominion Drive • Arlington, VA 22207 quite sit comfortably on the teapot. 703-593-3204 • WWW.DAVELLOYD.NET But the transformation sequences are amazing, the enchanted objects are fascinating and “Be Our Guest” is a surreal delight. The big musical numbers in the village are also well staged, even if the human actors aren’t always as limber as their animated counterparts. The cast is uniformly excellent. Emma Watson and Dan Stevens are well matched as the title pair. Their emotional journey is detailed and nuanced and their comic timing is equally superb. Kevin Kline is excellent as the reconceived Maurice; Belle’s overprotective father gains a tragic backstory and learns a lesson from his brave and resourceful daughter. Luke Evans is remarkably restrained as Gaston. He begins the film as a boorish decommissioned soldier who is as bored as Belle with provincial life. Only gradually does he become the villainous monster LICENSED IN DELAWARE & MARYLAND who commits Maurice to an insane asylum and leads the torch-wielding villagers in PROOF #1 ISSUE DATE: 11.07.14 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: BRIAN PITTS (bpitts@washblade.com) the attack on the Beast’s castle. The enchanted objects are indeed truly enchanted, both in human and REVISIONS CGI form. During the closing credits, REDESIGN TEXT REVISIONS they’re displayed side by side which is IMAGE/LOGO REVISIONS great fun. No one can ever truly replace NO REVISIONS Angela Lansbury as Mrs. Potts, but Emma Thompson offers a credible rendition of the title song and gets some interesting new dialogue. Ian Mc Kellen and Ewan McGregor are perfect as Cogsworth and Lumiere. As Madame Garderobe and Maestro Cadenza (a new character), “Country Kitchen” Audra McDonald and Stanly Tucci bring Transla ion: TranslaT Ducks with blue ribbons will haunt your dreams. both humor and a needed touch of pathos to the haunted castle. VALERIE M. BLAKE, Associate Broker, GRI

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Dupont Circle Office • 202.243.7700 (o) • 202.246.8602 (c) Valerie@DCHomeQuest.com • www.DCHomeQuest.com ISSUE DATE: 02.17.2017

SALES REPRESENTATIVE: BRIAN PITTS (bpitts@washblade.com)

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This Week in the Arts provided by CultureCapital.com DANCE Russian National Ballet Theatre: Chopiniana and Carmen. Mar 18. The Sleeping Beauty. Mar 19. GMU Center for the Arts. cfa.gmu.edu. Dance Metro DC. Mar 18-Mar 19. Dance Place. danceplace.org. UP! Dance Project. Mar 18. Joy of Motion. Jack Guidone Theater. joyofmotion.org.

MUSIC Nufonia Must Fall Mar 18. Washington Performing Arts at GW Lisner Auditorium. washingtonperformingarts.org. A tender love story between a robot and a human comes magically to life through the imagination of scratch DJ/music producer Kid Koala. Mixing live puppet theater, video, string quartet, electric ukulele, turntables, percussion, and sound eﬀects, Koala has adapted his own, beloved graphic novel for a multi-sensory experience.

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo Mar 21-Mar 22. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

The sensational and hilarious all-male dance troupe performs in drag and en pointe. Dance enthusiasts and casual audiences alike will be amazed and entertained by the technical skill and uproarious antics of the Trocks.

Fickle: A Fancy French Farce Thru Mar 26. Olney Theatre Center. olneytheatre.org.

Prepare for disguises, mistaken identities, palace intrigues and improbable romance in this delightful comic romp that ends, of course, in more than one surprising marriage.

Tim Doud: Prologue Thru Apr 1. gallery Neptune & Brown. galleryneptunebrown.com.

Prologue is Tim Doud’s ﬁrst solo exhibition in Washington, DC to feature his oil and charcoal portraits spanning twenty years. When creating each work, Doud develops an up close and intimate relationship with the sitter while remaining traditional in his practice of drawing and painting directly from life. PHOTO COURTESY OF WASHINGTON PERFORMING ARTS

THEATRE Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing. Thru Mar 26. Midwestern Gothic. Thru Apr 30. Signature Theatre. signature-theatre.org. Three Sisters. Thru Apr 23. No Sisters. Thru Apr 23. Studio Theatre. studiotheatre.org. Ex Machina/Robert Lepage: Needles and Opium. Thru Mar 18. Teatro El Público: Antigonón, un contingente épico. Mar 21-Mar 22. Sundance Institute: Theater by Palestinians: Where Can I Find Someone Like You, Ali? Mar 23-Mar 24. Shear Madness. Thru Jun 11. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

Ragtime. Thru May 20. Ford’s Theatre. fords.org. Parade. Thru Apr 8. Keegan Theatre. keegantheatre.com. An Evening of Kyogen: Shigeyama Kyogen Troupe. Mar 21. Library of Congress. loc.gov. The Second City: We’re All in This Room Together. Mar 22-Mar 26. The Barns. wolftrap.org. Rock of Ages. Mar 17-Apr 1. Reston Community Players. CenterStage at RCC. restonplayers.org. Back to Methuselah: As Far As Thought Can Reach. Mar 23-Apr 16. Washington Stage Guild. Undercroft Theatre. stageguild.org.

Loston Harris. Mar 18. AMP. ampbystrathmore.com. WNO: Champion. Thru Mar 18. NSO: Bruckner’s First Symphony/ Mozart’s Third Violin Concerto. Thru Mar 18. WNO: Stars of Tomorrow: The Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists in Concert. Mar 17. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org. Ethan Foote. Mar 22. Strathmore. strathmore.org. Cameron Carpenter and the International Touring Organ. Mar 23. Washington Performing Arts. Strathmore. washingtonperformingarts.org. Emerson String Quartet. Mar 19. Smithsonian Associates. Baird Auditorium. smithsonianassociates.org. Danú: St. Patrick’s Day Celebration. Mar 17. GMU Center for the Arts. cfa.gmu.edu. Don Pasquale. Mar 18-Mar 26. In Series. GALA Hispanic Theatre. inseries.org. Kruger Brothers and Kontras Quartet. Mar 19. Music of Amy Beach: Three by Three. Mar 22. National Gallery of Art. nga.gov. Axelrod String Quartet. Mar 18-19. Smithsonian Associates. Museum of American History. smithsonianassociates.org. Brahms’ Requiem. Mar 18. National Philharmonic. Strathmore. nationalphilharmonic.org. Hanka G., Jazz Soul Singer. Mar 17. The Embassy Series. Embassy of Slovakia. embassyseries.org. Amid a Crowd of Stars. Mar 19. Cathedral Choral Society. Washington National Cathedral. cathedralchoralsociety.org. John Eaton. Mar 19. The Barns. wolftrap.org.

MUSEUMS National Archives. Amending America. Thru Sep 4. archivesfoundation.org. National Gallery of Art. Della Robbia: Sculpting with Color in Renaissance Florence. Thru Jun 4. The Woodner

Collections: Master Drawings from Seven Centuries. Thru Jul 16. nga.gov. National Geographic. @NatGeo: The Most Popular Instagram Photos. Thru Apr 30. Earth Explorers. Thru Sep 10. nglive.org. National Museum of Women in the Arts. Bold Broadsides and Bitsy Books. Thru Mar 17. New Ground: The Southwest of Maria Martinez and Laura Gilpin. Thru May 14. nmwa.org. National Portrait Gallery. Bill Viola: The Moving Portrait. Thru May 7. One Life: Babe Ruth. Thru May 21. npg.si.edu. Kreeger Museum. RE-VISION: Looking anew at the art of Philip Johnson and the design of The Kreeger. Thru Jul 29. kreegermuseum.org. Library of Congress. World War I: American Artists View the Great War. Thru May 5. Mapping a Growing Nation: From Independence to Statehood. Thru Sep 1. loc.gov.

GALLERIES The Art League. March Open Exhibit. Thru Apr 2. Netted: Morphological State of Our Urban Space. Thru Apr 2. theartleague.org. Waverly Street Gallery. Somerset Artists Exhibition. Thru Apr 8. waverlystreetgallery.com. Zenith Gallery. Rejuvenate with Art: Celebrating 39 Years. Mar 17-Apr 29. Into The Woods. Thru Apr 29. zenithgallery.com. Glen Echo Park. New Fiber Arts Instructors. Thru Apr 1. Sara Dittrich: Arrhythmia of the Body. Thru Apr 2. Walt Bartman: Journey. Mar 18-Apr 2. glenechopark.org. Goethe-Institut. Games and Politics (Spiele und Politik). Thru Mar 29. goethe.de. Korean Cultural Center DC. Making It New: Perspectives on Korean Heritage in Art. Thru Mar 27. koreaculturedc.org. Studio 3700. Modern Makers, Modern Quilts. Thru Mar 27. arlingtonarts.org.

AND MORE... Cinematsuri. Mar 19-Mar 23. National Cherry Blossom Festival. E St. Cinema. nationalcherryblossomfestival.org. Northern Virginia Jewish Film Festival. Mar 23-Apr 2. JCCNV. Angelika Film Center & Cafe at Mosaic. jccnv.org. Death Records from the Numerical Identiﬁcation System. Mar 23. National Archives. archivesfoundation.org. Physicist Lawrence Krauss: Why Are We Here? Mar 22. Smithsonian Associates. Baird Auditorium. smithsonianassociates.org.

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Spotlight on Directors This spring, the Kennedy Center is shining a spotlight on thrilling productions helmed by some of the world’s most brilliant and acclaimed directors.

Cherry blossom-inspired cocktails are all the rage this month in Washington.

Cherry tree buds inspire creative local cocktails By KRISTEN HARTKE It’s been a tough winter for the cherry blossom trees, getting a variety of mixed signals from Mother Nature as to when they should pop. Luckily for the rest of us, the bars and restaurants of D.C. are filling their menus with cherry blossominspired goodies. Ironically, this means that often food and drinks are flavored with cherries, despite the fact that cherries aren’t actually in season for a few more months, although a few restauranteurs are bucking that trend. But, hey, who’s quibbling? Think spring, no matter what the weather may bring. Start with the Cherry Blossom Pub (1843 and 1841 Seventh St., N.W.), a new seasonal pop-up by mixology maestro Derek Brown that overtakes his two Shaw bars, Mockingbird Hill and Southern Efficiency. You’ll find a more esoteric take on the cherry blossom theme here, with a primary focus on Japanese-inspired drinks and food, including a cocktail that feels like an updated take on those Melonball drinks that were all the rage back in the ‘80s, blending unfiltered sake with Midori and Green Chartreuse liqueurs and cucumber melon, and a pork cutlet served on white bread with wasabi mustard. Chef Michael Schlow’s various properties will be highlighting cherries across their menus. At Casolare (2505 Wisconsin Ave., N.W.) in Glover Park, look for a housemade gelato sundae topped with the luscious Amarena cherries from Italy, while, over at Altra Strada (475 K St., N.W.) in D.C. and also 2911 District Ave. in Fairfax, Va.), newly installed executive pastry chef Alex Levin, lately of Osteria Morini, has created an almondcrusted tartlet filled with seasonal fruit and accompanied by vanilla bean gelato and more Amarena cherries. For a sparkling and herbaceous cocktail

that is more spring-forward than cherryfocused, head to Georgetown’s 1789 Restaurant (1226 36th St., N.W.) for the Sparkling Sumire (“violet” in Japanese), which concentrates on floral combinations in the celebration of the arrival of spring. Look for jasmine tea-infused Dolin Blanc vermouth and Creme de Violette liqueur topped off with prosecco and citrus. For something that actually tastes of the season, head to Tredici Enoteca at the St. Gregory Hotel (2033 M St., N.W.) for the Evolution, combining cherry blossom-infused botanical gin with brut Champagne, fresh citrus, agave nectar and hibiscus dust, garnished, of course, with a cherry blossom. Highlighting a Lenten season culinary custom, chef David Guas offers Sour Cherry Hot Cross Buns at Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery (901 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E.), packed with cherries and spice and dripping in sugary glaze. Have it with one of their signature Bloody Marys — not because it has anything to do with cherry blossoms, just because they’re spicy and delicious. The focus at Bourbon Steak at Four Seasons Hotel (2800 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) is far more Japanese, and, unsurprisingly, places the emphasis on meat, with a side of sake. Chef Joe Palma is highlighting a Duo of Japanese Wagyu steaks, with each cut representing a different prefecture, Miyazaki and Kagoshima. Presented in a traditional Bento box crafted from the Sakura wood of cherry blossom trees, the beef is accompanied by two special sakes: Junmai Daigingo Hattannishiki, a food-friendly sake with notes of banana, melon and star anise, and Evoluzione “Crazy Milk” Nigori, a creamy sake brewed at the foot of Mount Katsuragi, with a flavor reminiscent of coconut and lychee, with a touch of vanilla. � CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

Antigonón, un contingente épico

Teatro El Público (Cuba)

Antigonón, un contingente épico Directed by Carlos Díaz March 21 & 22

World premiere, Sabab Theatre (Kuwait)

Petrol Station

Written and directed by Sulayman Al Bassam March 24–26 Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord (France)

Battlefield

Directed by Peter Brook March 29–April 2

Plus a collaboration with Sundance Institute Theatre Program

theater by Palestinians US premiere

Where Can I Find Someone Like You, Ali? March 23 & 24

Creative Tensions: HOME March 25

tICKEtS ON SALE NOW! tKC.CO/DIRECtORS | (202) 467-4600 Tickets also available at the Box Office. Groups call (202) 416-8400. For all other ticket-related customer service inquiries, call the Advance Sales Box Office at (202) 416-8540.

International Theater is underwritten by HRH Foundation. Additional support for International Theater is provided by the Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater.

KRISTEN HARTKE is a D.C.-based food and beverage writer. Follow her kitchen adventures on Twiiter, @khartke.

International Programming at the Kennedy Center is made possible through the generosity of the Kennedy Center International Committee on the Arts.

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CA LE N D A R

E-mail calendar items to calendars@washblade. com two weeks prior to your event. Space is limited so priority is given to LGBT-speciﬁc events or those with LGBT participants. Recurring events must be re-submitted each time.

TODAY Cher kicks oﬀ her spring residency at MGM National Harbor (101 MGM National Ave., Oxon Hill, Md.) tonight at 8 p.m. Her other show dates include March 19-20, March 23 and March 25-26. Tickets range from $125-686. For more information, visit ticketmaster.com. Caribbean jazz band Eastern Standard Time gives a St. Patrick’s Day performance at Lost & Found (1240 9th St., N.W.) tonight from 8-11 p.m. No cover. For details, visit facebook.com/estmusic. Acre121 (1400 Irving St., N.W.) hosts Luck of the Irish, a St. Patty’s Day party, from 8 p.m.-1 a.m. tonight. Rock bands Mr. Blonde and Black Dog Prowl will perform. There will be drink specials and green beer. For more information, visit facebook.com/acre121. U Street Music Hall (1115 U Street N.W.) celebrates its seventh anniversary with a set by Black Coﬀee and DJ Lisa Frank. Doors open at 10 p.m. The show is 18 and over. Cover is $20. For more details, visit ustreetmusichall.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 18 The Imperial Court of Washington has its Black and Blue Ball at the D.C. Eagle (3701 Benning Rd., N.E.) today from 6-9:30 p.m. The annual event honors the Prince and Princess Royale. Tickets are $20. All proceeds beneﬁt the charities My Sisters Place, CrossOver Healthcare Ministries, Pets with Disabilities and Rainbow Families. Formal attire is encouraged. For more information, visit facebook.com/imperialcourtdc. The D.C. Center presents “Gay Nightlife in D.C.: Past and Present,” today from noon-2 p.m. This interactive workshop will discuss gay nightlife past and present and how identity plays a role in the club atmosphere. Food will be provided. Space is limited and registration is required. For more information, visit thedccenter.org/ events/gay-nightlife-in-dc-past-present. Gay/Bash is at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.) tonight from 10 p.m.-3 a.m. There will be performances by Moon Baby, Summer Camp, Salvadora Dali, Jaxknife and Jane Saw. The Barber Streisand spins tracks. Donna Slash hosts. There will be shows at 11:30 p.m. and 1 a.m. There is no cover. For details, search “Gay/Bash” on Facebook. The Ladies of Lure host Bare: Military Style at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight from 10 p.m.- 3 a.m. DJ Keenan and DJ Jai Syncere will play music. There will be drink specials. Cover is $7 before midnight and $10 after. For more information, visit facebook.com/lurewdc.

PHOTO COURTESY OF FRANK

DJ LISA FRANK spins at U Street Music Hall on Friday, March 17.

Code Redux Play Party is at Glorious Health Club (2120 West Virginia Ave., N.E.) tonight from 9 p.m.-3 a.m. Admission is $25 and includes a free drink ticket. Fetish dress code is required. For more details, visit facebook.com/codedc. Chaotic Events presents American Horror Party, an “American Horror Story” theme party, at Blind Whino (700 Deleware Ave., S.W.) tonight from 7 p.m.3 a.m. Guests are encouraged to dress up based on the themes from any of the six seasons. Cash prizes are available for best costume. Online general admission is $20 and $25 at the door. For details, visit facebook.com/thechaoticevents. 18th & U Duplex Diner (2004 18th St., N.W.) hosts a Washington Improv Theater Fundraiser Drag Brunch today from 1-3 p.m. Tickets are $35 and includes one brunch entrée and one champagne cocktail or glass of pinot grigio. $15 of proceeds beneﬁt Washington Improv Theater. There will also be drink specials. Performers include Goldie Grigio and other surprise performers. Brent Wingate hosts. DJ Khelan Bhatia plays music. For more information, visit facebook.com/ughcomedy.

Bistro (1727 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) tonight from 8-10 p.m. The group will perform music dedicated to the ‘90s. Christopher Richardson is this month’s feature performer. Poet Drew Anderson also performs. Don Mike Mendoza and Regie Cabico host. General admission is $15 at the door. Tickets are $10 at the door with receipt from Bistro Bistro. Student and senior tickets are $7 with ID. Nonperforming LTD alumni tickets are $5. For more information, visit latido.wixsite.com.

SUNDAY, MARCH 19

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22

Perry’s (1811 Columbia Rd., N.W.) hosts its weekly Sunday Drag Brunch today from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The cost is $24.95 for an all-you-can-eat buﬀet. For more details, visit perrysadamsmorgan.com.

CAGLCC hosts its ninth annual LGBT Mega Networking and Social Event at Town (2009 8th St., N.W.) tonight from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thousands of LGBT professionals will gather together to ﬁnd connections and recruit new employees. Admission is free but registration is required. Visit caglcc.org for details. OutWrite presents “Warrior Poets:

MONDAY, MARCH 20 La Ti Do performs “The 90s” at Bistro

TUESDAY, MARCH 21 Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington has its “Open Mic Night: Divapalooza,” a showtune singa-along, at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight from 8-11 p.m. Sheet music will be provided but guests can bring their own for the accompanist, Alex Tang. Drink specials will be available. For details, visit facebook.com/ gaymenschorusofwashington. The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts its ”FUK!T Packing Party” from 7-9 p.m. tonight. For more details, visit thedccenter.org or greenlanterndc.com.

Speaking as Resistance” at Petworth Citizen (829 Upshur St., N.W.) tonight from 7-9 p.m. Queer poets Taylor Johnson, Danielle Reed and PeaceJah will read. For more information, visit facebook.com/ outwritedc. The Lambda Bridge Club meets at 7:30 p.m. at the Dignity Center (721 8th St., S.E.) for duplicate bridge. No reservations required and new comers welcome. If you need a partner, call 703-407-6540.

THURSDAY, MARCH 23 Organist Cameron Carpenter brings his International Touring Organ to the Music Center at Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Ln., North Bethesda, Md.) tonight at 8 p.m. The program includes “Oblivion” by Piazzolla, “Naiades” and “Carillon de Westminister” by Vierne, among others. Tickets range from $35-75. For more details, visit Washingtonperformingarts.org. Bachelor’s Mill (1104 8th St., S.E.) holds a happy hour today from 5-7:30 p.m. All drinks are half price. There will be pool, video gaming systems and cards. Admission is $5 after 9 p.m. DJ Bling, DJ Freaky and DJ Tim-Nice will play music. For more information, visit bachelorsmill.com. The D.C. Anti-Violence Project hosts a meeting at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) tonight from 7-8:30 p.m. The project works to reduce violence against LGBT individuals through community outreach, education and assisting members of antiLGBT violence. For more details, visit thedccenter.org

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SHIFT your expectations. SHIFT your senses. SHIFT your spirit.

IMAGE COURTESY OF BENBELLA BOOKS

FBI/Mob showdown set in ‘90s strip club makes for suspenseful tale

TERRI SCHLICHENMEYER has been reading since she was 3 years old. She lives in Wisconsin with two dogs and 12,000 books. Reach her at bookwormsez@yahoo.com.

“I’m telling!” If you were ever a child, that whine is familiar to you. It indicated a tattletale nearby, a secret spilled to Mom and somebody about to be in trouble. Whatever. Annoying as it was, “I’m telling” never hurt much more than your pride then. Today, as in the new book “Scores” by Michael D. Blutrich, serious snitching can get a guy killed. How does it happen that a gay man would own a mainstream strip club? It was, says Michael Blutrich, a long story that started after he opened his law firm and, in search of an investment, purchased an L.A. nightclub. Believing that the success of his California business could transfer to New York, he recalled the excitement of a private banker who claimed he’d always wanted to own an upscale strip club. Being a closeted gay man, that wasn’t exactly Blutrich’s dream, but the idea niggled at his brain. Partnering with the banker and others, they began looking for a building and batting ideas around. Scores was born, with a planned opening on Halloween night, 1991. “And then the mafia arrived.” In order to operate, the partners were told, they would need “protection,” which would involve some of New York’s biggest mafia families in a sort of symbiotic relationship, plus a grand-a-week kickback. It would also involve skirting Big Apple laws

for as long as possible, because Scores would be the city’s “first and most notorious upscale gentlemen’s club” and there were rules against what a customer would find inside those Upper East Side doors. Because of the novelty and the entertainment it offered, Scores was successful — more successful than Blutrich had ever thought. He rode a wave that made him a rich and semifamous man, at least until the FBI caught up with him and made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. And, of course, that’s far from the end of the tale. What’s left to say about “Scores” involves rompishness, humor, surprisingly heart-pounding chapters, a little “Goodfellas,” a little “Boogie Nights” and quite a bit of fun. That last appeal comes in the form of overgrown tales, courtesy of author Michael D. Blutrich’s memories of what happened inside his gentlemen’s club every evening for nearly five years. Readers who remember the most infamous discos of the ‘70s will find something familiar in that, updated to the 1990s but no less outrageous. But this book isn’t all party: Blutrich delightfully drops names, including many you’ll recognize, but he’s deadly serious when he switches his tale from wild to wired, from dancing to danger. Indeed, though you know the risk has largely passed — he wrote a book, after all, right? — the whole of the story is one you’ve got to read. There’s an amazingly small amount of profanity and prurience inside this book; it’s there, but not as much as you’d think there’d be, given the subject matter. That restraint uniquely serves to enhance this book and heightens the story’s value.

‘SCORES: HOW I OPENED THE HOTTEST STRIP CLUB IN NEW YORK CITY, WAS EXTORTED OUT OF MILLIONS BY THE GAMBINO FAMILY, AND BECAME ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL MAFIA INFORMANTS IN FBI HISTORY’ By Michael D. Blutrich BenBella Books $26.95 328 pages

March 27–April 1, 2017 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus Boulder Philharmonic

with Frequent Flyers Aerial Dance

North Carolina Symphony The Knights

with San Francisco Girls Chorus

Concerts only $25! Plus many FREE events: pop-up shows, musical hikes, and more! Learn more at SHIFTfestival.org SHIFTfestival.org.

PRESENTED BY

Generous support of the SHIFT Festival is provided through a matching grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, by Dr. Gary Mather and Ms. Christina Co Mather, and by Michael F. and Noémi K. Neidorff and The Centene Charitable Foundation. SHIFT is funded in part by the D.C. Commission on the Arts & Humanities, an agency supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support is provided by Abramson Family Foundation, Betsy and Robert Feinberg, Morton and Norma Lee Funger, and Daniel R. Lewis. SHIFT is presented in association with JFKC: A Centennial Celebration of John F. Kennedy. Support for JFKC: A Centennial Celebration of John F. Kennedy is provided by Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley, Chevron, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, and Target.

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A RT S & E N T E RT A I N ME N T

Johnson says broadcast bug bit around age 6 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

want to be. I don’t think what we’ve done in our first month will compare to what we’ll be doing a year from now or five years from now. BLADE: When things are crazy, do you get energized or stressed by that? JOHNSON: Probably a little bit of both. I tend to be the kind of person that the crazier things are around me, the calmer I get, which is how I survived breaking news. … But you have to be on the outer edge of your comfort zone in order to grow, so I just accepted that that was going to be the way it was going to be some days or maybe even most days. BLADE: Was it hard to leave San Francisco? JOHNSON: It was really, really hard … but this opportunity was worth it. BLADE: Have you had any time to explore Washington much yet? JOHNSON: No. I live a few blocks from the station here in Van Ness, so I walk to work because I cannot take a snow day. And everything I need is right here, the grocery store, the gym and so on. Once I get a better handle on the workload, I’ll be able to get out more and see the city. BLADE: Were you intimidated to accept? JOHNSON: Not really. …. I think I was more grateful and humble. … I felt very ready. Like, “Yeah — I’ve been preparing for this for 30-plus years.” BLADE: You say you had this dream since age 5 or 6. How was this type of thing even on your radar at that age? JOHNSON: Well, Kermit the Frog played a reporter on “Sesame Street.” …. I grew up seeing Ed Bradley on “60 Minutes” or Bernard Shaw on CNN or Dwight Lauderdale on my local Miami ABC station. Seeing those black men doing what I wanted to do just instantly clicked for me. I always had an affinity for broadcasting. I just didn’t know what form it would take. BLADE: So was it something you chose or did it choose you? JOHNSON: Well, it has to be both. Just because destiny knocks doesn’t mean you have to answer. It went through a lot of permutations of whether I would answer or how I would answer and then eventually it became that one thing that I knew if I didn’t go after, I’d regret the rest of my life. BLADE: Had you been a big listener of “The Diane Rehm Show”?

JOHNSON: Yeah, I listened to her in South Florida on the station where I grew up, WLRN. I never thought I’d be her successor, but yeah, I listened to her for years. BLADE: How do you decide on the balance between meat-and-potatoes news topics and lighter stuff? JOHNSON: I don’t think it’s a matter of balancing lightness against substance. The show we did on country music was very substantive. What we’re always trying to figure out is what is it about today’s show that a fan would tell their friends, “You gotta listen to today’s ‘1A.’” Why? How do you answer that? if you start there and work backwards, you can build a great show. So even if it’s a lighter topic like country music today or the Grammy Awards or the Super Bowl, we never want it to feel like, “OK everybody, we know life is really hard so we’re just gonna give you some sugar and candy for an hour.” That’s not good enough. Even if it’s not politics or not some trouble-inthe-world topic, it still has to be time well spent. Plus, I get bored easily, so I get tired of talking about the troubles of the world all day. …. It can’t be all sugar but it can’t be all steak. BLADE: Some people are saying there’s been more sugar though lately. The Super Bowl show got some flak. JOHNSON: It depends whose table you’re dining at. I think there are different ways to talk about different things. I did have a listener who got very snooty about the Super Bowl show …. but there are many aspects to a cultural event like that that are worthy of discussion. … Just because people listen to NPR doesn’t mean they don’t watch football and just because they listen to NPR doesn’t mean they don’t like pop music. BLADE: True, but hasn’t NPR always sort of been that hub where you could get something you couldn’t just get anywhere else? If ESPN is doing roundthe-clock sports coverage, do we really need to hear about sports on NPR too? JOHNSON: But we don’t talk about the Super Bowl like ESPN would talk about it. We didn’t get caught up in stats and who’s up and who’s down. We talked about it more broadly, about what was going on in Houston and sort of the politics around the event, the cost of buying an ad there and so on. We tried to make it really fun. One thing public media serves is to give people a diverse view on the world. Anybody who thinks public media is designed to be all meat and potatoes all the time has clearly never heard “Car Talk” or “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me.” … These are just wonderful shows that are

about interesting things that make life worthwhile and we can’t pretend that doesn’t matter. BLADE: Does the “1A” format give you more opportunity to weigh in than other journalism posts you’ve had? JOHNSON: No. My job is still to be an analyst of the day’s events. This is not the Joshua Johnson show. It’s not my platform to tell you what I think about the news. I’m still a reporter. But that doesn’t mean I can’t call out inconsistencies. The other day we had a guest who kind of fudged an answer on climate change and I (called him out). But I can do it in a way that hews to evidence and fact and not just my belief. BLADE: There’s so much obfuscation in partisan discussions, though. How do you press people for clarity without sounding partisan, at least at times? JOHNSON: The way we’ve been doing it — what we do works. You do your homework, you do smart shows, you ask smart questions and you don’t worry about whether people like you or are comfortable with it. I’m here to perform a service as a journalist. … For me to start worrying about it now is to doubt the very reasons I came here. Facts still matter, the truth is still the truth and there are still such things as facts. People know and understand what the NPR standard is and outlets that don’t follow that standard — I don’t need to worry about people who deal in that kind of foolishness. BLADE: How do you decide if you’re going to pick up a thread after a break or not? JOHNSON: It depends what’s coming up after the break. If we have a guest we need to get to or we have other questions that segue into that thought. Being in the studio is basically air traffic control because we have guests in the studio, remote guests, my script, my questions, I’m watching the clock, I have a timer that counts down to certain elements, then I have another screen that shows me e-mails and Tweets and Facebook posts and if we receive a voicemail during the show, we can play that. I have my laptop, which has more communication, I’m in touch with the control room and the newsroom upstairs and it’s all happening at once. There are all these different elements that I have to make balance so it’s a lot of plate spinning. It will be different every single day and I have to figure out in the moment what we’re going to next and if it’s duplicative of what we just said, how much time we have left and so on. BLADE: How many people work on

the show and are any of them veterans of Diane’s show? JOHNSON: I think we have 11. Two of them were former producers on her team. The rest are new hires. BLADE: Do you anticipate getting more mileage out of the Trump administration than you otherwise would have? JOHNSON: There’s more to life in Washington so I don’t look to any one sector of the news as my bread and butter. … Also, public radio is very committed to the idea of localism … so we can’t allow the current political climate to eclipse all of that because then you’re basically saying that localism doesn’t matter anymore … so we keep that all in perspective. BLADE: Even though “1A” is distributed throughout the country, doesn’t it seem slightly odd considering WAMU’s push for live and local to have brought you in from San Francisco? Some listeners were predicting a Washington person. Do you know how many names were in the hat? JOHNSON: I don’t. I’ve heard different numbers but I honestly don’t know nor do I know who they were. As for live and local, we are live and we are a program from WAMU. I think it’s important to the DNA of public radio that local stations are a provider of national programming (gives examples). We are Washington’s NPR station and we think the ability of WAMU to produce shows like “1A” and “Big Listen” is something we can be proud of. (Allman says Johnson’s outsider status was a plus. “[We liked that] he wasn’t from D.C., is not wowed by the Beltway. He brings a completely different perspective on the country. He gives the audience something new, someone they didn’t know so it doesn’t just seem like the business of shuffling people around.”) BLADE: You seem a bit more abrupt than Diane. Do you agree? JOHNSON: I try not to be. If I interrupt, I try to apologize for it unless they’re just going off the deep end. I try to be as respectful as I can but that doesn’t mean we have time to let everybody finish their thought. BLADE: How serious are you and your boyfriend? Any plans for him to move out here eventually as well? JOHNSON: He owns a barbershop in San Francisco so there are some moving parts we’d have to figure out. For now, we’re doing the bicoastal thing. We’ll make it work. � CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

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Les Ballets trockadero de Monte Carlo tory dobrin, Artistic director

“Parody and virtuosic technique... in glittering tandem.” -The New York Times

PHOTO FROM THE BRADY HANDY COLLECTION; COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

‘Jack Engle’ novel considered major literary ﬁnd By KATHI WOLFE Buried literary treasures aren’t often found. But last summer Zachary Turpin, a graduate student at the University of Houston, discovered “Life and Adventures of Jack Engle,” a lost novel by Walt Whitman that had appeared in 1852 as a serial in “The Sunday Dispatch,” a New York newspaper. The story of an orphan’s adventures was published three years before “Leaves of Grass,” perhaps, the most original, unclassiﬁable work of American literature. On Feb. 20, “Jack Engle” was published online by the “Walt Whitman Quarterly Review and it’s being released by the University of Iowa Press. Previously, Turpin had found some lost articles by Whitman on health and lifestyle. Discovering, another work by Whitman was “surreal,” he said in an e-mail to the Blade, “I doubt anyone has thought, ‘Today I will uncover a lost novel by one of the world’s greatest writers.’” But the discovery wasn’t glamorous, Turpin said. “It’s the end result of month after month of slow ... searches through online archives and databases — what scholar Stephen Ramsay calls, ‘the hermeneutics of screwing around.’” It’s a bit like falling in love, he said. “I

didn’t know what I was looking for until I found it.” Whitman represents an ethos that he helped establish, Turpin said, “a uniquely diverse, open and inclusive deﬁnition of what it means to be an ‘American. In his preface to the ﬁrst edition of ‘Leaves of Grass,’ Whitman said, ‘The United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem. … Here is not merely a nation but a teeming nation of nations.’” “Jack Engle” reminds us that in the 1850s, Whitman was unsure of what he was going to be in this world (a novelist?, journalist? poet?), Turpin said. It’s fair to say that Whitman was queer, though that term would’ve meant nothing to him then, Turpin said. “Nineteenth century sexuality was far less categorized than it is today.” Whitman, at age 43 in 1862, came to Washington, D.C., to volunteer as a nurse in hospitals during the Civil War. Kim Roberts, founding editor of “Beltway Poetry Quarterly,” said in an e-mail to the Blade that these were pivotal years for Whitman. “He stayed for 10 years ... working as a government clerk, writing over 100 new poems as well as frontline journalism, making life-long friends, having experiences that would change him profoundly,” Roberts said. Whitman, Roberts said, wrote that he considered his years in D.C. to be “the greatest privilege ... and most profound lesson of my life.”

Photo by Sascha Vaughan

A long-lost work by WALT WHITMAN has been rediscovered. The celebrated writer lived in Washington for a decade.

March 21 & 22 | Opera House with the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra

Support for Ballet at the Kennedy Center is generously provided by Elizabeth and Michael Kojaian.

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P H O T O S BY MI CH A E L KE Y

The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington held performances of “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” over the weekend at the Lincoln Theatre.

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A UT O S

M A R C H 17, 2017 • 41

LEXUS GS 350

琀栀攀

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VW CC R-Line, Lexus GS among snappiest 2017 models By JOE PHILLIPS With all the hullabaloo over crossovers, it’s easy to forget sedans still rule in many showrooms. This goes double for sport sedans with their souped-up engines and snappy styling. VW CC R-LINE EXECUTIVE $38,000 Mpg: 22 city/31 highway 0-to-60 mph: 6.5 seconds Once upon a time, VW created the ill-fated Phaeton, a superb machine, to be sure, but with a stratospheric price tag. When that flagship flamed out, the more affordable CC sport sedan became the automaker’s premier ride. With head-turning looks, the CC (Comfort Coupe) mixes sleek, two-door styling with fourdoor functionality. It’s not boxy, like the Jetta, Passat or even that spitfire GTI tuner. But the CC’s swoopy rear means less headroom and legroom for back-seat passengers. And the low-ground clearance may remind some folks — especially arthritic Boomers — of scooching in and out of go-kart racers. Still, this is a driver’s car, with a jazzy turbo, solid brakes and enough verve to liven up any daily commute. Two trim levels: base-level Sport and premium R-Line Executive. While both offer plenty of standard features, the Executive adds a panoramic sunroof, steering-wheel paddle shifters and heated, power-folding side mirrors. Sure, leather is available, but the “leatherette” (high-end vinyl) upholstery feels just as nice, is easier to clean and earns you some PETA-friendly cred. LEXUS GS 350 $51,000 Mpg: 19 city/26 highway 0-to-60 mph: 5.7 seconds With just a few karate chops to the sheet metal, Lexus now offers some of the trendiest designs on the road. This includes a bold grille that’s edgy enough to be menacing. It

works well on the GS 350, amping up this car’s sport-sedan bona fides. So do the engine and exhaust notes that can be piped directly into the cabin. Turn off that extra vroom, though, and this is a quiet cruiser with virtually no road noise or vibration. The interior is subtle chic, despite some plastic trim, with easy-to-use controls and well-padded seats. A 12-speaker stereo is standard, but upgrade to the 17-speaker Mark Levinson system for more bliss. Another plus: the 12.3-inch, widescreen infotainment display is huge and sits high on the dashboard for easy viewing. Following an industry trend, safety features that were once optional are now de rigueur. This includes collision warning with emergency braking and pedestrian detection. While handling is nimble, it’s not as taut as some Euro contenders. For that, you’ll need to plunk down an extra $4,000 for the F Sport model. BMW 540i xDRIVE $57,000 Mpg: 20 city/29 highway 0-to-60 mph: 4.9 seconds If aliens typed “sport sedan” into their social media feed, the redesigned BMW 5 Series would likely pop up first. Or at least it should, considering the space-age looks — especially in the cabin — and the gazillion high-tech gizmos. Longer and taller than before, the new model reduces heft by using lots of lightweight aluminum, magnesium and high-strength steel. While the base 530i has a capable four-cylinder, the 540i boasts a twin-turbo six-cylinder with a lusty 335-hp. It’s a blast to drive fast, especially when adding all-wheel drive (xDrive) and the M Sport package, with 20-inch wheels and lower suspension. Inside, the infotainment system includes gesture and voice controls, as well as a head-up display on the windshield. For rearseat entertainment, two 10.2-inch screens are attached to the back of the front seats. The standard seating is nicely bolstered, but you can switch it out for 20-way front seats with massage function. And the audio can be upgraded to a boffo 1,400-watt Bowers & Wilkins surround-sound stereo. Of course, tossing in all those options can ratchet up the price — yowza! — another $25,000.

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REALESTATE

A rising tide lifts region in February But leaves out more expensive jurisdictions By TED SMITH “D.C. area’s housing market continues to sizzle in February,” exclaimed the March 10 post from Real Business Intelligence. And it indeed looked like good news for the regional market: Median prices for February were at the highest level in 10 years, as was sales volume (total dollar amount sold), and numbers of closed sales, pending sales, and new listings. But dig a little deeper into these statis-

tics and some interesting facts emerge: First, median prices in the District itself decreased from February 2016, as did median prices for Alexandria City and Falls Church City. More signiﬁcantly, the only jurisdictions where median prices increased from the previous February all started with 2016 median prices lower than the median price of $537,000 for homes in D.C. in February 2016, while the two jurisdictions (in addition to D.C.) where median prices declined both started with February 2016 median prices higher (or approximately equal) to the D.C. 2016 median. Further, there were 2,395 February sales with medians that increased from

2016, while only 695 sales in higherpriced jurisdictions where median prices decreased from February 2016, a ﬁgure representing just 22.6 percent of all the February sales. Of course, there are always more buyers for lower-priced homes, but these ﬁgures also suggest that more buyers are looking for homes in jurisdictions where good values are still to be found. So, buyers, take a hint: You’ve still a month or so before the spring market

starts heating up, and these February ﬁgures show where you might obtain some good values. TED SMITH is a licensed Realtor with Real Living | at Home specializing in mid-city D.C. Reach him at TedSmithSellsDC@rlathome.com and follow him on Facebook.com/MidCityDCLife, Youtube.com/TedSmithSellsDC or @TedSmithSellsDC. You can also join him on monthly tours of mid-city neighborhood open houses, as well as monthly seminars geared toward ﬁrst-time homebuyers. Sign up at meetup.com/DCMidCity1stTimeHomeBuyers.

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Make Memories in a New Home! ellsworth row New CONstruCtiON • NOw selliNg! startiNg at $1,295,000 • ellsworthrow.com

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If you are thInkIng of buyIng or sellIng your home, or would just lIke to chat about the local market, contact us today. we’d love to help you achIeve your real estate goals.

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MASSAGE / CERTIFIED

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Do you have anxiety, depression, ADHD, or other emotional issues? Get treatment, tailor-made to you: psychotherapy, medication, natural supplements, and lifestyle changes. Brian Doyle, MD, well-established psychiatrist in Dupont Circle. Email doc@bbdoylemd.org. Tel (202) 296-5877.

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EMPLOYMENT WHOLISTIC SERVICES, INC. seeking Full Time Direct Support Professionals to assist intellectually disabled adolescents & adults with behavioral health issues in group homes & day services throughout DC. Requirements 1 year exp., valid drivers license, able to lift 50-75 lbs, complete training program, become DDS Med Certified within 4 months of hire, ability to pass security background check. Associates degree preferred. For more information, please contact the Human Resources (HR) Department at (202) 347-5334.

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Gay & Veteran Owner/ Operator. 2016 Luxury BMW 750Li Sedan. Properly Licensed & Livery Insured in DC. www.KasperLivery.com. Phone 202-554-2471.

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VOLUNTEERS GAY SEXUALITY PROJECT Are you happy in your sexual life, and over 35, then be part of the Gay Sexuality Project. I’m a psychiatrist who’s writing guidelines for guys who want to improve this key part of their lives. Any information you provide will be confidential, and completely anonymous. Brian Doyle, MD, in Dupont Circle. Email 2roryd@gmail.com. Tel (202) 746-7226.

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CLEANING FERNANDO’S CLEANING: Residential & Commercial Cleaning, Reasonable Rates, Free Estimates, Routine, 1-Time, Move-In/ Move-Out. (202) 234-7050, 202-486-6183.

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HOME IMPROVEMENT British Remodeling Handyman Local licensed company with over 25 years of experience. Specializing in bathrooms, kitchens & all interior/ exterior repairs. Drywall, paint, electric & wallpaper. Trevor 703-303-8699.

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OPEN HOUSE: Sunday, March 19th, 1-4PM. Stunning, new 3 bed, 3.5 bath duplex condo in the Heart of Shaw w/ soaring 10ft ceilings, hiend finishes, and parking. 1835 6th Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20001. www.thelangstonlofts.com.

SALE / MD LOVELY 2BR LOFT Residence in Chesapeake Harbour, premier luxury condominium development on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Bike, Swim, Enjoy the View! Call 703-609-2714.

BODYWORK DEADLINES

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LUCAS IS BACK TOP RATED MASSEUR Custom bodywork! Exceptional deep tissue & sensual bodywork for total stress relief in private studio on the Hill. Call Erik 202-544-5688. In calls only! No texts! Intro Special $99.00. EROTIC SWEDISH MASSAGE - healthy clean cut guy, 6’1”, 160 lbs, Dupont Circle, massage table, noon to 1:00 a.m., indulge your body. $70 for 1 hour. Bill 202-728-0238. No text messages.

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HISTORIC CONDOMINIUMS SELLING SPRING 2017 FROM THE 300’S TO OVER 1 MILLION

Chapman Stables ushers in an era of historic living with an elegant restoration of an industrial-age icon. Here, modern amenities are infused with early America’s irrepressible spirit. Return home to your next chapter at Chapman Stables.

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