Washingtonblade.com, Volume 49, Issue 19, May 11, 2018 by Washington Blade

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Fighting for a ‘transformational’ victory in Texas Lesbian Sheriﬀ Valdez welcomes her uphill ﬁght to unseat Gov. Abbott By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com

Former Dallas County Sheriﬀ LUPE VALDEZ faces a runoﬀ election this month before she would advance to a general election contest against the anti-LGBT Gov. Greg Abbott.

You can count many ways in which former Dallas County Sheriﬀ Lupe Valdez’s election as the next governor of Texas would be a milestone victory. She could become the ﬁrst openly gay person elected governor in the United States. She could be the second Latina governor. Her victory as a Democrat would unseat an anti-LGBT incumbent and represent a change for the Republican stronghold state.

But in an exclusive interview Monday with the Washington Blade, Valdez wasn’t focused on those milestones and said the focus of her bid for the Democratic nomination to unseat Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was on the “everyday Texan.” “The everyday Texan is finding it harder and harder to make ends meet, to get ahead and stay ahead, and our current governor has more interest in his special issue than the everyday Texan,” Valdez said. “I’m committed to making the everyday Texan and, of course, the other folks, the LGBT, the minority actually have a say in the everyday Texas.” Despite that focus, Valdez, who served four terms as Dallas County sheriff from 2005 to 2017 until she resigned to kick off her campaign, acknowledged being the first CONTINUES ON PAGE 14

PHOTO COURTESY OF LUPE VALDEZ

Beyer looks to make history in Maryland Trans activist pursuing state Senate bid warns of ‘dangerous times’ under Trump By MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com The executive director of Gender Rights Maryland would become the ﬁrst openly transgender state senator in the country if she were to win her race for the Maryland Senate in November.

Dana Beyer, a retired ophthalmologist, is running against state Del. Jeﬀ Waldstreicher (D-Montgomery County) and Michelle Carhart in the Democratic primary in Senate District 18 that will take place on June 26. State Sen. Rich Madaleno (D-Montgomery County) is not seeking re-election and is among the Democratic gubernatorial candidates who hope to unseat Republican Gov. Larry Hogan. There are no Republicans running for Madaleno’s seat. Beyer on her campaign website notes her platform includes support

for a single-payer national health care system and ﬁghting discrimination against LGBT people and other marginalized groups. She also says she feels she “can contribute constructively to make Maryland a place that will attract a new generation, with ideas to propel us into national leadership, for the next generation economy.” Beyer noted to the Washington Blade on Monday during an interview she would be the only openly trans legislator in Maryland and the only physician in the state Senate if she CONTINUES ON PAGE 16

‘We need to reclaim our country,’ said DANA BEYER, who is running for the Maryland state Senate. PHOTO COURTESY OF BEYER

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Comings & Goings Mendelsohn, Lovitz honored for LGBT contributions By PETER ROSENSTEIN The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at comingsandgoings@washblade.com. Congratulations to Michaela Ivri Mendelsohn who was selected to be the state and national recipient of the Face of Diversity Award and was recognized amongst her peers at the National Restaurant Association Public Affairs Conference in D.C., and in Sacramento at the CRA Restaurant Day (Lobby Day). The National Restaurant Association and PepsiCo Foodservice created the Faces of Diversity award to promote the importance of diversity and inclusion. She is currently the CEO of Pollo West Corp, one of the largest franchises for El Pollo Loco restaurants in the Western Region of the United States. A groundbreaking MICHAELA IVRI MENDELSOHN PHOTO COURTESY OF MENDELSOHN business leader, Mendelsohn passionately advocates for trans women in the workplace through her work with the California Restaurant Association, and she is the founder of the California Trans Work Project (CTWP), which creates models for trans-positive workplaces in California and across the country. It’s the first organization of its kind and was recently awarded a large grant by the state of California. Previously, Mendelsohn was named one of GO! Magazine’s “100 Women We Love,” alongside Ellen DeGeneres and Rachel Maddow. She is a transgender activist, professional speaker and corporate CEO with more than 40 years of entrepreneurial leadership experience. She has worked as a consultant to Jenji Kohan in developing Laverne Cox’s JONATHAN LOVITZ character on “Orange is the New Black,” PHOTO COURTESY OF LOVITZ and she was the first transgender contestant to compete in the Ms. Senior California Pageant. Congratulations also to Jonathan D. Lovitz, recently named an ‘Outstanding Young Alumni’ by the University of Florida from which he graduated Summa Cum Laude. Lovitz is a senior vice president at the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). In addition to leading public affairs, media relations, supplier diversity, and political advocacy efforts, he regularly speaks to conferences and the media about LGBT economic empowerment and the vital role business plays in creating equity for the LGBT community. He is a regular commentator on MSNBC, CNBC, and NPR among others, and has often spoken and raised money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, The Trevor Project, GLSEN, the Democratic Party, and more. Lovitz previously served as director of communications and operations for StartOut, a national nonprofit empowering LGBT entrepreneurs; and as a respected stage and television actor and news anchor for Logo TV and other networks. He regularly speaks to colleges and universities encouraging young people to get involved in public service and use the Internet to make a difference for their communities. While business and LGBT youth causes are his primary focus, Lovitz looks for any chance to serve a community in need of a voice, including serving on multiple nonprofit boards. This year, he was also named one of the top “40 LGBTQ Leaders Under 40” by Business Equality Magazine.

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D.C. Black Pride announces 2018 award winners

The Center for Black Equity, the D.C.-based national group that organizes D.C.’s annual Black Pride events held on Memorial Day weekend, announced on Tuesday the winners of its annual Black Pride Awards. Among this year’s awardees, according to a statement released by the Center for Black Equity, are Georgia Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis and D.C. City Council member Anita Bonds (D-At-Large), who will receive Black Pride’s Eleanor Holmes Norton Award named after D.C.’s congressional delegate. “Genise Chamber Woods will receive the President’s Award while community leader and academic Anika Simpson and longtime HIV/AIDS leader Anthony Fox will receive the Welmore Cook Award,” the statement says. “Spoken word artist Mary Bowman and transgender community activist Achim Howard will receive the Unsung Hero Award,” according to the statement. Impulse D.C., a gay men’s sexual health organization, will receive the D.C. Black Pride Leadership Award, the statement says. It says these additional awards have been designated: • The newly created Curtis L. Etherly Jr. Ally Award will be given posthumously to Curtis L. Etherly Jr. • The D.C. Black Pride Small Business Award will be given to longtime D.C. LGBT rights advocate Everett Hamilton and the company he founded and operates, Octane Public Relations. • The newly created Earline Budd Award for outstanding leadership in the D.C. transgender community will be given to community activist and entertainer Monet Dupree. • The Charlotte Smallwood Volunteer of the Year Award will be given to D.C. Black Pride volunteer Kathy Neal. The awards are scheduled to be presented during the 2018 D.C. Black Pride Awards Reception on Tuesday, May 22, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at The Park on 14th Street. The Black Pride statement also announces that its Youth Summit and Transgender Town Hall will take place Saturday, May 25, at 2 p.m. at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, which will serve as the Black Pride host hotel. LOU CHIBBARO JR.

D.C. gay bars launch campaign against ‘tipped wage’ measure Employees, managers, and owners of the D.C. gay bars Town Danceboutique, Trade, and Number Nine organized an election committee earlier this month to oppose a June 19 ballot measure asking voters to decide whether the so-called “tipped wage” exemption should be eliminated. Other D.C. bars, restaurants, and nightclubs across the city quickly joined the committee, called NO2DC77, according to gay D.C. nightlife advocate Mark Lee, who is serving as a consultant to the committee. The ballot measure, called Initiative 77, calls for ending an exemption to the city’s minimum wage law that allows employers of tipped workers to pay them less than the prevailing minimum wage. If approved by voters, it would require all tipped workers to be paid the full city minimum wage as part of their base pay. NO2DC77 points out on its website NO2DC77.com that existing D.C. law requires restaurants, bars and other employers of tipped workers to pay tipped workers the difference if their tips fall short of the full minimum wage, which is currently $12.50 per hour. Under the existing tipped wage exemption, employers also pay tipped workers a lower minimum wage of $3.33 per hour. “It is extremely rare for tipped workers to not earn incomes that are significantly higher than minimum wage, and the tip-wage system allows them to retain great earning potential,” NO2DC77 says in a May 4 statement. “Tipped employees at the city’s nightlife establishments know that outlawing the tip-wage system will reduce their incomes, as well as result in staffing cutbacks and reductions in shifts and hours,” the statement says. “Jobs will be lost, consumer prices will skyrocket, venues won’t survive, and the economic foundation of D.C.’s vibrant and dynamic nighttime economy will be shattered,” the statement concludes. Lee said that because LGBT people make up a disproportionately high percentage of tipped workers in nightlife establishments, they could be among the most to be adversely impacted if the initiative passes on June 19 in the city’s primary election. Supporters of the initiative, led by the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, or ROC United, dispute restaurant industry leaders’ claim that forcing them to pay tipped workers the full minimum wage over and above their tips would create a severe economic hardship in D.C.’s highly competitive hospitality industry. LOU CHIBBARO JR.

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Grenell admonishes Germany on Iran deal in first week as ambassador Tells companies to stop doing business in Islamic Republic By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com The newly confirmed U.S. ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell — also the most high-profile openly gay official in the Trump administration — has issued a warning on Twitter to German businesses that some say is reminiscent of the antagonistic tweets that landed him in hot water during his confirmation process. Following President Trump’s announcement — widely criticized by Democrats and U.S. allies — that the United States would withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement, Grenell took to Twitter to advise Germany, one of the six countries that spearheaded the deal, that its businesses should cease operations in Iran. As @realDonaldTrump said, US sanctions will target critical sectors of Iran’s economy. German companies doing business in Iran should wind down operations immediately.

Vice President MIKE PENCE (right) swears in as U.S. ambassador to Germany RIC GRENELL (left) with his partner MATT LASHEY looking on.

PHOTO COURTESY WHITE HOUSE TWITTER

Grenell’s warning to German businesses comes during the same week he was set to depart for the U.S. embassy in Germany and shortly after his conﬁrmation and swearing in as ambassador by Vice President Mike Pence. Antagonistic tweets about the appearance of women and hyping the John Podesta email dump on Wikileaks in the 2016 election were the main cited causes of opposition to his conﬁrmation in the Senate. The warning to German businesses sparked critical reaction from political observers on Twitter who said the

comment is consistent with Grenell’s earlier tweets. On the Senate floor during Grenell’s confirmation, Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) warned the chamber Grenell’s history on Twitter may be a harbinger of things to come if he’s confirmed as ambassador to Germany. “Not only do these tweets show bad judgement, they show us who Mr. Grenell really is and how comfortable he is publicly contributing his own brand of toxic political discourse,” Menendez said. “Will he do such things if he is confirmed

and goes to Germany? Will he insult, via his Twitter account, the female Chancellor of Germany? I don’t know. I hope not.” Pence administered the Oath of Office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building last week. Grenell took the Oath of Office on his family Bible, which was held by his partner of more than 15 years, Matt Lashey. In his remarks, Pence referenced Lashey and echoed President Trump’s comment that Grenell is an “outstanding man” who will do well as U.S. envoy to the world’s fourth largest national economy. “I share that confidence and conviction,” Pence said. Looking to the tasks ahead, Pence said Grenell would help strengthen U.S.German relations by balancing the trade relationship, strengthening military cooperation and encouraging NATO allies to pay their fair share on defense. “With Ambassador Grenell leading our diplomatic mission to Germany, we’re going to confront shared challenges, seek our shared opportunities and build a shared future with our allies and friends in Germany,” Pence said. ■ CONTINUES AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

New NRA chief compared fighting gay rights to fight against slavery North equated ‘Don’t Ask’ repeal to ‘social experiment’ in military By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com Oliver North, the new head of the National Rifle Association, has a controversial past as the central figure in the 1980s Iran-Contra affair — a scandal in which the Reagan administration illegally sold arms to Iran with the intent to use proceeds to fund rebels in Nicaragua — but he has also courted controversy for his views on gay rights. In a speech at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference, North, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps, compared fighting against gay rights to the abolitionists’ fight during the 19th century against slavery. At a time of achievements on LGBT rights and rapidly changing views the year before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled for marriage equality nationwide, North ended his speech by urging conservatives not to abandon social issues. “Some say that we must ignore social issues, like the definition of marriage, the sanctity of life, religious freedoms,” North said. “I say those are not social issues, they are deeply moral and spiritual issues and should be part of America’s elections.” North continued: “In the 1850s, a

political party was born on the idea of a great moral issue: Human bondage, the abolition of slavery in America. If we, as conservatives, cease to be a place where people of faith and those who believe in strong moral values can come, we will cease to be a political force in America.” Years after President Obama signed repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” North also engaged in veiled criticism of openly gay service, using language borrowed from the Family Research Council about letting LGBT people in the military. “The members of our armed forces and their families deserve better than being treated as laboratory rats in some radical social experiment,” North said. The speech in 2014 was covered by Secular Talk Radio’s Kyle Kulinski, who at the time said “if that’s your idea of moral values, you’re an idiot.” “Not only is there no comparison, if anything the opposition position on those issues is more like opposing slavery,” Kulinski said. “To be in favor of gay rights and to try to treat people equally under the law. That is deﬁnitely a movement that is more in line with the idea behind the abolitionists of treating people equal and treating people right.” Those anti-gay remarks weren’t new for North, who as a Fox News commentator was a regular ﬁgure at CPAC as well as the anti-LGBT Voters Values Summit hosted each year by the Family Research Council. Years before that speech, North in 2010

OLIVER NORTH once compared ﬁghting gay rights to ﬁght against slavery. WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

wrote an op-ed for the National Review in which he criticized then-Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen for coming out in favor of gays in the military and suggested troops who disagree with that can “find another place to work.” “Such a cavalier response to a U.S. senator’s serious inquiry may play well in the press and in the current commanderin-chief’s office, but it illuminates a deeply misguided commitment to political correctness and foreshadows serious adverse consequences for our national security,” North wrote. “If tens of thousands of troops now serving in the finest military force the world has ever known vote with their feet in the midst of a war, we’re all in deep trouble.” Also in 2010, as reported at the time by ThinkProgress, North told Sean Hannity

on Fox News allowing openly gay people in the military was tantamount to letting pedophiles in the armed forces. “Now, here’s what’s next,” North said. “NAMBLA members, same-sex marriages. Are chaplains in the U.S. military going to be required to perform those kinds of rituals? Do they get government housing?” Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the NRA, said the new hire is “the most exciting news for our members since Charlton Heston became president of our association.” Jason Lindsay, founder and executive director of Pride Fund to End Gun Violence, said North’s opposition to gay rights and prominence in the Iran-Contra aﬀair “will suit him well in his new position as the president of the NRA.”

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Trump’s faith initiative raises concerns among LGBT advocates Critics accuse administration of ‘weaponizing religion’ By CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com President Trump’s new initiative to support faith-based organizations with federal assistance is stirring unease among LGBT rights supporters, who say they’ll keep watch to ensure the program doesn’t enable anti-LGBT discrimination. Trump, who created the initiative by executive order on Thursday on the National Day of Prayer, said during a signing ceremony in the White House Rose Garden the program will “help design new policies that recognize the vital PRESIDENT TRUMP signs an executive order role of faith in our families, our creating a new faith initiative. communities, and our great country.” PHOTO COURTESY WHITE HOUSE “This office will also help ensure that faith-based organizations have equal access to government funding and the equal right to exercise their deeply held beliefs,” Trump said. “We take this step because we know that, in solving the many, many problems and our great challenges, faith is more powerful than government, and nothing is more powerful than God.” Among those present for the ceremony were Vice President Mike Pence; Jean Bingham, general president of the Relief Society for the Mormon Church; Archbishop of Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl; and Narayanachar Digalakote, priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Lanham, Md. The executive order renames as the White House Faith & Opportunity Initiative the program known under the Obama administration as the Office of Faith-Based & Community Initiatives. According to the White House, the initiative will provide policy recommendations for the administration’s faith-based and community programs, such as ideas on helping these programs deliver more effective solutions to combat poverty. The initiative is also charged with apprising the administration of any failures within the executive branch in complying with “religious freedom” protections — a term often used to mean anti-LGBT discrimination — and to reduce the burdens on the exercise of free religion. Tony Perkins, president of the anti-LGBT Family Research Council, praised Trump in a statement. “The announcement of President Trump’s faith initiative is further evidence that this administration is not only committed to protecting our First Freedom but in also acknowledging that our faith in God contributes to the guidance and well-being of our country,” Perkins said. The Obama-era program was itself a restructuring of a program established in 2001 during the administration of George W. Bush. The Bush-era program was criticized as a potential violation of the Establishment Clause and as a payoff to faith leaders to encourage support for Bush’s presidency and re-election in 2004, which may be Trump’s aims as well as the congressional mid-term elections approach. Trump signs his executive order creating the initiative on the anniversary of a “religious freedom” executive order he signed last year. That order was criticized by LGBT rights supporters because it directed U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to create “religious freedom” guidance seen to enable anti-LGBT discrimination under the law. The new initiative also echoes the creation of the Conscience & Religious Freedom Division at the Department of Health & Human Services. Critics say that division will enable medical practitioners to deny services to women seeking abortions or transgender people seeking transition-related care, including gender reassignment surgery. Although LGBT rights supporters weren’t ready to pounce on the new Trump initiative, they expressed concern about the program and said they were wary of its impact. Daniel Mach, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s program on freedom of religion and belief, said in a statement the new initiative must not direct taxpayer money to organizations that discriminate against LGBT people.

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“Freedom of religion is one of our most fundamental and cherished rights. But that freedom does not give any of us the right to harm other people, to impose our beliefs on others, or to discriminate,” Mach said. “The ACLU will be watching this initiative closely to ensure that it does not promote policies that violate these core principles.” Sharon McGowan, director of strategy for Lambda Legal, said, “there isn’t a lot of substance” in the executive order, but it reeks of earlier Trump administration efforts enabling anti-LGBT discrimination in the name of ‘religious freedom.’ “As we saw in the proposed rule coming out of HHS last January, this administration thinks that it burdens someone’s religious belief to have to provide appropriate health care to a trans person, or even to make a referral to someone who will,” McGowan said. “This EO is very much of a piece with last year’s EO, Jeff Sessions’ proclamation from last fall, and what’s come out of HHS.” McGowan said the executive order is also consistent with Sessions’ pledge to the anti-LGBT Alliance Defending Freedom to restructure the federal government to favor religious freedom even at the expense of protecting others from discrimination. “So while there isn’t really much in here that’s new, it is another piece of the larger structure that this administration is building to weaponize religion,” McGowan said. “Faith doesn’t have to be synonymous with discrimination, but that certainly seems to be what this administration means.” Kasey Suffredini, president of strategy at Freedom for All Americans, went a step further and said the initiative makes religion “a tool to cause harm.” “By allowing agencies that receive taxpayer dollars to discriminate against LGBTQ people as long as they cite religion as the reason for doing so, this administration has weaponized religion in a way that prioritizes anti-LGBTQ bias over vulnerable children finding loving homes,” Suffredini said. “President Trump’s continued attacks on LGBTQ families hurt everyone — and they will not stand.”

Roem will be featured speaker at DNC’s LGBTQ gala Virginia Delegate Danica Roem will be a featured speaker at the Democratic National Committee’s 19th annual LGBTQ gala on June 25 in New York City. Roem will be the first openly transgender elected official to speak at a major party’s gala. “When Democrats flipped 15 Republican seats in the Virginia House of Delegates last year, we sent a signal across the country that no seat should go uncontested,” Roem said in Virginia Del. DANICA ROEM a press release. “Now, as we approach the final six-month WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY stretch of the 2018 cycle, it’s so important to make sure every Democrat from the school board to the Senate has the resources and tools they need to fight and win. DNC Chair Perez knows every ZIP code counts and when Democrats organize and compete everywhere, we win.” “Danica Roem is a brilliant public servant and one of our nation’s most passionate voices for equality,” DNC Chair Tom Perez added. “Even in the face of hatred and bigotry from this administration, Danica has never stopped fighting for the issues that matter to the hardworking families she represents. And there’s no question that her community is stronger for her leadership and her commitment to the Democratic values of inclusion and opportunity for all. Roem gave a preview of what attendees could expect from her keynote address on Twitter. “This may be the first LGBTQ gala keynote that includes ‘alternative intersection designs along the Route 28 corridor in Yorkshire,’ ‘replace cast iron water pipes with ductile iron water pipes’ and ‘commuter rail efficiency.’ Oh, and, “LGBTQ health care is health care.” That too,” Roem tweeted. Gus Kenworthy will also appear at the gala as a special guest. MARIAH COOPER

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Newsom leads polls as Calif. prepares to elect new governor No mention of LGBT issues during debate By KAREN OCAMB LOS ANGELES — In a preview of the May 8 California gubernatorial debate, the Los Angeles Times predicted that Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom would tout his history-making stand in favor of marriage equality, the subject of his moving first TV campaign ads. He didn’t. In fact, none of the six candidates— four Democrats and two Republicans— mentioned the LGBT community once during the 90-minute debate that included praising the state’s diversity. However, in an ironic twist, a gay man was invoked as the final arbiter of a lively dispute between Trumpian populist Republican Assemblymember Travis Allen and GOP businessman John Cox. The two Republicans fought over credit for leading the effort to scuttle the gas tax, endorsed by all the Democrats as necessary for infrastructure repairs. Cox told Allen to ask gay former San Diego city council member and radio talk show host Carl DeMaio, organizer of the Gas Tax Repeal, which gubernatorial candidate helped put the initiative on the June 5 primary ballot. Much has been made of recent polls showing Newsom well ahead of the pack with Cox edging ahead of former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who most pundits expect to wind up as Newsom’s challenger after the top-two primary. State Treasurer John Chiang and former Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin both had moments during the debate, but nothing to ignite a surge. Of California’s almost 19 million registered voters, 8,471,371 (44.6%) are Democrats, 4,827,973 (25.4%) are Republican and 4,734,847 (25%) are No Party Preference as of January. The stakes are extremely high with so many Democrats in “jungle primary” downballot races that the 25 percent No Party Preference vote could make a critical difference—which is why Cox’s candidacy cannot be taken lightly. Neither Cox nor Allen won the nomination of the California Republican Party. Their angry spat continued on the gubernatorial debate stage with Allen playing the bombastic populist fully embracing Trump, while Cox trying to reach out as an outside businessman who now regrets that he didn’t originally vote for Trump. Cox heralded his recent visits to the White House as proof he is

A scene from Tuesday’s gubernatorial debate. SCREEN CAPTURE VIA KNBC4

now onboard—but he also claimed to be a “Jack Kemp Republican.” Problem is—which Jack Kemp? Kemp favored expanding immigration, including granting amnesty to undocumented workers, and in 1989, when he was Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Kemp said: “I want to be known as a civil rights Republican; somebody who is promoting what President Bush calls ‘’an equal opportunity society.’’’ Kemp didn’t mind homosexuals in the late 1980s but didn’t want gays teaching in schools. Many of his positions changed dramatically in the early 1990s, before he became Sen. Bob Dole’s vice presidential running mate. It is hard to fathom that Jack Kemp, a Republican Establishment gentleman who also worked across the aisle in congress, would have tolerated the crude incivility and outright racism of Donald Trump. After the Mercury-News reported last February about Cox’s anti-LGBT comments during a 2007 Values Voter Summit, Cox told the Los Angeles Times that his views have changed. “Like many Californians, my views have evolved over the last decade. I concluded

that it was inconsistent with my support for individual liberty, limited government and the right to privacy,” Cox said. “The focus of my campaign is economic growth and freedom and I’m looking forward to engaging the LGBTQ community and all Californians to revive the California Dream.” But Cox has not retracted his 2007 comments: “We also have this problem with transvestites who want to be school teachers,” Cox said then, adding: “We certainly need to stand up for the proper behavior, we absolutely need to do that, but we need to use common sense, and talk about the fact that we can’t open the ﬂoodgates to polygamy and bestiality and all kinds of other things.” While issues of character and decadesold sexual aﬀairs were raised during the gubernatorial debate—Cox was not asked about his evolution. None of the candidates were asked nor did they volunteer their views, past or present, about LGBT issues, despite clear evidence that Trump and his administration are intent on rolling back protections for LGBT people. California has the most military bases in the country, and the most transgender service members at risk of being banned from their military jobs

and serving their country, for instance— which is why Attorney General Becerra on behalf of the state of California joined the Equality California lawsuit as a plaintiff fighting the Trump ban. LGBT DREAMers and LGBT people seeking asylum are among the immigrants about whom the candidates spoke as well, with many facing certain death if returned to the country from with they escaped or never knew. No one thought to mention them. Interesting, too, is new research showing LGBT people are embedded and leaders in the very social justice causes about which the candidates do speak. “Lesbians, gays, and bisexuals were more than twice as likely as heterosexuals to join anti-war, environmental, and anti-corporate movements,” writes Eric Swank of Arizona State University in his new study published in the journal Social Science Research. This may reflect the fact that they are “more aware, and less accepting, of social inequalities than heterosexuals. Additionally, “Approximately one out of five gays, lesbians, and bisexuals have joined the LGB rights movement,” he reports, “while less than one out of 100 heterosexuals have done the same thing.”

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Mariela Castro to push for marriage, LGBT rights in Cuba But former president’s daughter fails to provide details By MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com The daughter of former Cuban President Raúl Castro last week said her organization plans to submit proposals to the country’s National Assembly that would extend marriage and other rights to LGBT Cubans. Hatzel Vela, a Havana-based reporter for the South Florida television station WPLG, reported National Center for Sexual Education (CENESEX) Director Mariela Castro made the comments during a press conference in the Cuban capital. On Cuba, a Miami-based MARIELA CASTRO, daughter of former Cuban magazine that covers the President Raúl Castro, leads an LGBT march through Havana in 2017. She told reporters on Communist island, reported May 4 that she and her organization will push for Mariela Castro said CENESEX in July marriage and other rights for LGBT Cubans in the country’s National Assembly. will propose amending the Cuban constitution and changing the WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY country’s family and penal codes when the National Assembly meets again. Media reports indicate Mariela Castro did not provide specific details when she spoke to reporters. Mariela Castro, who is a member of the National Assembly, spoke to reporters ahead of CENESEX-organized events in Havana and in the city of Pinar del Río that will commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. The press conference also took place less than a month after the National Assembly chose Miguel Díaz-Canel succeeded Raúl Castro as the country’s president. More than 25,000 gay men and others deemed unfit for military services were sent to labor camps known by the Spanish acronym UMAP in the years after the 1959 Cuban revolution that brought Raúl Castro’s brother, Fidel Castro, to power. The Cuban government until 1993 forcibly quarantined people with HIV/AIDS in state-run sanitaria. Cuba in 1979 repealed its sodomy law. Fidel Castro nearly three decades later apologized for the work camps during an interview with a Mexican newspaper. The Cuban constitution currently defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Mariela Castro has previously said she supports marriage rights for same-sex couples. LGBT activists who work independently of Mariela Castro and CENESEX in recent years have launched a campaign that urges Cuban lawmakers to debate the issue. Puerto Rico, Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay and Mexico City are among the jurisdictions in Latin America in which same-sex couples can legally marry. Cuba since 2008 has offered free sex-reassignment surgeries through its national health care system, although Mariela Castro has previously said less than 40 people have been able to receive them. Mariela Castro voted against a 2013 proposal that sought to add sexual orientation to Cuba’s labor law because it did not include gender identity. Díaz-Canel defended Mariela Castro’s recent doctoral thesis that focused on the “social integration” of transgender people. Díaz-Canel also supported El Mejunje, an LGBT cultural center in the city of Santa Clara, when he was secretary of the Communist Party in Villa Clara Province. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in January issued a landmark ruling that recognizes same-sex marriage and transgender rights. The decision is not legally binding in Cuba because it is not party to the American Convention on Human Rights. A three-judge panel in Havana last October granted a woman custody of her late daughter’s three children who she is raising with her same-sex partner. Acepto, a group

I N T E RN A T I O N A L N E W S

that advocates for marriage rights for same-sex couples in Cuba, in January noted the ruling is potentially the ﬁrst time the Cuban government has legally recognized the “legitimacy of a non-heteronormative family.” “We will see what happens,” Acepto told the Washington Blade on Friday after Mariela Castro’s press conference.

First out member of Costa Rica Assembly takes office The first openly gay man elected to the Costa Rica National Assembly was sworn in last week. Enrique Sánchez — a journalist who is a member of the leftist Citizen’s Action Party — represents a portion of San José Province in the National Assembly. Sánchez told the Washington Blade on Thursday during an interview from the Costa Rican capital of San José that he never hid his sexual orientation during his ENRIQUE SÁNCHEZ on his first day as campaign. Sánchez added the reaction he a member of the Costa Rica National received from voters was “positive.” Assembly on May 1. “My campaign sought to promote PHOTO COURTESY OF THE COSTA RICA NATIONAL ASSEMBLY visibility for the LGBT community,” he told the Blade. “My sexual orientation wasn’t something I hid.” Sánchez, 40, took office a month after Carlos Alvarado of the Citizen’s Action Party defeated Fabricio Alvarado of the National Restoration Party in the second round of Costa Rica’s presidential election. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in January issued a landmark ruling that recognized same-sex marriage and transgender rights. Outgoing Vice President Ana Helena Chacón announced her government would comply with the decision. Fabricio Alvarado — a former journalist who is a singer and Pentecostal minister — made his opposition to the ruling the centerpiece of his campaign. Carlos Alvarado — who takes office on May 8 — publicly supports marriage rights for same-sex couples. Fabricio and Carlos Alvarado are not related. “(The ruling) is binding and it must be implemented,” Sánchez told the Blade. Sánchez noted improving access to technology and reforming Costa Rica’s public television network are among his other legislative priorities. He also told the Blade he hopes U.S. institutions can “stop” the Trump administration’s efforts to curtail the rights of LGBT people, women, migrants, people of color and other marginalized groups. MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Drag queens to protest Trump’s U.K. visit The drag queen community in the U.K. is prepping for a protest to welcome President Donald Trump on his July 13 visit to London. More than 1,000 people are conﬁrmed to attend a Facebook event titled “Drag Protest Against Trump UK Visit.” Another 7,000 are listed as “interested” in the event. “Due to the appalling way the Trump administration has regarded the rights and welfare of LGBTQI communities of the US, the idea of a Trump visit to the UK is unacceptable,” the event page reads. “Let’s get visible, stand with our sisters, brothers and others in America, and show that we are a country that celebrates diversity.” The drag protest plans to meet up with a larger protest that has more than 43,000 conﬁrmed attendees with more than 123,000 people interested in attending. Cheddar Gorgeous, one of the event’s organizers, explained in an op-ed for the Guardian that the drag protest is “in solidarity with the many other groups who feel marginalized along lines of race, class and gender.” “Despite claiming on the campaign trail to be ‘gay-friendly,’ the Trump administration has unleashed a barrage of policies and amendments that demonstrate the contrary,” Gorgeous writes. “To not object to the visit would seem like a betrayal of the tolerant society that the UK as a whole strives to be.” “There’s also a broad issue around visibility,” Gorgeous adds. “There’s a wider point to be made about an attack on diversity. Diversity is becoming a scapegoat by the Trump administration and the people who support it.” MARIAH COOPER

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NATIONAL NEWS

Fighting for a transformational victory in Texas governor’s race CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

openly gay person elected governor in the United States would be significant. “It would definitely say that Texas is what we actually believe it is — an inclusive state that welcomes all the people,” Valdez said. “And so therefore, I think my election would actually come out and stand strong in saying that this is not the old Texas, this is not the Texas of the past. This is a new Texas that is welcoming and will accept everybody.” Valdez has competition for the distinction of being the first openly gay person elected governor. Other gay candidates seeking to become governor are Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) in Colorado and state Sen. Rich Madaleno (D-Montgomery County) in Maryland. Bisexual Gov. Kate Brown is seeking reelection in Oregon and bisexual actress Cynthia Nixon is challenging Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York. In Vermont, transgender businessperson Christine Hallquist is running for governor. A win for Valdez would be a win for the LGBT community not just because she could be the first openly gay person elected governor, but also because she’d be taking out one of the most anti-LGBT governors in the country. Among other things, Abbott has signed an anti-LGBT “religious freedom” adoption bill into law, urged the Texas Supreme Court to undermine the 2015 ruling for marriage equality nationwide, and called a special session of the state legislature for the sole purpose of passing anti-transgender bathroom legislation, which lawmakers ultimately rejected. Valdez said Abbott’s tenure has “been harmful to everything, not just the LGBT,” including Texans as a whole and other minorities, such as Muslims and immigrants. “I don’t believe that’s the Texas brand, and I want to show him,” Valdez said. “Discrimination is not acceptable in any shape, so we need to continue to fight against the bathroom bill. I’m trying to find a decent way to say this madness that is ‘show me your papers’ bills and discrimination bills. They’re unpopular with the majority of Texas. Yes, there’s a small percentage that is in favor, but the majority of Texas is not, so we need to start governing for the majority of Texas.” If elected governor, Valdez said she’d take Texas in the opposite direction and seek to pass pro-LGBT bills, including legislation enacting a statewide prohibition on anti-LGBT discrimination. “I’m going to fight for everybody, including the LGBTQ community,” Valdez said. “We have to have a comprehensive non-discrimination protections bill. We have to have a hate crimes protections bill, and we have to find some way of having health care that is culturally competent. Say that in a mouthful, but it’s

Texas Gov. GREG ABBOTT could face lesbian Sheriﬀ Lupe Valdez in the November election. PHOTO BY GAGE SKIDMORE; COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

true that we need to be sensitive to the HIV folks and transgender folks.” With studies showing 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBT, Valdez also said making changes to assist the LGBT homeless population is an important task. “You have the homeless youth that are kicked out, and there’s still old Texas attitudes, and they’re kicked out of the homes because they’re LGBTQ,” Valdez said. “In a homeless situation, the parents have to sign for the child to be able to go into a shelter. If he’s LGBTQ, the parent doesn’t even want to talk to them. How are they going to sign for it? We have to make arrangements for that.” The potential of Valdez to become the ﬁrst openly gay governor and unseat an anti-LGBT incumbent won her the endorsement of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which declared its support for Valdez in March. The Human Rights Campaign hasn’t yet made an endorsement in the race. Annise Parker, who’s CEO of the Victory Fund and won historic elections herself to become an openly gay mayor of Houston, said having a lesbian Latina defeat an anti-LGBT governor would “have enormous consequences for Texas and the entire country.” “With a primary win this month, Lupe will set up a general election battle that puts positive solutions against the divisive politics Gov. Abbott thrives on – and in a deep red state with a legislature hostile to LGBTQ equality,” Parker said. “Electing a Democratic governor in Texas will be tough, but a victory would be transformational. With Lupe in the governor’s mansion, we know hateful legislation is dead on arrival, and legislators will be forced to focus on policies to improve people’s lives, not make them more diﬃcult.” But Valdez has to overcome an additional step before she wins the Democratic nomination to take on Abbott. Although Valdez won a plurality of the vote in the March 6 Democratic primary, the race now

proceeds to a run-off with businessperson Andrew White, who was the runner-up. The run-off is set for May 22. White has his own faction of support, including an endorsement from the Houston GLBT Political Caucus, but Valdez said her experience makes her the clear choice to become the Democratic nominee. “I’m going to laugh here,” Valdez said. “I’m an Army veteran, I was a federal agent for over 20 years, I was the sheriff of Dallas County for the last 13 years. By the way, Dallas County is the ninth largest county in the United States, the sheriff’s department is the seventh largest department in the United States. I oversaw over 2500 employees and I had a budget of over $160 million. The experience is what already talks.” Valdez faces an uphill challenge in her bid to unseat Abbott in a traditionally Republican state. A Quinnipiac poll in April found she trails him by nine points, with Abbott leading 49-40 percent. Meanwhile, White has a similar standing and trails the incumbent by seven points, with Abbott leading 48-41 percent. But Valdez said that poll is a good sign because Democrats in Texas in recent years have never had anything close to those numbers. “Excuse me? Ten points is the closest we’ve been in over 10 years,” Valdez said. “The prior people that have run against have not gotten that close, and we haven’t even started running against him. We’re not even calling him out or going to him on anything. We’re just fighting right now in the Democratic primary. If we’re within 10 points, that’s the best any candidate has done in quite a while, and we haven’t even started with him.” Valdez also said she isn’t afraid of a challenge, citing her beginnings in San Antonio as one of eight children of parents who were migrant farm workers. “My favorite phrase on that, people keep saying, ‘This is an uphill challenge,’” Valdez said. “Excuse me? What kind of

other challenges do we have? As an LGBTQ Latina from very humble beginnings, I don’t know if you know my story...I grew up in the poorest zip code and the highest crime in San Antonio. What other challenge have I had except uphill? That’s all we know is an uphill battle. So, I’m getting pretty good at these.” With President Trump having occupied the White House for more than a year, Valdez also reflected on his presidency. In the aftermath of a transgender military ban, revocation of bathroom protections for transgender students and “religious freedom” executive actions, Valdez said Trump betrayed his campaign promise to be a friend to LGBT people. “He started out his campaign saying that he was going to have LGBTQ rights, and he started out with that, but then he turned around and pulled some of the stuff he’s been pulling,” Valdez said. “All that says is — how do you politely say twofaced? I don’t know how you can politely say he said something for the campaign just to get people on your side, and then you turn around and do something else.” Asked whether she’d seek to shield the Texas National Guard from the transgender military ban, Valdez said she’d “fight to stop some of his actions,” recalling her own experience being a lesbian in the military under an anti-gay ban at the time of the Vietnam War. “Back then, there was no protection,” Valdez said. “I know what it feels like to be left out there with no protection. I know what it feels like to not have people support you. So, of course, I’m going to fight to put these protections [in]. The transgender people are of value to the National Guard, to the military, they’re of value. They wouldn’t have been accepted in the first place if they weren’t of value.” Pressed on how she’d fight the transgender military ban, Valdez talked about statewide LGBT non-discrimination protections and the recent fight against the bathroom bill. “We’re going to go back to the same thing, the comprehensive non-discrimination protections, the hate crimes protections and there is already a strong push in Texas for transgender protections,” Valdez said. “The bathroom bill was totally against transgender, and there were so many middle-class families who came up and fought and said, ‘Look at my child. My child is transgender and they’re causing no harm to your school.’ So there’s already a strong fight in Texas and we will build on that so we can pass laws to stop the discrimination against the transgender.” On whether sexual orientation has emerged as an issue in her campaign, Valdez said it hasn’t come up and that marks a significant change from when she first ran for sheriff in 2004.

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Beyer looks to make history in Md. Senate race CONTINUED FROM PAGE 01

were elected. She also pointed out she would be the only openly LGBT person in the state Senate if state Del. Mary Washington (D-Baltimore City) doesn’t win her race. “I would have a formal platform to represent the transgender community, given the federal regime’s eﬀorts to roll back rights,” Beyer told the Blade. Beyer was previously a senior assistant to then-Montgomery County Councilwoman Duchy Tractenberg. Beyer in 2010 challenged state Del. Alfred Carr (D-Montgomery County). She was among the 11 openly trans delegates to the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Maryland’s trans rights bill that thenGov. Martin O’Malley signed in 2014 is among the LGBT-speciﬁc issues for which Beyer has advocated over the last decade. Beyer is also among the American LGBT rights advocates who traveled to Havana in 2017 and took part in events commemorating the International Day Against Homophobia,

Transphobia and Biphobia that Mariela Castro, the daughter of former Cuban President Raúl Castro, and her organization, Cuba’s National Center for Sexual Education, organized. Beyer, who is also the vice chair of the Civil Rights Coalition of Maryland, told the Blade she would have an advantage in Annapolis because of her work as an activist. “You have to know how the system works,” said Beyer. “You have to have power and strength in your committee. You have to know how to pull things out.” Beyer in 2014 unsuccessfully challenged Madaleno in the Democratic primary. The race became increasingly heated and personal in the final weeks, but the two have reconciled any differences that they had. Madaleno said last month during an interview with the Blade’s editorial staff that he has not “taken a position” in the race to succeed him. Beyer on Monday said Madaleno “hasn’t asked” her to endorse him.

The LGBTQ Victory Fund in March endorsed Beyer. The LGBTQ Democrats of Montgomery County last week did not make an endorsement in Beyer’s race when it announced the candidates it is supporting in this election cycle. Beyer on Monday described state Del. Meagan Simonaire (R-Anne Arundel County)’s speech on the floor of the Maryland House of Delegates in which she came out as bisexual and said her parents, including state Sen. Bryan Simonaire (R-Anne Arundel County), suggested she undergo so-called conversion therapy as “remarkable.” Beyer also told the Blade she hopes Meagan Simonaire will publicly advocate for LGBT-specific issues once she leaves the General Assembly at the end of the year. “She’s a powerful ally,” she said. Beyer acknowledged to the Blade that Hogan has “smartly stayed away from social issues” during his first term. Beyer nevertheless echoed Madaleno when he told the Blade that he is “more concerned” about Hogan’s second term if

he were to win re-election. “I fear though if he were to get a second term he would feel unchained and I feel concerned what he would do if Trump were still in oﬃce during a second Hogan term,” she said. “I feel concerned what he would do if Pence were in oﬃce during a second Hogan term.” Beyer also said she does not expect President Trump will be impeached in 2018. Beyer added, however, the “utter moral collapse of the Republican Party” is one of worst of what she described as the “many tragedies in the circumstances today.” “We need to reclaim our country,” she writes on her campaign website. “We need to stand, forthrightly, for the American creed — the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution — life, liberty and equality. These can no longer be simply words in a dog-eared elementary school text, or an oft-avoided high school civics class. These must be our operating principles, for we live in dangerous times.”

D.C. trans group endorses challengers in key races Trans United Fund backs opponents of Mendelson, Bonds By LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com In its ﬁrst round of endorsements in the city’s June 19 Democratic primary, Trans United Fund, a D.C.-based, transgenderled political action committee, raised eyebrows among some LGBT activists last week when it endorsed opponents of D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson and AtLarge Council member Anita Bonds. Mendelson and Bonds have been longtime supporters of LGBT rights and a number of prominent transgender activists have expressed support for Bonds. In a statement released on May 3, Trans United Fund announced it has endorsed progressive ﬁrst-time candidate Ed Lazere for Council Chair and community activist Jeremiah Lowery for an at-large Council seat held by Bonds. Lazere and Lowery have also expressed strong support for LGBT rights. But the statement makes it clear that the trans PAC based its decision to endorse Lazere and Lowery on a wide range of issues in addition to LGBT rights. The group also noted in its statement that Mendelson and Bonds did not return a questionnaire it sent to candidates running in the primary. “In recent years, Trans United Fund has worked to support and elect progressive

D.C. Council Chair PHIL MENDELSON failed to win the backing of Trans United Fund. WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY MICHAEL KEY

trans candidates and allies to oﬃce who share a vision of racial and economic justice and center the issues that most directly impact many trans communities,” the group’s statement says. “On the one hand are Ed Lazere and Jeremiah Lowery, who want to ensure D.C. is a safe place where not just trans communities but people of color, immigrants, LGBTQ folks, low-income families, longtime residents, and workers can live and thrive,” said Trans United Fund co-founder Hayden Mora. “Council Chair Mendelson and Councilmember Bonds, on the other hand, have presided over skyrocketing housing and childcare costs,” Mora said. “They have both been in a position to address D.C.’s

aﬀordable housing crisis, as Council Chair and Housing Committee Chair, respectively, but neither has seen ﬁt to treat this issue with the urgency it requires.” Mora said Lazere and Lowery “represent a transformative vision” that includes, among other positions, support for decriminalization of sex work that trans women often are forced to engage in for economic survival. Mendelson has spoken out against a sex worker decriminalization bill introduced last year by Council member David Grosso (I-At-Large). Grosso is not up for re-election this year. Janis Davis, Bonds’ campaign chairperson, released a statement to the Washington Blade in response to Trans United Fund’s statement and

endorsement of Lowery. “Councilmember Anita Bonds has a documented history of advancing LGBTQ rights, has a 100 percent pro-LGBTQ voting record and has broad support from across the community,” Davis said in her statement. “While she wishes Trans United PAC success, we must point out that this national organization has never had a presence in local DC aﬀairs and their own FEC records show they have neither raised nor expended any funds since their inception but now suddenly, it has been renewed by the same people who are actively involved with and who have donated to Anita Bonds’ opponent – disingenuous,” Davis said. Eric Rogers, Mendelson’s campaign manager, said he was arranging for a statement to be sent to the Blade by the Mendelson campaign in response to Trans United Fund’s endorsement of Mendelson’s opponent. The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest local LGBT political group, last month was unable to make an endorsement in the at-large Council race in which Lowery, Bonds and two other candidates are competing. Although Bonds received the most votes on a second ballot, no candidate received a required 60 percent of the vote from club members to capture the endorsement. The Stein Club is scheduled to vote on endorsements for the Council Chair seat and mayoral race at an endorsement forum scheduled for May 15.

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H E A LT H N E W S

Latino men say family would frown on PrEP

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SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Latino men in Texas said their family would not approve of them taking PrEP, a medication to prevent HIV, at much higher rates than black or white men according to results from a new study from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Recent data has shown that only 9 percent of eligible men who have sex with men use PrEP, a figure that’s even lower for men of color. Over a six-month period, University of Texas assistant professor Phillip Schnarrs worked with education, health care and nonprofit partners to survey about 100 white, black and Latino gay and bi men about their perceptions of PrEP. Participants were asked 16 open-ended questions assessing experiential attitudes, instrumental attitudes, perceived behavioral control and perceived social norms. They were also asked to list individuals or groups who would approve and not approve of them using PrEP. In addition, participants were also asked their age, relationship status, annual income, educational attainment, sexual orientation, gender, HIV status and whether they had ever been prescribed PrEP in the past. When participants were asked who would approve or disapprove of their PrEP use, white respondents reported a broader array of individuals who would approve compared to black and Latino men, the University reports. Schnarrs said most striking is the finding on family approval. While black and white men indicated their families would approve of their PrEP use, no Latino participants reported this about family. In fact, nearly a quarter (24 percent) of Latino participants indicated their families would disapprove of their PrEP use. This may be an additional barrier to PrEP uptake among this group in Texas. Schnarrs said, the finding about family is particularly important for San Antonio because of Cluster 51, a group of related HIV cases involving Latino men, the University reports.

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WASHINGTON — LGB people are more likely to get less sleep than straight people because of minority stress, a new study has found. The study, published in the journal Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, covered a sample of about 15,000 participants, most of whom were straight, with 2.1 percent identifying as gay and 1.3 percent identifying as bisexual. The survey had two questions focused on insomnia, with additional questions focused on the stresses the individuals faced. Amongst respondents, it was LGB people who reported more troubles both falling asleep and staying asleep. Much like other sleep studies, women also reported a higher instance of sleep issues than men. Likewise, LGB respondents reported higher levels of stress in their lives, in particular stress caused by familial rejection, the Journal reports. The study suggests that treating insomnia for LGB people may be a useful step in improving health, but does recommend further study. Proper rest is one of the keys to health and well-being. It is recommended that those between the ages of 18-64 get seven-nine hours of sleep per night.

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DCCA doesn’t speak for Dupont Misguided attacks on St. Thomas Church hurting our neighbors

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

Dupont Circle is home to a lot of great people. But it is also home to a group that considers itself “machers” (a Yiddish word meaning important person, big shot) who feel they should control everything that goes on here. The leaders of the Dupont Circle Citizens Association (DCCA) see themselves that way. They claim to speak for the neighborhood when they clearly don’t. According to their website they were “Founded in 1922 in a townhouse at 1767 P Street, to promote and protect the interests of the residents.” What they forget and people should understand is they are a very small membership organization

and don’t speak for the many thousands of people who live in Dupont. Over the years they continue to fight any change to the neighborhood managing to nearly destroy the 17th Street business corridor. They regularly cost business owners thousands of dollars by fighting them as they have done to JR.’s and Hank’s Oyster Bar. They supported the liquor license moratorium for years, clearly hurting the neighborhood. Now they again support a small group of people fighting the St. Thomas Parish project on Church Street as the parish tries to build on property they own to support a growing congregation. DCCA sided with a group of residents on Church Street who made false claims suggesting it was a dying congregation hoping all along the project would fail. A church that has been a good neighbor on the block since 1899. A church that suffered an arson fire in 1970 yet stayed and allowed the community to use its land as a park since then. Many in the community and on Church Street worked with St. Thomas and its developer in a collegial way. There were many meetings with the community, a number of which I attended in the church as I live only a block away. They agreed to scale back the original plans for the projE DIT OR IA L C A R T OON

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ect, keep the Church Street side of the old building façade and make it into the entrance to the apartments. They agreed to set-backs on various levels of the building to make it more compatible with the street and to many other requests the community made, including some green space facing 18th street in front of the new church entrance. But this wasn’t enough for the DCCA. It is fairly clear much of the money, though they haven’t given an accounting, for a lawsuit to stop the building came from the DCCA, which often pursues an angry anti-building, anti-business agenda. The current president of the DCCA is used to suing regarding projects having done it for the Nader-funded Library Renaissance Project, which blocked the West End Library and Hine school projects for a year, only to eventually lose. This project on Church Street will get built, one way or another. It already mostly is. The variance fight is over a few feet in the back, on the alley that will not really affect the quality of life for anyone. It seems once again the DCCA is using membership dues to pursue an angry anti-building agenda. In the case of the church project, DCCA leaders turned down a settlement offer never bringing it back to either their membership or the community for discussion. They’re clearly not acting in the best interests of the neighborhood. So now they have gotten an order from the Court of Appeals, which doesn’t end the nearly built project but resulted in a stop work order. As of Friday night the stop work order was lifted on the church but not the apartments. They claim that Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) didn’t take everything into consideration when giving the go-ahead to a variance needed for the building. The court is demanding more extensive analysis and perhaps that’s right on the law. But it is wrong for the neighborhood since we know this building will eventually be finished. In the interim, the mess on Church Street and 18th Street and in the alley behind the homes on P Street continues. There is a possibility all this could cause the church to go bankrupt, hurting the entire congregation. As a resident of the community, I find it offensive that a few are hurting many of our own neighbors who for years have worshipped there and are part of the wonderful and diverse Dupont community.

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Love songs re-imagined as LGBT standards ‘Universal Love’ arrives in time for Pride season, June weddings

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

“Birds do it, bees do it/Even educated ﬂeas do it,” enthused Cole Porter, in his 1928 hit “Let’s do it,” “...let’s fall in love.” Ninety years later, hetero or LGBTQ, following Porter’s exhortation, we’re still, madly, exuberantly, falling in love. Nothing celebrates and nourishes love and romance more than music – from Beatles tunes to soul classics to Broadway musical standards. What couple hasn’t spoken of “our song?” I felt the ping of youthful ﬁrst love, when after hearing Van Morrison sing “Brown Eyed Girl,” the girl I was with told me, “you’re my brown eyed girl.”

Yet, many of us who are queer often feel disconnected when listening to songs. Frequently, the music we hear – whether contemporary pop, classic rock or showbiz tunes — is addressed primarily to a hetero audience. Love songs to women are sung by men. Women sing love songs to men. Artists, even some queer artists, often use the pronoun “you” rather than a same-sex pronoun in a song. Once, a woman and I heard Van Morrison sing “Crazy Love.” It’s a fab song! I love Van the Man! But, it was surreal for us, two women on a date, to hear a guy, sing “she give me love, love, love, love, crazy love.” Though, lovely, something gets lost in translation, when you encounter this disconnect. In the age of marriage equality, where are the queer-friendly songs – the ones you can dance to without being a pronoun contortionist? Don’t despair! Love conquers all. As Bob Dylan memorably sang, “The Times They Are a-Changin.” Just in time for spring, wedding and Pride season, a new EP “Universal Love -Wedding Songs Reimagined” has been released. The LGBTQ-friendly album features six queer and straight artists covering popular standards. MGM Resorts International funded the album of same-sex wedding anthems. Between

20 to 30 percent of the nuptials at MGM’s 15 hotels in Las Vegas are gay weddings, MGM International Resorts chief executive Jim Murren told The New York Times. In a nod to how LGBTQ-sympatico the cultural landscape has become, all of the songs’ publishers gave permission for the music’s lyrics to be changed on “Universal Love.” Most indicative of the changing times, on “Universal Love,” Dylan who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016 for his iconic lyrics, sings a queer version of the 1929 Great American Songbook standard “She’s Funny That Way.” Some of us Dylan aﬁcionados are a bit cynical because he has just come out with a collection of whiskeys called Heaven’s Door. Yet, props to Dylan, for his work on this album. In a nod to queer love, Dylan records the standard as “He’s Funny That Way.” Dylan jumped at the chance to be a part of “Universal Love,” Rob Kaplan, the album’s producer told The New York Times. “It wasn’t just ‘yes, I’ll do this,’...It was ‘hey, I have an idea for a song.” Valerie June’s version of queer playwright, songwriter, and actor Noel Coward’s 1932 song “Mad About the Boy” takes you back to the days of camp and big bands. Then, a gay version of the song written by Coward was never performed because of homophobia.

It’s a pleasure to hear June, a woman, sing this standard as “Mad About the Girl.” On the album, Kesha does a knock-out rendition of Janis Joplin’s “I Need a Man to Love” (recast as “I Need a Woman to Love). Kele Okereke beautifully recasts the Temptations classic “My Girl” as “My Guy,” and St. Vincent does a kick-ass version of the Crystals’ 1963 hit “And Then He Kissed Me” (morphed into “And Then She Kissed Me”). For the EP, Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie revamps the Beatles’ classic “And I Love Her” as “And I Love Him.” As so often happens, the straight artists who sing in “Universal Love” became supportive of marriage equality because their queer family members or friends wanted to marry. Gibbard joined the same-sex marriage bandwagon because his sister is a lesbian. “When my sister got married, it was everything that my parents — and I — could have ever expected from a wedding ceremony and more,” Gibbard wrote in “The Daily Beast” in 2012. Another new album “Instant Love” features women singing love songs to other women. Listening to Irma Thomas sing “Crazy Love” on “Instant Love” is breathtaking. Our world is ﬁlled with problems from wars to hate to poverty. Yet, let’s take a moment to celebrate queer, “crazy” love.

O UR B US I NES S MATTER S

LGBT tipped workers need us to vote ‘no’ on June 19 D.C. Initiative 77 would outlaw tip-wage system, reduce employee incomes

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

LGBT voters in D.C. understand what’s at stake better than most. That’s due to so many of us having friends and acquaintances directly aﬀected or understanding the workplace implications through current or prior employment. It’s also the reason LGBT tipped employees and their hospitality colleagues are counting on the gay community to turn out to vote ‘no’ on ballot Initiative 77 during the city’s primary election on June 19. After all, it’s the opinion of tipped employees that should matter most and inform how we vote.

On that, they’ve been crystal clear. LGBT employees at local dining, drinking and dancing venues are also helping lead the effort to preserve the tip-wage system to protect their jobs, livelihoods and good incomes. As longtime gay bartender Dito Sevilla told reporters last week, “A massive majority of tipped servers and bartenders are extremely alarmed about their jobs and their incomes being subjected to a public vote and are strongly opposed to Initiative 77. It’s actually difficult to find a tipped worker who supports this thing – they’re like unicorns.” Sevilla is one of many tipped employees actively engaged in several ad-hoc local groups imploring voters to join bar, restaurant and nightclub staff in opposing Initiative 77. I have the privilege of assisting one of those grassroots efforts, first organized by LGBT nightlife workers and venues that has quickly grown to include the participation of a broad range of hospitality employees and establishments. The group – NO2DC77 – was formed late last month in response to the D.C. Board of Elections approval in March of a suddenly scheduled ballot initiative vote. These workers and venues launched an online info-site last week at NO2DC77.

com that you owe it to your favorite bartenders and servers to check out to learn the facts. Initiative 77, ﬁnanced by a national political special-interest group known as ROC (Restaurant Opportunities Center), has generated widespread confusion among voters. Most misleading is that the ballot initiative’s wording purports to raise the local minimum wage to $15 an hour by July 2020 – despite the fact that the D.C. Council and Mayor Bowser already enacted a law in 2016 that does exactly that. At that time, Mayor Bowser and the Council also unanimously acted to keep the tip-wage system in place after being inundated by huge numbers of tipped employees urging them to do so. What Initiative 77 will do is outlaw the tip-wage system and require employers to directly pay tipped employees the full minimum wage, converting them to hourly-wage employees. A startling number of District residents are unaware that tipped employees are already guaranteed to earn the minimum wage in any highly unusual instance the tip base-wage, also rising to $5 an hour by July 2020, and tips earned total less, and that employers are required to make up the diﬀerence. Businesses are additionally required

to ﬁle quarterly reports detailing each tipped worker’s wages to certify compliance. In reality, bar and restaurant tipped employees earn incomes well above minimum wage, typically totaling $25, $35 or more an hour. They know Initiative 77 will reduce their incomes, especially as establishments eliminate tipping and transition to a “service included” model to compensate customers for skyrocketing prices necessary to generate suﬃcient revenue to cover massive new labor costs. Tipped workers also understand a 300 percent increase in wage payments for currently tipped employees will result in job losses, reduced shifts, shorter shift hours, and the shuttering of local establishments. Even initiative-sponsoring ROC admits jobs will be lost, based on what has happened in the tiny number of places where this radical change has been adopted. Tipped worker incomes fell so far and fast following approval of a similar ballot initiative in Maine that thousands of tip-earning employees organized to successfully persuade the state legislature to overturn the measure last year. Tipped workers are asking – pleading, actually – that we support them by voting ‘no’ on Initiative 77 on June 19.

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RAYSHUN LaMARR, a Fort Washington, Md., gay man, is currently in the top 10 on ‘The Voice.’

PHOTO COURTESY NBC

Finding his ‘Voice’ Local gay man in top 10 on hit NBC show By MARIAH COOPER mcooper@washblade.com Rayshun LaMarr belted out just the ﬁrst ﬁve words of “Don’t Stop Believin’” during his blind audition on “The Voice” before judge Adam Levine slammed his button. Fellow judge Alicia Keys followed suit and before LaMarr had even gotten to the chorus he had the attention of two of the biggest names in the music industry. LaMarr, 33, originally hails from

Chapel Hill, N.C., but now lives in Fort Washington, Md. He performed in Sound Connection, an agency band that performed at weddings and corporate functions, prior to his appearance on the show. He also battled lymphatic cancer, a struggle he openly shared with viewers during his audition where he had support from his partner Alex Holmes, as well as

his mother, aunt, father and brother. He decided to join Team Adam and is now in the top 10 of the reality competition series, which airs on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on NBC. LaMarr has become a fan favorite on the show with his performances reaching millions of views on YouTube. LaMarr took a break from his busy day on set of “The Voice”

to discuss the typical day in the life of a contestant, his viral blind audition and what Levine is like behind the scenes. WASHINGTON BLADE: How did your audition for “The Voice” come about? RAYSHUN LaMARR: I auditioned for CONTINUES ON PAGE 46

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Q U E E RY : 2 0 Q U E ST I O N S F O R LA RRY MU N SE Y

PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN NUNEMAKER

By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com

LARRY MUNSEY

Baltimore-based actor Larry Munsey is no stranger to either acting or drag, two interests that come together in his current show. Munsey, a veteran of about 200 shows and former full-time actor, has played Zaza in “LaCage” and Edna in “Hairspray.” He’ll continue the tradition as Bernadette in Kensington Arts Theatre’s current production of “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.” It opens May 11 and runs through May 26 at Kensington Town Hall/Armory (3710 Mitchell St., Kensington, Md). Tickets are $19-27. Full details at katonline.org. Adapted from the 1994 ﬁlm, this musical tells the story of two drag queens and a trans woman who contract to perform a drag show at a resort in Alice Springs, Australia. As they head west from Sydney aboard their lavender bus, Priscilla, the three friends come to the forefront of a comedy of errors. “It’s the same camp as in the movie, but we have live singing on stage,” Munsey says. “They stayed true to the ﬁlm.” Munsey, who works by day as a software manager for Revolution Events, has been acting since age 20. “I love it because I get to be anyone I want to be,” the 52-year-old Gaithersburg, Md., native says. “It’s fun to create a character from scratch and have them become a reality.” Munsey is single and lives in Baltimore’s Hampden neighborhood. He enjoys theater, wine and TV in his free time.

Serving Our Community for 35 years

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How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell? I was 25 when I came out. This might sound stupid but I think I was the hardest to come out to. It was hard to let myself be who I truly was. Who’s your LGBT hero?

Ellen What’s Baltimore’s best nightspot, past or present? I loved the Hippo. I miss it. Describe your dream wedding. Being in the event business, I change my mind on that everyday. As long as the man I love is next to me nothing else matters. What non-LGBT issue are you most passionate about? Bullying What historical outcome would you change? 9-11 What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime? Prince Charles and Lady Diana’s Wedding On what do you insist? Honesty What was your last Facebook post or Tweet? Don’t remember. If your life were a book, what would the title be? “Really — All That for This?”

If science discovered a way to change sexual orientation, what would you do? Nothing. I am perfect the way I am! What do you believe in beyond the physical world? God What’s your advice for LGBT movement leaders? Stay strong and keep moving forward. We aren’t done yet. What would you walk across hot coals for? Wine What LGBT stereotype annoys you most? I don’t have one. We are all diﬀerent and that’s great. What’s your favorite LGBT movie? “The Big Eden.” I love it so much. What’s the most overrated social custom? Wearing clothes. What trophy or prize do you most covet? My parents’ respect. What do you wish you’d known at 18? That it really does get better. Why Baltimore? For work. That is the only reason. If I had it my way I would be on a beach somewhere.

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ZooFari is May 17

PHOTO COURTESY AMERICAN POPS ORCHESTRA

Friends of the National Zoo hosts ZooFari: Dine for Wildlife, a fundraiser for conservation work, at the Smithsonian National Zoo (3001 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) on Thursday, May 17 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. There will be complimentary food tastings, beer and wine as well as a silent auction with animal-themed items. DJ Chef will spin tracks and prepare bites. Dance band D.C. Fusion and violinist Ben Hoyt will perform. Guests will have after-hours access to the Small Mammal House and the Reptile Discovery Center. Tickets are $160 for Friends of the National Zoo members and $200 for non-members. For more details, visit fonz.org/zoofari.

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The American Pops Orchestra presents “Let’s Misbehave: Cole Porter After Dark,” led by gay maestro Luke Frazier, at Arena Stage’s Mead Center for American Theater (1101 6th St., S.W.) on Saturday, May 19 at 8 p.m. The performance will include covers of classic songs by Porter including “Anything Goes,” “So in Love,” “You’re the Top” and “Love for Sale.” Betty Who, Liz Callaway, Ali Ewoldt, Vishal Vaidya and Mo Rocca will give guest performances. Kelly Crandall D’Amboise directs the show. Tickets range from $20-110. For more information, visit theamericanpops.org.

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Cole Porter tribute show features gay maestro

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Claudettes plan local album release party The Claudettes host their album release party at Hill Country (410 7th St., N.W.) on Thursday, May 17 at 9 p.m. The blues/rockabilly group consists of out bassist/singer Zach Verdoorn, vocalist Berit Ulseth, pianist Johnny Iguana and vocalist/drummer Matt Torre. The show celebrates the release of their latest album “Dance Scandal At the Gymnasium,” which was released in March. Tickets are $12. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. For more details, visit hillcountry.com.

Washington Blade hosts its 11th annual Blade Rehoboth Summer Kickoﬀ at Blue Moon (35 Baltimore Av., Rehoboth Beach, Del.) on Friday, May 18 from 5-7 p.m. Attendees will receive a drink wristband and entry into a drawing for prizes. Admission is free but there is a suggested $10 donation for the Blade Foundation. The foundation funds journalism projects for the LGBT community and other underrepresented communities and creates scholarships for LGBT journalists. For more information, visit facebook. com/washingtonblade.

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Last year’s Capital Trans Pride.

Trans Pride is next weekend Main event is Saturday at Foundry and Stead Park By JOEY DiGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com Capital Trans Pride is both inside and out this year. Based on feedback from previous years, organizers this year have designed Saturday’s main event for attendees to be able to float back and forth between Foundry United Methodist Church, where there will be exhibits and workshops, and nearby Stead Park, where entertainment and booths will be set up. “We’re hoping that creates some visibility in the park,” says Holly Goldmann, a long-time Capital Pride board member and Trans Pride organizer. “It’s in a safe neighborhood and we’re not closing the park off so we’re excited about that. Ten years ago, people were still a little scared to attend something outdoors but we’ve now reached a point where we can be visible.” A networking happy hour will be held on Saturday at 5 p.m. at Studio Theatre. On Sunday, May 20, a spiritual service will be held at 2 p.m. at New Hope Baptist United Church in Christ and at 8 p.m. that night, the Oscar-winning film “A Fantastic Woman” will be screened at Stead Park. About 25 trans-supportive organizations will provide services and opportunities at the main event at Foundry Saturday. The keynote speaker (also at Foundry) will be Tiq Milan, a trans man who is a spokesperson for GLAAD as well as a speaker, activist and journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, Rolling Stone and other highprofile outlets. The time is TBD. “We are incredibly excited to produce our 11th annual Capital Trans Pride in the national capital region, with the goal of increasing trans visibility while striving for equality in the public and legal arenas,” said Bianca Rey, Chair, Capital Trans Pride, in a statement. “As we continue to expand trans rights and struggle openly with opposition, this gathering becomes more empowering and has an increasingly greater impact each year. The entire LGBTQ-plus community working together is critical to securing full

and lasting equality.” Confirmed workshops for Capital Trans Pride include: “Tell Your Story to Change the World,” “Gender Queer 101: a Panel Discussion,” “Name and Gender Change Clinic,” “Improving Wellness in the Trans-Community, Creating a Plan for Washington,” “Transgender Health Services at Kaiser Permanente,” “Resume Writing,” “Introduction to Government Consulting,” ”Uplifting the Download Lover,” “Transgender Military Service in the Trump Era,” “PrEP and Trans Bodies” and “Dance Your Story.” About 600-650 attended last year throughout the day. Organizers say the event has grown about 25 percent each year the past few years. About 12 folks are on the planning committee which stays in touch year round to plan each year’s event. Another group, We the People, has named this month “May Is? All About Trans,” but it’s a separate event even though both were started by SaVanna Wanzer, who still helps with Trans Pride. “There’s zero competition,” Goldmann says. “We’re sponsoring and helping each other as much as we can.” Kyara Cooper, a local trans woman who attended Trans Pride for the first time last year, says it’s a powerful experience. “It was marvelous,” she says. “There wasn’t a dull moment. It was very empowering and I think people got something valuable from it.” She says local trans folks and allies who’ve never attended “should definitely give it a try.” Full details are under the Trans Pride tag at capitalpride.org. CAPITAL TRANS PRIDE May 19-20 Saturday 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Foundry United Methodist Church 1500 16th St., N.W. and simultaneously at Stead Park 1625 P St., N.W. Networking Happy Hour at Studio Theatre 5 p.m. 1501 14th St., N.W. Sunday service at New Hope Baptist United Churth of Christ 309 E St., N.W. ‘A Fantastic Woman’ screening 8 p.m. at Stead Park capitalpride.org

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Una gran opción para nosotras La mejor opción para mí #PrEPpledge Las personas transgénero que se preocupan por su futuro, prometen protegerse. Ellas han elegido PrEP. PrEP previene la infección con el Virus de la Inmunodeficiencia Humana (VIH)

PrEP o profilaxis pre-exposición es un régimen de pastillas diarias aprobado por la Administración de Alimentos y Medicamentos (FDA) que puede prevenir el VIH. Cuando se toma a diario, esta pastilla es segura y tiene una efectividad de más del 90% en la prevención contra el VIH. La administración encargada de VIH/SIDA, hepatitis, enfermedades de transmisión sexual y tuberculosis (HAHSTA), parte del Departamento de Salud (DOH), está lanzando la campaña “Pledge to be PrEPared”. Una campaña que fue creada en directa colaboración con la comunidad transgénero latina de Washington D. C. para educar a la comunidad acerca de la importancia de tomar PrEP. Por su salud y su futuro, al igual que el de su pareja, prometa protegerse. Tome control de su vida sexual, y hable con su médico acerca de sus temores o si tiene preguntas acerca de PrEP y de cómo obtenerla.

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Únase a las más de 2,500 personas en Washington D. C. que ya la están tomando, y que pueden dar testimonio de los resultados que han obtenido. Elija PrEP.

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LatinaTransgender_PrEP_Advertorial_19.5x11.5.indd All Pages

5/8/18 10:48 AM

Únase a las más de 2,500 personas en Washington D. C. que ya la están tomando, y que pueden dar testimonio de los resultados que han obtenido. Elija PrEP.

PrEP no solo es una pastilla. PrEP significa prevención. PrEP es tener el poder de evitar contraer el VIH. PrEP es mantener una vida sexual saludable.

Para obtener mayor información, visite #PrEPpledge, PrEPpledge.com/latina o cdc.gov/hiv/risk/prep/index.html

PrEP es una pastilla que ayuda a prevenir el VIH. Obtén más información en PrEPpledge.com Pregúntale a tu médico. Llamar 202-741-7692

LatinaTransgender_PrEP_Advertorial_19.5x11.5.indd All Pages

5/8/18 10:48 AM

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

30 • MAY 11, 2018

A RT S & CU LT U RE

This Week in the Arts provided by CultureCapital.com DANCE

Saint Joan May 12-Jun 10. Folger Theatre. folger.edu.

The martyred heroine of France fought and defeated the besieging English at Orléans, was captured and taken prisoner in Burgundy, and put on trial and burned at the stake—all by the age of nineteen. Depicted as neither witch, saint, nor madwoman in Shaw’s compelling story, Joan of Arc is but an illiterate farm girl whose focus on the individual rocks the church and state.

Michael Feinstein May 12. Strathmore. strathmore.org.

Strathmore celebrates the culmination of a yearlong artistic collaboration with Michael Feinstein featuring guest performers handpicked as tomorrow’s torchbearers.

The Barber of Seville Thru May 19. Washington National Opera at Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

“Figaro! Figaro! Fiiigarooo!” Can the sharp-witted barber of Seville help Count Almaviva woo the beautiful Rosina away from a bumbling doctor? A stellar cast joins this WNO revival of Rossini’s delightful comedy--one of the most beloved opera masterpieces of all time, boasting uproarious laughs and sensational music in equal measure.

Lois Dodd & Colleen Cox Two Painters: A Visual Dialogue Thru May 25. gallery neptune & brown. galleryneptunebrown.com.

Two Painters: A Visual Dialogue is the ﬁrst exhibition which places Dodd and Cox in conversation—as teacher and student at Brooklyn College during the 1990s. Both practitioners of ‘deep observation’ of their surroundings, these artists employ similar artistic techniques as they explore the formal and abstract elements of color, shape, and light of still life objects and landscapes. PHOTO COURTESY OF FOLGER THEATRE

THEATRE Rob Lowe: Stories I Only Tell My Friends. May 11. Strathmore. strathmore.org. The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant. May 16-May 17. Shear Madness. Thru Sep 30. Kennedy Center. kennedycenter.org. Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies. Thru Jun 3. Mosaic Theater Company. Atlas. mosaictheater.org. Rite of Spring. Thru May 27. Pointless Theatre. Dance Loft on 14. pointlesstheatre.com. WIT Road Show: Interplay. Thru Jun 17. DC Arts Center (DCAC).

dcartscenter.org. The Wiz. Thru May 12. One Destiny. Thru May 17. Ford’s Theatre. fords.org. The Undeniable Sound of Right Now. Thru ay 27. Keegan Theatre. keegantheatre.com. The Crucible. Thru May 20. The Invisible Hand. Thru Jun 10. Olney Theatre. olneytheatre.org. Girlfriend. Thru Jun 10. Signature Theatre. sigtheatre.org. Vietgone. Thru May 20. The Remains. May 16-Jun 17. Studio Theatre. studiotheatre.org. Waitress. May 15-Jun 3. National Theatre. thenationaldc.org.

Aymée Nuviola with special guest Dr. Ed Calle. May 13. Malpaso Dance Company. May 11-May 12. Compañía Irene Rodríguez. May 15. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org. Dance Metro DC. May 11-May 12. Dance Place. danceplace.org. Royal Opera House: Bernstein Centenary. May 13-May 14. Old Greenbelt Theatre. greenbelttheatre.org. NextLOOK: alight dance theater: Faerie. May 11. The Clarice at Joe’s Movement Emporium. theclarice.umd.edu.

MUSIC Sara Curtin | Ross & Nikhil | Malik Davage. May 17. DCCAH at National Mall. dcarts.dc.gov. Chelsey Green & The Green Project. May 12. Washington Performing Arts at Sixth & I. washingtonperformingarts.org. Evgeny Kissin, piano. May 16. Washington Performing Arts at Kennedy Center. washingtonperformingarts.org. Zule Guerrra & Quinteto Blues de Habana. May 11. Piano Marathon featuring Aldo López-Gavilán and Jorge Luis Pacheco. May 12. Haydée Milanés & Trio with guest artist Pablo Milanés. May 16. La Reyna y La Real. May 17. Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org. From Sea to Shining Sea. May 13. Capital City Symphony at Atlas. capitalcitysymphony.org. World Music. May 11. BlackRock. blackrockcenter.org. Elder conducts Vaughan Williams’s ‘Pastoral Symphony’ / Ravel’s Ma mère l’oye. Thru May 12. Noseda conducts Variations on Bach / Brahms’s Fourth Symphony / Ehnes plays Berg. May 17-May 19. NSO at Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org. Candide. Thru May 26. WNO at Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org. Ranky Tanky. May 13. National Gallery of Art. nga.gov. Piano and Violin Recital. May 13. Potter Violins. pottersviolins.com. Spring and Swing. May 16. Woodrow Wilson House. woodrowwilsonhouse.org.

MUSEUMS Folger Shakespeare Library. Beyond Words: Book Illustration in the Age of Shakespeare. Thru Jun 3. folger.edu. Dumbarton Oaks. Outside/IN: Martha

Jackson Jarvis at Dumbarton Oaks. Thru Aug 19. doaks.org. Kreeger Museum. Reinstallation of the Permanent Collection. Thru Dec 31. kreegermuseum.org. Library of Congress. Drawn to Purpose. Thru Oct 20. loc.gov. National Archives. Remembering Vietnam. Thru Jan 6. archivesfoundation.org. National Gallery of Art. Outliers and American Vanguard Art. Thru May 13. nga.gov. National Museum of Women in the Arts. Women House. Thru May 28. Hung Liu In Print. Thru Jul 8. nmwa.org. Smithsonian Anacostia Museum. A Right to the City. Thru Apr 20. anacostia.si.edu. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian. One Life: Sylvia Plath. Thru May 20. npg.si.edu.

GALLERIES Strathmore. Jennifer Kahn Barlow. Thru Dec 1. strathmore.org. DC Arts Center (DCAC). Queer(ed) Performativity. Thru May 20. dcartscenter.org. District Architecture Center. reBirth::Washington DC 50 Years after 1968. Thru Jun 1. aiadac.com. Gallery Underground. ‘’Hot/Cool’’ National Juried Show. Thru May 25. arlingtonartistsalliance.org. Glen Echo Park. A Fresh Palette: New Yellow Barn Faculty. Thru May 28. Design in Clay 2018. Thru May 28. glenechopark.org. Metro Micro Gallery. Ecdysis Harmonics a site speciﬁc installation by Dawn Whitmore. Thru May 17. metromicrogallery.com. Publick Playhouse. Katherine Hart. Thru Jun 23. arts.pgparks.com. The Art League. Deborah Conn: ‘’A Sense Of Herself’’. Thru Jun 3. theartleague.org. Waverly Street Gallery. Waverly Street Gallery 25th Anniversary Arts Celebration Show. Thru Jun 2. waverlystreetgallery.com. Zenith Gallery. What’s Real To You?. Thru May 12. Journeys, Memories, and Dreams for the Future. May 16-Jun 23. zenithgallery.com.

AND MORE... Hill Center. Brunch & Bubbly: Mother’s Day Brunch!. May 13. Dinner on a Dime: Chicken Coconut Curry. May 17. hillcenterdc.org. The Secret Life of Daydreams. Lady Camelia. Mother’s Day Tea. May 13. secretdaydreams.com.

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WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

3 2 • MA Y 1 1 , 2 0 1 8

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 Reel Affirmations screens “Water in a Broken Glass” at Human Rights Campaign (1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) tonight from 7-10 p.m. The film, written and directed by Jamelle Williams-Thomas, tells the story of a successful artist who finds herself in a love triangle with a man and a woman. Rayceen Pendarvis hosts the screening. VIP tickets are $25 and include VIP seating, one complimentary cocktail, beer or wine, movie candy or popcorn. General admission tickets are $12. For more details, visit thedccenter. org/waterinabrokenglass. Signature Theatre (4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington, Va.) hosts Pride Night for the play “Girlfriend,” a play about two high school boys who fall in love for the first time during the summer. Tickets range from $98-196. For more information, visit sigtheatre.org. Women in Their 20s and 30s, a social discussion group for LBT and all women interested in women, meets today at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) from 8-9:30 p.m. For details, visit thedccenter.org.

SATURDAY, MAY 12 Werq, a gay dance party, is at Cobalt (1639 R St., N.W.) tonight from 10 p.m.-3 a.m. DJ J Warren and DJ Steve Sidewalk will spin tracks all night. Tickets are $20 in cash at the door. For more information, visit facebook.com/werq-syn. Washington Improv Theater hosts a drag brunch fundraiser featuring the comedy troupe Ugh at 18th & U Duplex Diner (2004 18th St., N.W.) today from 1-4 p.m. Tickets are $45 and includes one select brunch entrée, one champagne cocktail or glass of Pinot Grigio and a donation to Washington Improv Theater. Performers will include Febreze, Kiana,, Regyna, Vicki, Bryce Slinger, Darnell Eaton, Anne G. O’Plasty and more. Brent Wingate hosts the event. DJ Khelan Bhatia will play music all day. Drink specials run from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. For more details, visit facebook.com/ughcomedy. Uproar Lounge & Restaurant (639 Florida Ave., N.W.) presents Nicks Flix, a Stevie Nicks tribute night, tonight from 10 p.m.-2 a.m. DJ Travis Island will play Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac music all night. Nicks-inspired attire encouraged. For more information, visit facebook. com/uproarloungedc. Pride Fund to End Gun Violence hosts its Pride Fund Ride, a charity ride, kicking oﬀ at Zengo Logan Circle (1508 14th St., N.W.) today from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 and includes a water bottle and rental shoes. For more details, visit

PHOTO BY JOAN MARCUS; COURTESY NATIONAL THEATRE

DESI OAKLEY, CHARITY ANGEL DAWSON and LENNE KLINGAMAN in ‘Waitress.’ It opens Tuesday at National Theatre.

facebook.com/pridefund. The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts Universal Pride Meeting today from 1-2:30 p.m. The group seeks to empower and educate LGBT people with disabilities. Topics of discussion include dating, intersections between LGBT people and people with disabilities and more. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

SUNDAY, MAY 13 Shi-Queeta-Lee presents “A Drag Salute to Motown Twisted, “a Mother’s Day show, at Chateau Remix (3439 Benning Rd., N.E.) tonight at 6 p.m. The divas will impersonate Motown legends such as Diana Ross, Mary Wells, the Four Tops, the Temptations, Rick James and more. Dinner is served at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $45. For more information, visit facebook. com/queetaspalace.

MONDAY, MAY 14 The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts coﬀee drop-in hours this morning from 10 a.m.-noon for the senior LGBT community. Older LGBT adults can come and enjoy complimentary coﬀee and conversation with other community members. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

TUESDAY, MAY 15 Broadway musical “Waitress” debuts at the National Theatre (1321 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) tonight at 7:30 p.m. The production features music from Grammy

nominee Sara Bareilles. Tickets range from $48-93. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit thenationaldc.org. The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts its Packing Party from 7-9 p.m. tonight. Volunteers will assemble safer sex kits to distribute to the LGBT community. For more details, visit thedccenter.org or greenlanterndc.com. The Center Bi monthly roundtable is tonight from 7-8 p.m. at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.). The group will discuss issues related to bisexuality. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 16 Prime Timers of D.C., a social group for mature gay and bisexual men, meet at Windows above Dupont Italian Kitchen (1637 17th St., N.W.) this evening at 6:30 p.m. For details, call George at 301-3950544 or visit primetimersdc.org. Bookmen D.C., an informal men’s gay literature group, discusses “From Macho to Mariposa: Gay Latino Fiction” edited by Charles Rice-Gonzalez and Charlie Vasquez at the D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) tonight at 7:30 p.m. All are welcome. For details, visit bookmendc. blogspot.com.

THURSDAY, MAY 17 The National Center for Transgender Equality presents the 2018 Trans Equality Now Awards at the Hamilton (600 14th St., N.W.) tonight from 6-9 p.m. Sarah McBride will be presented the Andy Cray Award, Valerie Jarrett will accept the Ally Award on behalf of the Obama Administration and Andrea Marra will

be presented the Julie Johnson Award. General admission tickets, which include admission and two drink tickets, are $125 presale and $150 at the door. VIP tickets, which include admission, open bar and reserved seating, are $125 presale and $200 at the door. For more details, visit ncteactionfund.org/tenawards. Lesbians Who Tech and Allies D.C. host Cocktails and Conversations at WeWork White House (1440 G St., N.W.) 6:30-8 p.m. Attendees can network and attend mentoring sessions. The event will take place during the Tech Jobs Tour D.C. stop and attendees will have access to a private cocktail lounge. The tour takes place from 5-9 p.m. and members can joint the entire night. Admission is free. For more details, visit facebook.com/ lesbianswhotech. JR.’s Bar (1519 17th St., N.W.) hosts a “RuPaul’s Drag Race” season 10 viewing party tonight at 8 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/jrsbardc. The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts its monthly poly discussion group at 7 p.m. People of all diﬀerent stages are invited to discuss polyamory and other consensual non-monogamous relationships. This event is for newcomers, established polyamorous relationships and open to all sexual orientations. For details, visit thedccenter.org. Team Rayceen presents a transgender singles mixer at the Shaw Neighborhood Library (1630 7th St., N.W.) tonight from 6-8 p.m. Rayceen Pendarvis hosts the event. Attendees who arrive by 6:30 p.m. will receive a free raﬄe ticket for a prize bag. Light refreshments will be served. Admission is free. For more information, visit teamrayceen.eventbrite.com.

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WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

34 • M A Y 11, 2018

THEATER

Budding gay love

HAPPILY EVER AFTER HAS FINALLY MET ITS MATCH.

Signature’s ‘Girlfriend’ is endearing comingof-age musical

Photo by Karli Cadel /Glimmerglass

By PATRICK FOLLIARD

Candide

Now thru May 26 | Opera House Music by Leonard Bernstein / Book Adapted from Voltaire by Hugh Wheeler in a New Version by John Caird / Lyrics by Richard Wilbur with Additional Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, John La Touche, Lillian Hellman, Dorothy Parker, and Leonard Bernstein In English with Projected English Titles Production from The Glimmerglass Festival

TICKETS ON SALE NOW! KENNEDY-CENTER.ORG | (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. Major support for WNO is provided by Jacqueline Badger Mars. David M. Rubenstein is the Presenting Underwriter of WNO. WNO acknowledges the longstanding generosity of Life Chairman Mrs. Eugene B. Casey.

WNO’s Presenting Sponsor

Additional support for Candide is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.

We never actually meet the girlfriend in “Girlfriend,” Todd Almond’s coming-of age musical making its D.C.-area premiere at Signature Theatre in a terrifically charming production staged by out director Matthew Gardiner. Yes, she’s referred to here and there, but the real story centers on ostensibly mismatched teenage boyfriends experiencing the awkward throes of first love. It’s the summer after high school graduation in small-town Nebraska circa early 1990s, and popular college -bound athlete Mike (Lukas James Miller) and Will (out actor Jimmy Mavrikes), an unfocussed but clever outcast, are biding their time before entering into the next chapter of young adulthood. An unlikely pair drawn together by a love for a certain alt rock album (cassette played on boom box), they start hanging out as friends but slowly, and awkwardly, the relationship moves toward romance. Theirs is not the most conducive environment for a budding same-sex fling, but the guys make the most of it, spending many summer nights at the local drive-in repeatedly watching “Evangeline,” a comic-book movie about a superhero nun. Initially, there’s very little talking, or touching. They’re stiff and uncomfortable. But they begin to relax, and when the pair begin running errands together, it’s clear that things are getting a little serious. “Girlfriend” unfolds over one summer of phone calls, music, movies and driving around. Misha Kachman’s set is a strip of bright green Astroturf with generic teen bedrooms on either side. In the center are two chairs that serve as Mike’s car. Miller and Mavrikes, young actors with big futures ahead of them, give pitchperfect performances. It’s fascinating to watch Miller’s popular, prom king runner-up Mike grappling with his growing attraction to outsider Will. And it’s equally interesting to see how self-deprecating and lonely, yet self-aware Will responds when his good-looking, overachiever crush expresses interest in him. Almond’s script rings true to life, touching and funny, but never overdone. He captures the essence of first love and all that that entails, especially for two gay boys who must remain guarded; revealing their authentic selves could prove dangerous. Guided

PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER MUELLER; COURTESY SIGNATURE

LUKAS JAMES MILLER, left, as Mike and JIMMY MAVRIKES as Will in ‘Girlfriend.’

by director Gardiner, the actors share a combustive chemistry that makes the production that much more memorable. The 90-minute musical was inspired by Matthew Sweet’s 1991 alternativerock album also titled “Girlfriend” which includes pop ballads like “I’ve Been Waiting” and “Looking at the Sun.” Sweet wrote the music when he and his wife were ending their marriage, yet Almond smartly uses these very same songs to tell the story of two young guys at the very onset of their romance. Mavrikes and Miller, both excellent performers, are backed by a powerful onstage fourwoman band. Sweet’s songs are filled with youth, romance and heartbreak. Almond adds the angsty feelings and all the excitement and butterflies surrounding your first boyfriend or girlfriend. As gay teenagers in the Midwest, Will and Mike’s finding each other feels completely natural yet it’s also a monumental, seismic experience. While their getting together isn’t entirely without challenges, they manage to create a summer that under other circumstances would have been a definitely lonelier and possibly grim couple of months. “Girlfriend” is sure to resonate for anyone who’s fallen in love, but particularly gay audiences. Let’s hope the show’s run is extended through the end of June in celebration of Pride month. ‘GIRLFRIEND’ Through June 10 Signature Theatre 4200 Campbell Ave, Arlington $40-98. 703-820-9771 Sigtheatre.org

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Ray Gernhart: 703-824-4731 Ray@TalktoRay.com www.talktoray.com John Pionke: 703-403-9885 jmponk@gmail.com Copyright (c) 2014 Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc. Information is believed to be accurate, but should not be relied upon without verification. Accuracy of square footage, lot size and other information is not guaranteed. Each office independently owned and operated.

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38 • M A Y 11, 2018

BO O KS

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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.

Wash your hands thoroughly. That’s good advice, no matter where you are. At the risk of sounding germophobic, you never know what lurked on that which you just touched. Stay healthy, keep clean, be tidy and wash your hands because, as you’ll see in the new book “The Trauma Cleaner” by Sarah Krasnostein, messy life, messy house. The woman didn’t seem very old, but it was really hard to tell. She wouldn’t let anyone past her screen door — as if the stench wasn’t enough to keep most people away. Hoarder situations like that, suicides, undiscovered deaths and accidents are business as usual for Sandra Pankhurst, 60-something owner of Specialized Trauma Cleaning in Australia. But as author Sarah Krasnostein learned when she befriended her, Pankhurst extends to those clients compassion and nothing less. There was ample reason for that. Although many of the questions Krasnostein asked Pankhurst were waved away with claims of disremembering, it’s true that Pankhurst was born a boy, raised as a boy, became a man, married a woman and fathered two sons. But “Peter,” as Krasnostein pseudonymously calls Pankhurst then, was hiding a part of himself so soon after his youngest son’s birth, he left his family to live as a woman. Though “her reality is as conflicted as it is real,” Pankhurst told Krasnostein tales of being a sex worker and a madam. Dates and locales may’ve been incorrect and names forgotten, but it’s also true that Pankhurst eventually fully transitioned and continued to work in the sex industry until she was raped and almost lost her life. She fell in love, fell out of love, fell in love again, married an older man and divorced. It was because of her ex that Pankhurst founded STC. “As a boss,” Krasnostein says, “Sandra is, variously, mother hen … bad cop … and hanging judge.” Her business cleans up sites affected by hoarding and death and she’s matter-of-fact about bugs, vermin and smells as her staff hauls away

PHOTO COURTESY ST. MARTIN’S PRESS

pathogen-soaked furniture while ensuring that next-of-kin are treated with kindness. Says Pankhurst, “None of us know what tomorrow’s got in store.” As enjoyable as this unusual tale is, there are a few things you’ll need to know before you sweep through “The Trauma Cleaner.” First of all, in her get-to-know-you time, author Sarah Krasnostein became close friends with her subject, which is good in most cases. Here, though, Krasnostein uses familiarity to gush about her subject in a way that could make readers wince uncomfortably. She’s also exceedingly, perhaps needlessly, explicit in details of a sexual nature while largely ignoring big opportunities for enlightenment on the business side of the book. But the parts of the book that work — and they are many — come between the lines. This is a biography of cringing, compassion and somebody’s-got-to-doit resourcefulness, plus irritations, but with a breezy heft of fabrication built in. It’s so singular that it’s almost irresistible. If you can get past the gushing and the gruesome, “The Trauma Cleaner” is a book you shouldn’t wait to get your hands on. ‘THE TRAUMA CLEANER: ONE WOMAN’S EXTRAORDINARY LIFE IN THE BUSINESS OF DEATH, DECAY AND DISASTER’ By Sarah Krasnostein St. Martin’s Press $26.99 291 pages

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FI L M

M A Y 11, 2018 • 39

PHOTO COURTESY LODGE STREET FILMS

BILLIE KRISHAWN as Tonya in ‘Water in a Broken Glass.’

JUNE 6-10, 2018

Refreshing ‘Water’ Baltimore-based Reel Affirmations selection screens May 11 By BRIAN T. CARNEY For fans of powerful LGBT cinema, writer/director Jamelle Willliams-Thomas is definitely a name to remember. Her first film, “Water in a Broken Glass,” premiered last month in Baltimore and will be screened by Reel Affirmations on May 11. Based on the novel by Odessa Rose, “Water” is the story of Tonya Mims (Billie Krishawn), a talented but immature painter who is trying to find her artistic voice. She gets involved in a complicated bisexual love triangle between Malcolm (Wes Hall) and Satin (Toni Belafonte). Malcolm is a suave accountant who works for a high-tech start-up company; Satin is the passionate owner of a bookstore/gallery focused on African-American artists. Williams-Thomas tells her story with a strong cinematic style. Her sense of pacing is confident and assured; she gives the complex emotions room to breathe, but never lets the action get bogged down in sentiment. Her work with the actors is assured and nuanced. She also makes the crucial decision to put Tonya’s art front and center. Several scenes are set in Tonya’s studio and Williams-Thomas shows that creation is hard work. She also shows how both of Tonya’s relate to her art and artistic process; they are both supportive but in very different ways. The acting throughout the movie is strong. Krishawn, Hall and Belafonte are well-balanced corners of the triangle. It’s clear why Malcom and Satin are both drawn to the ardent Tonya and it’s clear why Tonya is drawn to her two very different lovers. The supporting cast is equally strong. Pioneering African-American actress

Victoria Rowell (“Eve’s Bayou,” “The Young and the Restless” and “Diagnosis Murder”) is delightful as Tonya’s powerful and vivacious Aunt Jo. Candiace Dillard’s finely honed performance as Tonya’s best friend Nikki helps keep the movie grounded. Nikki is supportive of her sometimes flighty friend, but isn’t afraid to call Tonya out when her behavior crosses the line. The movie does have some rough patches, though. Since the movie was shot on a micro-budget, there are problems with the sound. More importantly, however, there are some problems with the script. Overall, the story arc is very strong and compelling, the characters are vibrant, and the dialogue generally sounds natural and unforced. But, the screenplay tends to veer off into melodrama and self-help aphorisms. Multiple variations of lines like, “Who are you Tonya Mims?” and “You’re still afraid of what people think of you” become repetitive and almost laughable. Lines like, “I did the unthinkable” and “You ruined my life!” break the delicate mood that the talented creative team has woven. The excellent “Water in a Broken Glass” breaks new ground for LGBT and AfricanAmerican movies. In her directorial debut, Jamelle Williams-Thomas proves herself to be a talent to be reckoned with. The movie deals with bisexuality in a mature and straightforward manner. It takes art and artists seriously and shows a deep appreciation for the rich history of African-American art and music. And with the fabulous presence of Victoria Rowell and her character Aunt Jo, the movie pays tribute to the struggles and triumphs of strong African-American women. ‘WATER IN A BROKEN GLASS’ Friday, May 11 HRC Screening Room 1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) 7 and 10 p.m. thedccenter.org

AUG 15-19, 2018

SEP 5-9, 2018

IONA’S TAKE CHARGE/AGE WELL ACADEMY PRESENTS:

A Roadmap to Aging Well: A no-cost all-day workshop for LGBTQ people over 60

Ready to plan for your later years, but unsure where to start? Looking to build community with your lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer peers? Iona’s Take Charge/ Age Well Academy is offering an all-day workshop on the critical decisions you need to age well. WHAT TO EXPECT: Aging well is a goal for all of us, but how to do it is another matter. In this participatory and interactive workshop, you will: • • • • • •

Tap into the expertise of Iona social workers. Gain knowledge about the various factors that contribute to one’s aging well (and not so well). Learn about helpful aging-related resources in DC. Experience a day of community-building with members of the LGBTQ community across DC. Enjoy a free catered lunch. Leave with a personalized roadmap and next steps for aging well.

QUESTIONS? Contact Susan Messina at smessina@iona.org or (202) 895-9401. This workshop is co-sponsored by Capitol Hill Village; Cleveland & Woodley Park Village; Dupont Circle Village; Georgetown Village; Northwest Neighbors Village; Palisades Village, and Waterfront Village.

HOW TO REGISTER:

The same workshop will be offered twice. You have a choice of dates and location.

SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2018

9:30AM-4:30PM LOCATION: Westminster Presbyterian Church 400 I (Eye) St. SW, Washington, DC 20024

This workshop is free thanks to funding from the DC Office on Aging.

IONA 4125 ALBEMARLE ST NW, WASHINGTON DC 20016 202.895.9448 WWW.IONA.ORG

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

40 • M A Y 11, 2018

MU SI C

Back to the future Newly out chanteuse Janelle Monae returns with album, short film By THOM MURPHY Ever since her 2007 EP “Metropolis: Suite I (The Chase),” Janelle Monáe has brought a new and futuristic sound to the pop music scene. Her subsequent recordings have topped charts and she has starred in the films “Hidden Figures” (2016) and “Moonlight” (2016). Last month in Rolling Stone, Monáe came out as queer, addressing her previous relationships with both men and women, and used the term “pansexuality” to describe her sexual orientation. Monáe’s third album “Dirty Computer” tackles her queer sexuality, in addition to other traditionally off-limits issues. Her lyrics explore blackness, the female body and the complex relationship of sex and power. And she deals with all these issues in remarkably creative ways. It’s a fresh, original album that is as political as it is hip. Accompanying the album is a nearly 50-minute short film, or “emotion picture” as Monáe calls it. Set in a fictional dystopian future (think “Blade Runner” meets “Black Mirror”), Monáe imagines a universe where “dirty computers” — individuals who are different because of their race, gender or political beliefs — are forcibly “cleaned” by a repressive government. Various tracks from the album appear in the “emotion picture” as memories that must be erased. Only after reconnecting with her male and female love interests is Jane 57821 (Monáe’s alter ego) able to escape from the “cleansing,” demonstrating love’s power to overcome oppression. The short film makes clear that Monáe is not afraid to take a stand in the current political climate. Musically, its inclusion represents a return to the concept album and Monáe comes back to the same fictional universe of her previous albums. With its spacey, futuristic story line, “Dirty Computer” is not just a collection of songs but is a single, coherent narrative. It’s an ambitious move for a pop singer in a musical landscape where radio-edited singles dominate. That is not to say that “Dirty Computer” is not radio-ready (several singles have been released) but rather that Monáe has set higher aims for the project as a whole. The lead single “Make Me Feel” seems at least a titular nod to Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.” Many have also noted the influence of Prince, who was Monáe’s musical mentor until his untimely death, on both this track and

PHOTO COURTESY ATLANTIC

JANELLE MONAE’s new album doesn’t try to hide its Prince and Michael Jackson inﬂuences.

the album as a whole. But if anything, the song is a testament to Monáe’s voracious musical borrowings, which go far beyond any one decade, genre or style. Of the singles released from the album, “Pynk” has perhaps garnered the most media attention for its explicit depictions of the female anatomy. The song is Monáe’s answer to the Women’s March, an Eve Ensler-esque affirmation of the female body accompanied by an upbeat, futuristic groove. The track, which features Grimes, shows off Monáe’s vocal range, contrasting the delicate sounding soprano in the verse and pre-chorus with the impressive force of the chorus. But the album cannot be fully appreciated from just its singles. Many of the most fun and musically innovative tracks are spread throughout the album. Among these is “Crazy, Classic, Life,” a song about the promise of equality for all. Beginning with a quote from the Declaration of Independence from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “The American Dream” speech, Monáe affirms her identity as black queer person, singing “I’m not America’s nightmare, I’m the American dream.” “Screwed,” featuring Zoë Kravitz, is another superb track, and it encapsulates much of the discussion surrounding the #MeToo movement: “Everything is sex/ Except sex, which is power/You know power is just sex/Now ask yourself who’s screwing you.” Through both futuristic sci-fi and borrowings from her musical heritage, Monáe has produced a cogent, sophisticated product. “Dirty Computer” is a great album and it’s Monáe’s best so far. One can’t help but look forward to seeing what else her future (real or imagined) has in store.

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O UT&A B O UT

Mystery man

M A Y 11, 2018 • 41

琀栀攀

Pivotal 1972 event recalled in ‘217 Boxes’ play in New York

一䄀䬀䔀䐀夀伀䜀䄀䴀漀渀搀愀礀猀 ☀ 眀攀搀渀攀猀搀愀礀猀

By KEITH LORIA John Fryer is not a household name, though he’s considered among the five most impactful activists for LGBT civil rights and is directly at the center of one of the biggest civil rights events in the U.S. Under the guise of Dr. Henry Anonymous, the psychiatrist masqueraded himself in a mask and through a voice modulator appeared on a homosexuality panel with late gay rights pioneers Frank Kameny and Barbara Gittings at the 1972 American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting, which helped to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder. The events of what transpired are showcased in the new play “217 Boxes of Dr. Henry Anonymous,” written by Ain Gordon. Equality Forum is presenting the show at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City through May 11. “John Fryer first came on my radar about 20 years ago, but at that point, I don’t know if I fully understood his impact,” says Malcolm Lazin, executive director of the Equality Forum. “Roughly two years ago, Ain Gordon was commissioned by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania to do a play about a figure who went unrecognized and as it turns out, that’s where the 217 boxes of John Fryer’s archives are stored.” The playwright learned of Fryer’s story during a two-year residency at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania while he was searching for incidents about personal battles for public liberty, and specifically wanted to find something LGBT-related. He knew immediately this story was what he was looking for. The Equality Forum was impressed with the play and decided it was something it wanted to stage it as part of the Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting, which is being held this week in New York City as well, as it’s the 45th anniversary of the declassification. Current medical director Saul Levin is the first openly gay man to head the Association. “The reviews speak for themselves, but it’s a remarkable play about a period of time, and what’s interesting to me is that it’s also being presented in the same month that ‘Boys in the Band’ is being performed, as they are both in the same time period,” Lazin says. “One is about the impact of internal homophobia and the other is about the conditions that existed and the heroism of John Fryer in stepping forward and creating a tremendous change.” The play is about who Fryer was and

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PHOTO BY PAULA COURT

DEREK LUCI in ‘217 Boxes of Dr. Henry Anonymous.’

it’s answered through three different characters the playwright found in the 217 boxes. “Ain, who happens to be a gay man, had not previously done a play around gay subject matter. He’s known for his monologues and what he decided to do was go through those 217 boxes he found to inform him who John Fryer really was,” Lazin says. “The first of the characters was Alfred Gross (played by Derek Lucci), an early Civil Rights activist, who helped gay men who had problems with the law. He interfaced with John because very few psychiatrists would come into a court of law to discuss these things.” The second person introduced in the play is Katherine M. Luder (played by Laura Esterman), Fryer’s secretary, a spinster who worked for him from age 67-91. “One of the remarkable things you learn from her is that John was likely one of the very first psychiatrists in the country to provide psychological counseling for HIV patients who were bereaved,” Lazin says. The third character is Fryer’s father, Ercel (played by Ken Marks), and he’s there to explain his son’s upbringing and what led to him delivering this memorable speech. It’s learned Fryer was raised in rural Kentucky, became a graduate of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and was discharged from its residency in psychiatry when the truth about his homosexuality came out. Learning about this man, Lazin notes, is wildly important for the future and he’s happy the play is doing so well. “If we want to build a sustainable bridge to the future, we need to build a bridge empowered by our past, and we have that past, but we’re just not telling it,” Lazin says. “This is an opportunity to learn about that past.”

‘217 BOXES OF DR. HENRY ANONYMOUS’ Baryshnikov Arts Center, Jerome Robbins Theater 450 West 37th St., New York 7:30 p.m. nightly through May 11 For more information, visit 217boxes.com.

㠀愀洀 ⴀ 洀椀搀渀椀最栀琀

猀愀琀甀爀搀愀礀猀最爀愀戀愀 ␀㔀漀昀昀挀愀爀搀愀琀吀刀䄀䐀䔀昀愀挀攀戀漀漀欀⸀挀漀洀⼀琀栀攀挀爀攀眀挀氀甀戀

㄀㌀㈀㄀㄀㐀琀栀猀琀一圀

“ Before

I could be she I had to be me.

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June 2nd, 8pm June 3rd, 3pm

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Special guest soprano: Breanna Sinclairé

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Tickets and Groups of 10 or more, 202.293.1548

Brought to you by Presenting Sponsor

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4 2 • MA Y 1 1 , 2 0 1 8

O U T &A BO U T

Catching up with Michael Feinstein

Out crooner headlines Strathmore Gala this weekend

He’s a wonderful human being and Jason, his husband, as well. They’re a great couple and he’s a major talent. He’s one of the ﬁnest voices of our time. He’s got extraordinary range and versatility and, of course, charisma. He’s deeply gifted and just a nice person to be around.

By JOEY DiGUGLIEMO joeyd@washblade.com

BLADE: When we last spoke in 2015, you mentioned a multi-CD project you were working on but couldn’t say much about. What was that and is it still in the works? FEINSTEIN: I was working on recording the complete songs of George Gershwin, which is like 800 published songs, and that’s what I was starting to embark on. … We decided against it for various reasons. … The more we explored it, the more we realized it was more interesting as an idea than it would have been in execution. But I’m doing a Gershwin country duets album now and it’s very exciting. Right now I’m working on a track with Dolly Parton and we’re going to be doing a track soon with Brad Paisley and that’ll be tremendous fun to put together.

Great American Songbook stalwart Michael Feinstein is at the Strathmore this weekend to headline its annual Spring Gala. On Saturday night, the long-out crooner will sing along with Broadway singer Laura Osnes and several alums of the Strathmore’s artist-in-resident program. The gala is a capstone event in the Strathmore’s year-long programming partnership with Feinstein in which they’ve collaborated to “spotlight torchbearers of Great American Song.” Feinstein spoke to the Blade by phone this week from his home in Indiana. His comments have been slightly edited for length. WASHINGTON BLADE: How is 2018 treating you? MICHAEL FEINSTEIN: Really great in some ways and in other ways, not so great. I broke my nose in January and I had a hemorrhage on my vocal cord but that’s all in the past and I’m feeling hale and hearty so I like to think I got through the most dramatic part and the rest should be smooth sailing. BLADE: How did you break your nose? FEINSTEIN: I walked into an impeccably polished plate of glass. BLADE: Vocal cord stuﬀ is really scary for a singer. Are you any worse for the wear? FEINSTEIN: Evidently not. I did a symphony concert yesterday and two of my Lena Horne shows at Lincoln Center and everything seems to be full steam ahead so I’m very grateful and lucky I guess. All is good. BLADE: What do you have planned for the Strathmore? FEINSTEIN: It’s gonna be a fun night because, of course, it’s their gala and I love being associated with the Strathmore because it’s such a great venue to perform in. … The program will be with a 17-piece big band and the musical director is Tedd Firth who is one of the great jazz pianists and arrangers of our time. So it’ll be a celebration of American popular song including, of course, some Gershwin and then I’m gonna do a Sinatra medley that’s just a swinging, fun thing. Then Laura Osnes is a special guest. She’ll be doing some songs and we’ll be doing a duet together …. so it’ll be a fun, celebratory, rich musical experience I think.

PHOTO BY JULIA DURESKY; COURTESY STRATHMORE

MICHAEL FEINSTEIN says the Strathmore is one of the country’s great music halls. He’ll be there this weekend.

BLADE: Why do you work to ﬁnd young people to take up the cause of American standards? To your knowledge, does anything like that happen in other genres of music? FEINSTEIN: Well, for a number of years I’ve been mindful of the fact that any art or music only stays alive if there are audiences for it and people who are educated in it and people who bring it to the attention of others and because we live in a time when there is so little arts education in schools, it’s up to all of us who care about it to do what we can

to preserve it and bring it to the next generation. … The arts are incredibly transformative. They change our lives and it’s an essential part of what makes life livable. BLADE: Do you keep in touch with Cheyenne Jackson? Have you seen any of his TV stuﬀ? (Feinstein and Jackson released a duet album in 2014) FEINSTEIN: Yes, I am in touch with Cheyenne. We performed together about, oh, four-ﬁve months ago and he wants to do more musical performances but his acting career keeps him well occupied.

BLADE: How often do the holy grails in your genre turn up? Is it fairly uncommon? FEINSTEIN: Well things do turn up from time to time. (There are) Bing Crosby/George Gershwin demos from 1930 or 1931 that have never turned up but they might. I know of the existence of one Gershwin recording that I haven’t been able to get my hands on yet but I’m working on it. And sometimes things turn up that we didn’t even know existed, which is fun. I recently found some other Crosby recordings that were fun to discover from radio and a number of years ago, I discovered a bunch of lost Crosby tracks. Actually I’m a trustee of the Judy Garland estate and I just found about a dozen recordings of her from the 103-s that were part of her own record collection that were pretty extraordinary performances that, for the most part, have never been heard. So now the trust is ﬁguring out the best way to release them. … But it’s always thrilling to ﬁnd things like that.

■ READ THE FULL INTERVIEW AT WASHINGTONBLADE.COM STRATHMORE SPRING GALA Saturday, May 12 Michael Feinstein in concert Cocktails, 5 p.m. Three-course dinner, 6:15 Concert, 9 p.m. Gala patron tickets: $1,250 Concert only: $45-130 Music Center at Stratmore 5301 Tuckerman Lane North Bethesda, Md. strathmore.org

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

MA Y 1 1 , 2 0 1 8 • 4 3

“

Some think I should dress more like a woman. Some think I should dress more like a man.

I may not fit some ideas about gender, and I am a proud part of DC. Please treat me the same way any person would want to be treated: with courtesy and respect. Discrimination based on gender identity and expression is illegal in the District of Columbia. If you think you’ve been the target of discrimination, visit www.ohr.dc.gov or call (202) 727-4559.

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44 • MAY 11, 2018

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

The annual ‘Gay Day at the Zoo’ presented by the D.C. Center for the LGBT Community and Rainbow Families was held at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo on Sunday, May 6.

W A SH I N GTO NB LAD E.C OM

MA Y 1 1 , 2 0 1 8 • 4 5

“

I love wandering through Smithsonian museums, eating on H Street with friends, and going to shows at Howard Theatre.

I’m a transgender woman and I’m part of DC. Please treat me the way any woman would want to be treated: with courtesy and respect. Discrimination based on gender identity and expression is illegal in the District of Columbia. If you think you’ve been the target of discrimination, visit www.ohr.dc.gov or call (202) 727-4559.

OFFICE OF

GLBT AFFAIRS

Show your support! Spread word of the #TransRespect campaign by photographing this ad and sharing on Twitter.

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46 • MAY 11, 2018

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

LaMarr hopes to ‘be one of the winners who’d change the game’ because they’re on this other level that you are beneath him. He puts you on the same level as he is. He talks to you like a regular human being like he is.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23

the show about four or five times before but I never made it past the executive producers. They were always like, “Great voice, but not what we’re looking for this season.” So, this particular year I was like the auditions are coming around again and I really want to go but I have a gig coming up. I gotta pay my rent. So I can’t afford to do that and miss this gig and be behind on my rent. So I didn’t go. Maybe two days later I did an open mic at my apartment and I recorded it and posted it on the Internet. Literally, two or three days later, I get a call from this guy saying, “Hey, this is one of the producers from ‘The Voice’ would you like to audition?” Now, I thought it was a joke. We were going back and forth for about a week and a half and I didn’t believe anything until I got my plane ticket. I was like of all times this happened to be the year that I didn’t go and it happened to be the year that they reached out to me. BLADE: During your audition you revealed you battled cancer. Why was that important to share with the audience and the judges? LaMARR: I went through the whole chemo and cancer thing. I wanted to let anybody know who had gone through what I went through, or anything similar, that everything was going to be OK. That song was very important to me. I just wanted to relay the message of this is my story, this is why I chose this song, this is the song that helped me through while I was in the hospital. That’s why I took the time to tell them why I chose that song and to tell them that story. BLADE: Your blind audition blew the judges away particularly Adam Levine and Alicia Keys. What was it like being a regular person with two celebrities fighting over you? LaMARR: It was super cool. I did not expect them to turn around as fast as they did. Granted, everyone wants all the judges to turn around. But I had no clue it would be so soon. I literally sang “Just a small town girl living in a lonely world,” and it was like bam. Adam turned around and then like five seconds later Alicia turned around. I’m like, “Wow. This is crazy.” Now I’m battling thoughts of I’m super excited but I still have to maintain the song. At that point my life actually just changed right then and there. BLADE: Alicia was gunning pretty hard to get you on her team. Why did you pick Adam? LaMARR: I am 100 percent a fan of Alicia Keys and all the judges. However, Adam said something that really stuck out to me. Maybe Adam just said it at the right time and that’s what I was looking for. Adam pointed out some of the flaws

BLADE: During knockouts you sang “Fallin,” one of Alicia Keys’ biggest hits, in front of her. Did that make your performance more nerve-wracking? LaMARR: Absolutely. That particular week I had a breakdown. That was the ﬁrst and only one that I’ve had since then. Number one, why would they give me an Alicia Keys song? It’s a female song and Alicia Keys is going to be sitting in front of me. She wrote, produced and sang the song. How do I do the song and not overdo the song, not under-do the song and still have respect and integrity for the song in front of the artist and the writer? That was challenging. I was scared up until I got up on stage.

RAYSHUN LaMARR says it was nerve-wracking to sing an Alicia Keys hit in front of the singer/ judge. PHOTO COURTESY NBC

that were in my performance. He said, “I want to work with you and make you a world-class singer. I don’t just want to fill your head with all the good stuff. I want to make sure you are prepared and the best person you can be.” I wanted that. I didn’t want to go to a coach that was just going to be like, “You’re great. You can sing really well.” I wanted someone I could just grow with. I’m not saying I couldn’t grow with Alicia, but at that particular moment Adam spoke those particular words that made me want to go to him. I get that question every day. People were like, “I thought you were going to choose Alicia.” I thought I was too, honestly. I literally thought I was going to especially when she walked up on stage. There was a lot of that they didn’t show. It was really interesting. I stood up on stage for 10 minutes while they battled it out. BLADE: What’s your daily schedule in preparation for the episodes? LaMARR: First of all wardrobe, hair and makeup is always first. We wake up at the crack of dawn to go there. Yesterday, we had vocal lessons. Soon as you get your new song we go into a live rehearsal, which is filmed. We practice the song the best that we can. After that we go to dry blocking, which is pretty much on the stage giving you stage directions on where you’re going to go. After dry blocking, you may have another meeting. It all depends on what team you’re on. After your other meeting you have to go to wardrobe and get out of all the stuff you got into. We may have another meeting at the end

of the night. Today, we have an iTunes recording. After that, we come back home and we start our very early morning the next day. It’s really tough now. But I like it. It’s something that pushes me to keep going. If I’m sitting around idle, I’m like “What are we doing?” So this is pretty good for me. BLADE: How much interaction do you get with your coach? LaMARR: Now that we’re in the top 10, we get a lot of interaction. The other day we had the chance to go to one of Adam’s private studios where he recorded his ﬁrst hit album. We had one-on-one time, we got to sing for each other. We probably get to see them and talk to them two or three times a week. BLADE: What’s Adam like to work with? LaMARR: Adam is the best. He’s super cool. The way you see him on TV, he’s like that. Although he may be portrayed as an a-hole sometimes, he’s not. He’s very honest and genuine. That’s another thing that I appreciate about him. He knows what he likes. He knows what he doesn’t like and he isn’t afraid to tell you. But it’s all in love because he wants the best for you. I’m like a sponge just soaking everything up when I’m around Adam. We call him Papa Adam. He’s one of those people when you walk into the room it’s like, “Hey, what’s up Adam?” and he’s like, “What’s up Ray? Let’s do this song.” You feel comfortable. It’s not everyday you get the chance to work with somebody you’re not afraid to sing around or think that

BLADE: Former “The Voice” judge Christina Aguilera recently told Billboard she disliked filming the show because it’s “not about music” but “about making good TV moments.” What’s your experience been? LaMARR: Well, I disagree. Yes, it’s a television show and yes, we do have to capture some moments. But 90 percent of the show is about music. I’ve never experienced anything else on the show. The only time that’s about creating television moments is during our interviews. But when it comes to the music part, it’s just great. It’s actually real. This is one of the most honest and real shows I’ve ever seen or worked on before. It’s mainly about the music but the story part comes in interviews, B-roll or when you have free time and they want to get into your story. But it’s definitely still about the music. BLADE: “The Voice” is a popular show but the winners’ careers don’t take off like winners on “American Idol” or “America’s Got Talent.” Why do you think that is? LaMARR: Honestly, I have no clue. I know some of the winners are really, really good. I have noticed that some of the runners-up have been a little more successful than the winners. Not sure if that’s because winners are restricted by the contract handed out at the end of the show. If I am the winner, hopefully I’d be one of the winners that changed the game and changed that outlook on winners of “The Voice.” Even if I don’t win at this point, I’ve gotten further than I had expected to get. I am super OK with whatever happens. I’ve made so many connections. I have so many great friends that I’ve met here. It’s just the beginning for me. Whenever I do go home it’s the start of a new journey and I’m super excited about it. I’ve already gotten some gigs lined up. I’m like the happiest kid on the block.

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REALESTATE

Housing needs change as children grow Your home should transition along with your family By VALERIE M. BLAKE Since early this week, real estate agents have been trying to decide whether to hold an open house on Mother’s Day. The results, I’m sure, will be mixed. Some will avoid the weekend altogether, some will opt for Saturday visitation instead of Sunday, and still others will charge ahead, confident that Moms, Moms-to-be and Mr. Moms will be looking for homes. Consider Moms-to-be or Dads-in-waiting. Often, they have a specific timeline; they want to be in a new home before the baby comes. They tend to look for an upgrade from apartments and condominiums to houses. A key feature may include at least one other bedroom on the same level as where they sleep, so they’ll be close enough to minister to a newborn baby in the middle of the night. That townhouse with the lavish master bedroom that takes up the whole fourth floor just won’t do. Another request I hear often is for an open kitchen and adjacent family room, so the parent who cooks can keep an eye on the children while preparing the evening repast. A back yard can also be important

Young families often look for a fenced yard for kids and dogs; in later years, those same parents often downsize to a condo after the kids are grown and gone. BIGSTOCK PHOTO; COURTESY OF SATURA

to new parents as a place for children to play as they grow, and a basement bedroom and bath can be a respite for visiting grandparents or a helpful au pair. Now fast forward five-10 years. When I hear from those Moms and Dads, the first thing on their minds is usually the location and quality of schools. Since I’m not an authority on the subject, I’ll normally suggest a review of websites such as www.greatschools.com or sites run by the specific jurisdiction in which they want to live. It’s always helpful for parents to chat with school administrators, teachers and parents of other children to get the latest information on boundaries, class size and successful educational objectives. Parents of these school-aged children

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(and by now there may be more than one) will usually look toward expansion in the form of a bigger house than the one they are leaving. A detached home with more bedrooms and bathrooms may be of more interest, particularly if the move will be to a suburban area with less costly housing prices. Leisure space also becomes more important to the extended family. A fenced yard may now be necessary not only for the kids, but for the family dog, as well as a family room or lower level recreation room large enough for adults to entertain guests, for teenagers to hang out with their friends and play video games, and for the entire family to Netflix and chill. In another five-10 years, with most of the college tuition paid and an increase in disposable income, these Moms and Dads may be considering the purchase of a second home for family getaways. A beachfront bungalow may fit the bill, or maybe a lake house, a mountain cabin, or a country cottage will be more enticing. All too soon, though, many couples will have come full circle and, with the children finally out of college (or out of the basement), setting up housekeeping, and beginning families of their own, these parents may choose to downsize and rid themselves of cavernous properties, vacation homes they seldom visit anymore, and the items filling them that they have accumulated over the years.

With empty nests often comes luxury, perhaps in the form of a penthouse condominium with a panoramic view, a doorman, in-house exercise facilities, and a roof deck complete with pool and hot tub. Some couples will prefer a chalet in Jackson Hole, a floating home in Portland, a vineyard in Italy, or even a pied-à-terre in gay Paree (pun intended). Now may even be the time of life to purchase a recreational vehicle for the cost of covered parking in Georgetown (or more), to relive the wanderlust of youth before buying into a retirement community like The Villages in central Florida or the Four Seasons in Palm Springs, where you can play golf or tennis, dine in a country club setting, get a new ‘do at the salon, or sip umbrella drinks at the pool. Just as the concept of The American Family has become more diverse, however, their housing needs will be equally varied. Not everyone wants or can afford the life of the family chronicled here, but whether you have a large family, a small one, a fur family, or no family at all, you can still find your bliss. Perhaps you’ll find it at a Mother’s Day open house. VALERIE M. BLAKE is a licensed Associate Broker in D.C., Maryland and Virginia and Director of Education & Mentorship at Real Living| At Home. Call or text her at 202-246-8602, email her at Valerie@DCHomeQuest.com, or follow her on Facebook at TheRealst8ofAffairs.

A Room with a View: The story of an aging voyeur who ﬁnds himself unemployed with lots of time on his hands.

VALERIE M. BLAKE, Associate Broker, GRI, Director of Education & Mentorship Dupont Circle Ofﬁce • 202-518-8781 (o) • 202.246.8602 (c) Valerie@DCHomeQuest.com • www.DCHomeQuest.com

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COUNSELING COUNSELING FOR GAY MEN. Individual/ couple counseling w/ volunteer peer counselor. Gay Men’s Counseling Community since 1973. 202-580-8861. gaymenscounseling. org. No fees, donation requested.

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BULLETIN BOARD ATTENTION IF YOU WORKED AT CENTRAL Fuel Co., Washington DC (now known as Hess Oil) between 1962-1964, please contact Asbestos Investigator Sherry Day at (734) 878-5236 or email Sherry@ SLDinvestigations.com.

WHOLISTIC SERVICES, INC. seeking Full Time Direct Support Professionals to assist intellectually disabled adults with behavioral health complexities 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 202-832-8787.

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ENHANCE YOUR AD WITH OUR UPGRADES PICTURES BOLD TEXT LARGE TEXT COLOR AND MORE CONTACT US AT 202-747-2077 LOCKER ROOM ATTENDANTS NEEDED! The Crew Club, a gay men’s naturist gym & sauna, is now hiring Locker Room Attendants. We all scrub toilets & do heavy cleaning. You must be physically able to handle the work & have a great attitude doing it. No drunks/druggies need apply. Please call David at (202) 319-1333. from 9-5pm, to schedule an interview.

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DC / SHARE TRINIDAD, 8TH ST.NE $600 + HALF utilities, Large room, shared bath. Clean and expensive in small building. Park across st, gym nearby. 202-246-4277.

SHARE / MD ROOM FOR RENT: $600 IN MT RAINIER woman only & LGBT friendly please contact Roomrent201712@ gmail.com

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SALE / DE REHOBOTH BEACH LOTS TWO adjacent 50 x 100 lots less than mile from Poodle Beach in eclectic neighborhood. Walk or bike to town, Silver Lake, restaurants. FSBO. michaela@his.com.

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ADAMS MORGAN 2BR TOWNHOME in great location Walk to Dupont, U St, downtown. Gourmet open space kitchen; den; powder room; laundry room. Each bedroom has ensuite bathroom. Great closet space. Central air, outdoor deck, offstreet parking. Available immediately. margaretarnold7@gmail.com.

INCREDIBLE RENOVATED VICTORIAN (1892) house has 7 bedrooms, a TV room, an office, 4 working fireplaces, a gorgeous garden. Patio level has two bedroom licensed apartment that brings $2000 a month. $1,150,000. Call Karen Maury, 301-587-2322 or email for appointment KarenMaury@gmail.com — available immediately!

SALE / VA YOUNG PROFESSIONALS HEAVEN MANOR PARK HOUSE 2316 sq.ft. 3 BR, 2.5 BA CAC. Utilities included. 3300/mo. 5919 4th St NW. Walking distance to EVERYTHING! (202)486-5092

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STUNNING “OLD WILLIAMSBURG” style home for sale in historic village of Philomont. Main house - 5BR, 4FB, 1HB. Carriage house 2BR, 1FB, kitchenette, great room, and private deck. Contact: Lynn Toloczko 703.626.6669 or Lindene Patton 703.447.6555 L&L Real Estate Group LLC Weichert Realtors Great Falls, VA 22066 703.759.6300

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