Washingtonblade.com, Volume 50, Issue 21, May 24, 2019

Photo courtesy MarcWayne

ANNUAL CELEBRATION IS HERE, FEATURING OUT PERFORMER MARCWAYNE AND MUCH MORE. FULL COVERAGE BEGINS ON PAGE 28

MAY 24, 2019 • VOLUM E 50 • I S S UE 21 • WA S HI N GTONB LAD E.CO M

Weekend bus to Rehoboth & Dewey Beaches Starting Memorial day weekend and every weekend through Labor Day weekend Enjoy a weekend off or just a nice day trip to the beach Book now at www.bestbus.com

0 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

BMW of Fairfax 8427 Lee Highway | Fairfax VA 22031 (855) 527-9457

To reserve your offer or check availability,

please call 855-527-9457!

Memorial Day Sale Going On Now! More new models and body style changes than ever before in the history of the brand!

VOTED #1 CAR DEALERSHIP IN BLADE BEST OF AWARDS MANY YEARS IN A ROW!

2019 BMW X3: Up to $3500 in Rebates!

2019 BMW X2: Up to $3500 in Rebates!

2019 BMW X5: Up to $2750 in Rebates!

2019 8 SERIES

2019 X7

2019 BMW 330i: Up to $3500 in Rebates!

2020 BMW 7 series

Rebates advertised available when you finance with BMW Financials Services. Not all applicants will qualify. Offers expire 5/31/2019. Please inquire for details. Not responsible for errors or omissions.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 03

*Service offer does not apply to batteries, tires, or work completed under insurance or

VOLUME 50 ISSUE 21 ADDRESS

PO Box 53352 Washington DC 20009 PHONE

202-747-2077 E-MAIL news@washblade.com INTERNET washingtonblade.com PUBLISHED BY Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. PUBLISHER LYNNE J. BROWN lbrown@washblade.com ext. 8075 EDITORIAL EDITOR KEVIN NAFF knaff@washblade.com ext. 8088 FEATURES EDITOR JOEY DIGUGLIELMO joeyd@washblade.com ext. 8081 SR. NEWS REPORTER LOU CHIBBARO JR. lchibbaro@washblade.com ext. 8079 NEWS REPORTER CHRIS JOHNSON cjohnson@washblade.com ext. 8083 REPORTER & INTERNATIONAL NEWS EDITOR MICHAEL K. LAVERS mlavers@washblade.com POP CULTURE REPORTER MARIAH COOPER PHOTO EDITOR MICHAEL KEY mkey@washblade.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS PETER ROSENSTEIN, MARK LEE, LATEEFAH WILLIAMS, KATE CLINTON, KATHI WOLFE, RICHARD J. ROSENDALL, ERNESTO VALLE, NICOLÁS LEVY, FELIPE ALFACE, YARIEL VALDÉS, LYNARE ROBBINS, RACHAEL ESPINET, KATLEGO K. KOL-KES, VICTOR MAUNG NEWS INTERN JAMES WELLEMEYER CREATIVE DESIGN/PRODUCTION AZERCREATIVE.COM SALES & ADMINISTRATION DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING STEPHEN RUTGERS srutgers@washblade.com ext. 8077 SR. ACCT. EXECUTIVE BRIAN PITTS bpitts@washblade.com ext. 8089 ACCT. EXECUTIVE JOE HICKLING jhickling@washblade.com ext. 8094 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION PHILLIP G. ROCKSTROH prockstroh@washblade.com ext. 8092 NATIONAL ADVERTISING RIVENDELL MEDIA 212-242-6863; sales@rivendellmedia.com

Out rapper MarcWayne is part of the expansive lineup of Black Pride entertainment this weekend.

Coverage begins on Page 28.

06

Looking back:

21

50 years of the Blade

Cancer survival rates lower for lesbians, trans women

08

Comings & Goings

23

Viewpoint

10

SMYAL to open second facility for

28

Black Pride Preview

homeless LGBT youth

34

Arts & Culture

In historic first, House

38

More laughs with Leslie

approves Equality Act

40

Something about ‘Mary’

HRC close to naming

42

Summer movie mayhem

new president: sources

44

Sizzling summer TV

13

Lori Lightfoot makes history in Chicago

48

No chimichangas here

17

Victory Institute confab

56

Photos

draws 300 in Colombia

59

Greener grass and other falsehoods

Cannabis Culture

60

Classifieds

11 12

19

For distribution, contact Lynne Brown at 202-747-2077, ext. 8075. Distributed by MediaPoint, LLC All material in the Washington Blade is protected by federal copyright law and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the Washington Blade. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, writers and cartoonists published herein is neither inferred nor implied. The appearance of names or pictorial representation does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that person or persons. Although the Washington Blade is supported by many fine advertisers, we cannot accept responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Unsolicited editorial material is accepted by the Washington Blade, but the paper cannot take responsibility for its return.

The editors reserve the right to accept, reject or edit any submission. A single copy of the Washington Blade is available from authorized distribution points, to any individual within a 50-mile radius of Washington, D.C. Multiple copies are available from the Washington Blade office only. Call for rates. If you are unable to get to a convenient free distribution point, you may receive a 52-week mailed subscription for $195 per year or $5.00 per single issue.

Checks or credit card orders can be sent to Phil Rockstroh at prockstroh@ washblade.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to the Washington Blade, PO BOX 53352 Washington, DC 20009. The Washington Blade is published weekly, on Friday, by Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia, Inc. Individual Subscriptions are $195 per year for 52 issues (only $3.75 per issue mailed to you USPS). Rates for businesses/institutions are $450 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and additional mailing offices. Editorial positions of the Washington Blade are expressed in editorials and in editors’ notes as determined by the paper’s editors.

Other opinions are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Washington Blade or its staff. To submit a letter or commentary: Letters should be fewer than 400 words; commentaries should be fewer than 750 words. Submissions may be edited for content and length, and must include a name, address and phone number for verification. Send submissions by e-mail to knaff@washblade.com.

©2019 BROWN NAFF PITTS OMNIMEDIA, INC.

0 4 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

MEMORIAL DAY EVENT •

customize your furniture

enjoy 40% OFF* SPECIAL ORDER OR IN-STOCK MERCHANDISE

* Off MSRP and cannot be combined with other promotions. Does not apply to any Stressless® products.

TYSONS

703.556.3900

DC Scratcher games may continue to be sold even when all the top prizes have been claimed.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 05

FALLS CHURCH 703.820.8000

HamiltonsSofaGallery.com

CHANTILLY 703.766.8000

ROCKVILLE 301.881.3900

White Night Riots rock San Francisco 40 years ago FROM STAFF REPORTS

The May 24, 1979 issue of the Blade included a teaser for Pride weekend featuring Linda Glick on the front page. Also featured was a story about the White Night Riots in San Francisco, after a jury imposed a light sentence on Dan White for the murders of Mayor George Moscone and gay city supervisor Harvey Milk.

As the Blade reported, more than 2,000 protesters angry over the 32-month sentence marched from the Castro to City Hall where they were joined by thousands more demonstrators.

Then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein refused to appear and address the crowd.

0 6 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Thank you to our founding sponsors and partners of the Washington Blade’s 50th anniversary year.

WA S H I N G TO N D. C . – T H E W H A R F

FULL LOGO (Preferred)

WASHINGTON DC

Text Only Stack

Text Only Inline

Community Partners

For more information on getting involved with the 50th Anniversary please contact Stephen Rutgers at srutgers@washblade.com M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA D E.COM • 07

Roem’s GOP Comings & Goings opponent ‘extremely Hoover publishes ‘Girl Squad,’ will host talk on June 11 hostile’ to LGBT Virginians

By PETER ROSENSTEIN

Challenger opposes same-sex marriage, LGBT adoptions

By LOU CHIBBARO JR. LCHIBBARO@WASHBLADE.COM

KIMBERLY HOOVER Photo courtesy Hoover

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.

The Comings & Goings column also invites LGBTQ+ college students to share their successes with us. If you have been elected to a student government position, gotten an exciting internship, or are graduating and beginning your career with a great job, let us know so we can share your success.

Congratulations to Kimberly Hoover on the publication of her book “Girl Squad.”

She will hold a talk on the book at Kramerbooks on Tuesday, June 11 at 6:30 p.m.

“Girl Squad was born out of my desire to recreate the landscapes of my childhood in 1970s Texas, including the geography, but also the confines of religious beliefs, gender conformity and heterosexual norms,” Hoover said. “Taking a look at the special bonds of teenaged girl friendship set against this background is the story I wanted to tell.” This is just another feather in the cap of an accomplished woman who has given back to the LGBT community.

Hoover is a lawyer by training, a real estate entrepreneur by experience and a writer by nature. Raised in Texas, she spent three decades in D.C., where she built her career and her family. She and her wife of 20 years raised two daughters and now split their time between Miami and New York City. If you ask her wife she will tell you that in her spare time Hoover is most likely curled up with a cup of coffee and her latest political advocacy project or philanthropic endeavor.

Her experience includes more than 30 years in finance and banking, FinTech, private equity, asset management, and real estate development. She has served on the board of directors of Monument Bank in Maryland, helping grow the institution from $400 million to a $2 billion bank through a merger with Revere Bank where she is currently on the board and audit committee. She served on two additional corporate boards (including one public), and on corresponding committees including audit, compensation, finance, credit review and marketing. She was a founding board director of the first bank ever chartered by the District of Columbia. As a practicing attorney for 20 years she handled groundbreaking regulatory issues before the Federal Reserve, the FDIC and the Comptroller of the Currency, including the firstever change in control of a bank through proxy solicitation to elect a board slate.

She navigated organizational change and digital transformation, forming and providing government affairs representation to a payments system industry association. In addition she has grown a portfolio of real estate from one small property to more than 1 million square feet of residential and office property in the D.C. region. She is currently CEO of RED Multifamily, in D.C. and founder and managing partner of Allyson Capital of D.C., New York, and Miami.

Hoover has served on and chaired a number of nonprofit boards including for three years as chair of the LGBTQ Victory Fund. She is a board member of Lambda Literary, Voices for Progress and Advocates for Youth. She graduated from Duke University School of Law where she was executive editor of the Duke Law Journal and has her bachelor’s magna cum laude from Baylor University. She is admitted to the Bar in the State of New York, the District of Columbia and in Texas.

The Democratic Caucus of the Virginia House of Delegates issued a strongly worded statement this week calling the Republican opponent of Democratic House of Delegates member Danica Roem “extremely hostile” to LGBT Virginians.

In 2017, Roem became the first out transgender person in the United States to win election and be seated in a state legislature when she defeated anti-LGBT incumbent Bob Marshall (R) in the race for the 13th District House of Delegates seat in Western Prince William County and Manassas Park.

In March, attorney and self-described stay-at-home mom Kelly McGinn of Manassas Park emerged as the Republican nominee to challenge Roem in the November 2019 general election in which all members of the Virginia General Assembly will be on the ballot for re-election.

McGinn has so far not publicly commented on Roem’s status as the nation’s first transgender state legislator.

In a March 14 statement announcing her candidacy McGinn referred to the controversies surrounding Virginia’s Democratic governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general, saying, “I’m running for Delegate to be your voice for common sense leadership.”

In a May 20 statement, the House of Delegates Democratic Caucus, which acts as a political action committee or PAC to help elect Democrats to that body, disclosed past statements and positions taken by McGinn expressing strong opposition to same-sex marriage and the rights of LGBT people to adopt children.

The caucus released a copy of written public testimony that McGinn submitted in 2011 opposing a proposed state regulation change that would prohibit private adoption agencies from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, age, or family status in placing children up for adoption.

In her testimony, McGinn called the proposal “absurd” and “irrational,” stating, “although redefining family, marriage, and parenthood has become a national

obsession, one man and one woman joined in marriage remain the most successful paradigmatic family in which to place a child.”

McGinn added in her testimony that LGBT adoption was “a social experiment on our children.”

The House of Delegates Democratic Caucus, which has endorsed Roem for re-election, also disclosed a 2008 joint letter signed by McGinn and 88 other Catholics, including priests, condemning Catholic politicians who support same-sex marriage, abortion rights, and embryonic stem cell research.

“The letter explicitly compares marriage equality, stem cell research and abortion to slavery, stating, ‘The slave trade coarsened the British people, the British ruling class, and the British public life. In precisely the same way, abortion and other issues have coarsened our public life, and have poisoned American political discourse and our politics,’” the Democratic Caucus quotes the letter as saying.

The letter goes on to state, “The lack of public civility comes not from pro-lifers but from these Catholic politicians who support the right to kill innocent life in the womb and those who support defining man-woman marriage out of existence.”

According to the Democratic Caucus statement, “This year, McGinn used transphobia to explain her public opposition to ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, saying the ERA ‘does not even mention the word ‘woman’ or ‘women,’ referring only to equality of rights on account of ‘sex,’ a term which enjoyed a common understanding in 1972 – a man or a woman – but does not in 2019.’”

The caucus statement points out that McGinn appeared to reiterate her opposition to LGBT parenthood when she “liked” a tweet describing as “harmful to children” the landmark pro-LGBT bill passed earlier this year by the Virginia General Assembly known as Jacob’s Law.

08 • WA S HI N GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • LO CAL N EWS

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 09

SMYAL to open second facility for homeless LGBT youth

‘This program is one of the most comprehensive in the region in that it holistically supports a youth’s development,’ said SMYAL Executive Director SULTAN SHAKIR.

The local LGBT youth services group SMYAL announced this week that it will open a second transitional house for homeless LGBT youth in June in the city’s Anacostia neighborhood.

The new 14-bed house at 2231 Nicholson St., S.E. in Ward 8 follows the opening in January 2017 of SMYAL’s first house for homeless LGBT youth at 746 19th St., N.E. The first house has 12 beds.

Similar to the first house the new house will be operated by SMYAL through funding from the D.C. Department of Human Services, according to SMYAL spokesperson Hancie Stokes.

“SMYAL once again rises to the challenge of meeting one of the greatest unmet needs in D.C. with this second and largest expansion of our housing program,” said SMYAL Executive Director Sultan Shakir.

“This program is one of the most comprehensive in the region in that it holistically supports a youth’s development in their education, job readiness, mental health, physical health, and most importantly, taps into their inherent sense of resilience to create a path from homelessness to independence,” Shakir said in a statement.

“SMYAL continues to support D.C.’s LGBTQ youth with supportive and affirming clinical care,” said Jorge Membreno, SMYAL’s Director of Youth Housing.

“The expanded transitional housing program will build a bridge to sustainable independence through clinical case management, life skills and wellness courses, and resource referrals,” he said.

Stokes said SMYAL has praised D.C. Council member Trayon White (D-Ward 8) for advocating for an increase in city funding for LGBT homeless youth programs, including programs aimed at addressing homeless youth in Ward 8.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

LGBT ‘fallen heroes’ honored at National Police Week event

Between 150 and 200 LGBT members of law enforcement agencies were among the more than 25,000 police and law enforcement officers from throughout the U.S. and many

foreign countries who came to D.C. last week to participate in events associated with National Police Week.

Among the events LGBT law enforcement members and their families and friends attended was the annual LGBT Fallen Heroes Memorial Service, which was held May 13 at the Women in Military Service for America Memorial located in Arlington National Cemetery.

“Each year on May 13, many gather to honor the lives of those who are no longer with us and give recognition to their survivors,” according to a statement by the

LGBT Fallen Heroes Fund, the group that organizes the LGBT Fallen Heroes service.

Lt. Brett Parson of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department who oversees the department’s LGBT Liaison Unit, served as a host to the visiting LGBT law enforcement members, who, like their straight counterparts, are police officers, firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and members of the armed services.

All of them came, according the National Police Week website, to honor their comrades who have died in the line of duty. On the evening of May 13, after the LGBT Fallen Heroes Service, the 31st Annual Candlelight Vigil to honor all law enforcement members who died in the line of duty was held on the National Mall.

Among the LGBT participants in the Police Week events, “Some are out, others are not,” Parson said. “While there is time set aside to reunite and socialize, the main reason for their pilgrimage to D.C. every year is to participate in several events that mark the spirit of the solemn occasion.”

Parson noted that the LGBT Fallen Heroes Fund was founded by Det. Scott Gunn of the Anne Arundel County, Md., Police Department, now retired, and his husband Nicholas Batz.

“They organize and produce a memorial service to recognize the families and loved ones of LGBT police officers, firefighters, paramedics and EMTs, and members of the armed services who have died,” Parson said in a statement. “This service serves to treat their significant others as true family, as many times we know they have been excluded from the official events,” he said.

The group’s website says it is also raising funds for a memorial site to honor fallen LGBT law enforcement members at D.C.’s Congressional Cemetery.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

‘Lavender Scare’ to be shown in D.C. June 5

The award-winning documentary film “The Lavender Scare,” which tells the story of the little-known campaign by the federal government in the 1950s and ‘60s to identify and fire gay federal employees, will be shown for the first time in D.C. on June 5.

The 8 p.m. showing at the Avalon Theater at 5612 Connecticut Ave., N.W. will be followed by a panel discussion and a question-and-answer session with Lavender Scare filmmaker Josh Howard.

Also speaking will be gay historian David Johnson, the author of the book “Lavender Scare” on which the film is based; and former U.S. National Security Agency linguist Jamie Shoemaker, who became the first known gay NSA employee to be allowed to retain his security clearance and keep his job following an attempt by the agency to oust him.

Among those featured in the film is the late Frank Kameny, the D.C. gay rights pioneer who became the first known gay person to challenge the government’s decision to fire him for being gay in 1957.

The film has been credited with putting a human face on the consequences of a 1953

executive order by then President Dwight D. Eisenhower that declared homosexuals to be a threat to the country’s national security and unfit for government service.

Information on the availability of tickets for the one-time showing on June 5 can be obtained via theavalon.org.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

D.C. Council member seeks to decriminalize sex work

D.C. Councilmember David Grosso (I-At-Large) on Monday night appealed to the LGBT community for support for a bill he plans to reintroduce in June that would decriminalize prostitution between consenting adults in the District.

In remarks before the regularly scheduled meeting of the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club on May 20, Grosso said he plans to introduce a revised version of the bill he first introduced in October 2017 called the Reducing Criminalization to Improve Community Safety and Health Act, which died in committee last year.

The bill called for repealing all current D.C. laws that establish criminal penalties for commercial sex work engaged in by consenting adults. It would cover sex workers and their customers.

“What we definitely know is that in the District of Columbia we have watched the enforcement of the laws around the commercial sex industry and it disproportionately impacts the LGBT community,” Grosso said. “And this is something that especially impacts trans women of color who have been arrested time and time again,” he said.

Grosso emphasized that his 2017 bill and the one he will introduce this year would leave in place all laws that make it illegal to engage in human trafficking or to force or coerce someone to engage in sex work against their will. He said studies have shown that decriminalization in other countries, including in New Zealand, has resulted in significant alleviation of collateral problems associated with prostitution such as noise and littering on the streets and other neighborhood disturbances.

Council member Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), who chairs the Council’s Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, where Grosso’s bill has been sent, has said he has no immediate plans to schedule a hearing on the bill or to allow a committee vote on the measure because he doesn’t believe it has the support to pass in committee or in the full Council.

Among those who oppose the bill is Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large), who has said decriminalization of prostitution in D.C. would worsen rather than alleviate neighborhood problems he believes are caused by sex workers and their customers.

A coalition of local LGBT organizations endorsed Grosso’s bill in 2017, and officials with the groups have said they plan to join Grosso this year in urging his Council colleagues to support the legislation.

LOU CHIBBARO JR.

10 • WA S HI N GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • LO CAL N EWS

In historic first, House approves Equality Act Future of bill uncertain in GOP Senate

By CHRIS JOHNSON CJOHNSON@WASHBLADE.COM

Rep. DAVID CICILLINE (D-R.I.) speaks at a press conference for the Equality Act last week.

Washington Blade photo by Michael Key

For the first time, a chamber of Congress has approved legislation — with bipartisan support — that would amend the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ban discrimination against LGBT people.

Under the new Democratic majority elected in the mid-terms, the House approved the legislation by a vote of 236173 as gay Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.) presided over the chamber. At other times during debate, gay Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and lesbian Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) served as speaker pro tempore.

As a majority of votes for the bill became apparent and as the vote was called, Democrats and guests in House gallery applauded and cheered. Among those giving a standing ovation in the gallery were Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, and Sharon McGowan, legal director for Lambda Legal.

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), the senior openly gay member of the House and chief sponsor of the Equality Act, said the legislation would “grant full legal equality to the LGBTQ community here in America” and the vote was “truly historic.”

“The American people think it’s time to protect the LGBTQ community,” Cicilline said. “There is nothing more central to the idea of America than the guarantee of equal protection under the law for every single American.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), wearing a rainbow wristband as she spoke on the House floor, invoked both the Founding Fathers and the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in support of the Equality Act. “Fifty years after the LBGTQ Americans took to the streets outside of New York’s

Stonewall Inn to fight against harassment and hate, we take pride in the progress we have forged together,” Pelosi said. “Our Founders, in their great wisdom, wrote in our beautiful preamble – wrote of the blessings of liberty, which were to be the birthright of all Americans. To bring our nation closer to the founding promise of liberty and justice for all, we, today, pass the Equality Act and finally, fully end discrimination against LGBTQ Americans.”

The Democratic caucus was united in support of the legislation. Eight Republicans voted for the Equality Act: Reps. Susan Brooks (Ind.), Mario DiazBalart (Fla.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Will Hurd (Texas), John Katko (N.Y.), Tom Reed (N.Y.), Elise Stefanik (N.Y.) and Greg Walden (Ore.).

Pocan, holding up a photo of Pelosi swearing him in with his husband at his side, said the Equality Act ensures the LGBT non-discrimination protections enjoyed under the law in some capacity in 21 states are part of U.S. code.

The Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Housing Act to ban anti-LGBT discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodations, jury service, education, federal programs and credit.

The bill also seeks to update federal law to include sex in the list of protected classes in public accommodation in addition to expanding the definition of public accommodations to include retail stores, banks, transportation services and health care services. Further, the Equality Act would establish that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act — a 1994 law aimed at protecting religious

N AT I O NAL NE WS • MAY 24, 2019 WA SHINGTON BL A DE . COM • 11

liberty — can’t be used to enable anti-LGBT discrimination.

The House approved the Equality Act after a tumultuous 90-minute debate in which Democrats affirmed support for equality for LGBT people and Republicans stoked dubious and incorrect complaints about children being forced to have gender reassignment surgeries, imposition on women’s privacy and penalties imposed on religious organizations.

Leading the charge in stoking fears over the Equality Act was Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), who said the Equality Act violates fundamental principles of America.

“This bill harms people in so many ways: Destroying safe spaces for women, undermining women-owned businesses, intimidating the free exercise of conscience,” McClintock said.

Drawing on fears of men being able to compete as transgender women in women’s sports under the Equality Act, McClintock said, “Wherever these laws are imposed, biological males have begun to dominate women’s competition.”

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.), an antiLGBT lawmaker who last week sought to pass an amendment on the House floor banning the U.S. government from paying for transition-related care, including gender reassignment surgery for transgender people, lamented nontransgender women having to compete with transgender women in sports.

“If we continue down this track, how long will it be before nations recruit men identifying as females to out-medal other countries and ultimately uproot the ancient tradition of the Olympics?” Hartzler said.

The House voted to approve the Equality Act after rejecting by a vote of 228181 a motion to recommit introduced by Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.). The measure ostensibly sought to clarify the legislation can’t be construed to diminish Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which bars sex discrimination and fosters women’s participation in sports.

Representing Democrats in opposition to the motion to recommit was Rep. Katie Hill (D-Calif.), a bisexual member of Congress who disparaged Republicans for “having a man tell me what kind of protections I need in sports.”

“This is fear-mongering about trans women playing in sports,” Hill said.

“Are you kidding me? I don’t know if my colleagues on the other side realize that they met trans people, but they have. They definitely have, and I’ve met many, and this motion reflects nothing more than the prejudice of my colleagues.”

Prior to the vote, Rep. Ben McAdams

(D-Utah) held with Cicilline a colloquy on the House floor to clarify houses of worship could continue to restrict entrance to its membership and clergy could refuse to perform same-sex weddings despite the ban on discrimination in public accommodations in the Equality Act. In the event of litigation before the courts, the colloquy would clarify that was intent of lawmakers behind the Equality Act. “HR5 does not, nor could any legislation, supersede the First Amendment,” Cicilline said. “HR5 allows the standard set by prior civil rights law to not interfere with worship and religious practices by religious organizations.”

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), however, said that wasn’t enough in addressing concerns opponents of the Equality Act had on its impact on religious organizations, such as Catholic hospitals or adoption agencies.

“None of us, especially myself, have said anything about houses of worship,” Collins said. “We do know that’s the bridge too far. What we are concerned about in the bill is where it says any of these groups or affiliations, Catholic affiliations, Jewish affiliations, who get federal money to do other things, they would come under this, and this is where the RFRA protections is something.”

With 241 co-sponsors in the House, there was no doubt when the vote was scheduled on Friday the chamber would approve the legislation. But the bill now heads to the Republican-controlled Senate, where it faces an uphill battle. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who has called himself the “grim reaper” of legislation approved by the Democraticcontrolled House, controls the chamber.

In the miraculous event the Senate approves the Equality Act, the bill would head to the desk of President Trump, who indicated last week via a senior administration official to the Blade he opposes the legislation based on unspecified “poison pills” in the bill.

Nonetheless, LGBT rights advocates, who have fought long and hard to pass the Equality Act — an early version of which was first unveiled more than 40 years ago in 1974 — hailed the win in the House as a historic milestone.

HRC’s Griffin in a statement said House approval of the Equality Act is “a major milestone for equality and sends a powerful and profound message to LGBTQ people, especially LGBTQ youth.”

Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said in a statement the vote was “a proud triumph for the liberty of transgender people nationwide.”

HRC close to naming new president: sources

HUD proposes rule to gut trans protections at homeless shelters

U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development BEN CARSON reneged on a pledge not to undermine protections for homeless trans people seeking shelter.

Washington Blade photo by Michael Key

Human Rights Campaign President CHAD GRIFFIN is expected to depart this summer.

Washington Blade photo by Michael Key

Fresh from the successful U.S. House vote on the Equality Act, the Human Rights Campaign is close to naming a new president to lead the nation’s largest LGBT advocacy group, insiders have told the Washington Blade.

LGBT advocates said this week they’ve heard board members for the Human Rights Campaign, which began a search for the organization’s next president after Chad Griffin announced late last year he’d depart the organization, are nearing their decision. One person familiar with board deliberations said the process is “going well.”

The identities of any final candidates, however, remain under wraps and the exact timing for when HRC will announce the choice is unknown.

The process for choosing the next Human Rights Campaign president appears to be ending as the 2020 presidential campaign heats up. In addition to building support for the Equality Act in hopes of a test vote in the Senate, the next president of the organization will likely steer efforts toward backing the Democratic presidential nominee to help defeat President Trump.

After a succession of two white men — Joe Solmonese and Griffin — leading the organization, LGBT advocates have speculated the next president could — or should — be a woman or a person of color. Solmonese and Griffin oversaw groundbreaking strides in LGBT rights during their tenures at the Human Rights Campaign, but observers have said selecting another white man would be a missed opportunity to demonstrate the diversity of the LGBT community.

One name that emerged early on in LGBT circles as a possible choice was Nadine Smith, executive director of Equality Florida. However, she told the Blade this week she’s “not an applicant.”

Chris Sgro, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, told the Washington Blade via email “a decision hasn’t been made but we’re on track to have an announcement this summer.”

CHRIS JOHNSON

In an abrupt reversal after assurances that non-discrimination policies at Department of Housing & Urban Development would remain in place, the Trump administration is proposing a rule change to gut protections for transgender people seeking to stay at federally funded homeless shelters.

In a notice published Wednesday by the White House Office of Management & Budget, the administration proposes a rule in which shelter providers with sexsegregated facilities — such as bathrooms or shared sleeping quarters — “may establish a policy” consistent with state and local laws in which operators consider a range of factors when determining where to place individuals looking to stay, including “religious beliefs.”

“The proposed rule permits shelter providers to consider a range of factors in making such determinations, including privacy, safety, practical concerns, religious beliefs, any relevant considerations under civil rights and nondiscrimination authorities, the individual’s sex as reflected in official government documents, as well as the gender which a person identifies with,” the notice states.

The notice added the proposed rule “does not dictate a required basis for making determinations other than that they be consistent with an overall policy” and “continues HUD’s policy of ensuring that its programs are open to all eligible individuals and families regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.”

But the proposed rule, nonetheless, undermines a rule issued in 2016 under the Obama administration and former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, now a 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful, which clarified the LGBT non-discrimination Equal Access Rule for federally funded housing applies to homeless shelters.

The proposal contradicts assurances from current Secretary of Housing & Urban Development Ben Carson, who has stated he had no intention of undermining LGBT non-discrimination policies at HUD.

Just this week, Carson told a House committee that HUD had no plans for revising the Equal Access Rule, stating, “I’m not going to say what we will do in the future about anything. I’m not currently anticipating changing the rule.”

(HUD under Carson, however, had previously withdrawn guidance informing homeless shelters of their obligations to LGBT people seeking to stay at their facilities.

In an exchange with Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), Carson said he wouldn’t issue new guidance because LGBT advocates wouldn’t like what the Trump administration offered.)

Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, called the proposed rule “a heartless attack on some of the most vulnerable people in our society.”

“The programs impacted by this rule are life-saving for transgender people, particularly youth rejected by their families, and a lack of stable housing fuels the violence and abuse that takes the lives of many transgender people of color across the country,” Keisling said. “Secretary Carson’s actions are contrary to the mission of his Department and yet another example of tragic cruelty of this administration.”

A staggering 40 percent of homeless youth identify as LGBT, according to the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles. According to the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, one in three transgender people reported being homeless in their lifetime and one in eight were homeless in the last year.

The Washington Blade has placed a request with HUD seeking comment on how the department could issue the rule without undermining assurances to keep LGBT non-discrimination policies in place.

The public has 60 days to comment on the proposal upon its publication in the Federal Register. If the Trump administration deems the measure appropriate, the rule will then become final after an unspecified amount of time passes.

CHRIS JOHNSON

12 • WA S HI NGTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • N AT IO N AL N EWS

Lori Lightfoot makes history in Chicago

From left, Sen. PATTY MURRAY (D-Wash.), Sen. TAMMY BALDWIN (D-Wis.) and Rep. MARK POCAN (D-Wis.) Photo of Murray by Senate Democrats via Flickr; Blade photos of Baldwin and Pocan by Michael Key

LORI LIGHTFOOT Screenshot via YouTube

Lori Lightfoot made history on Monday when she was inaugurated as mayor of Chicago making her the first openly gay, black woman to hold the office.

Lightfoot, who was joined by her wife Amy Eshleman and 11-year-old daughter Vivian, delivered her inaugural speech to a crowd at Wintrust Arena.

“For years, they’ve said Chicago ain’t ready for reform. Well, get ready, because reform is here,” Lightfoot said. “I campaigned on change. You voted for change.

And I plan to deliver change to our government.”

Lightfoot also vowed to cut down on the corruption in Chicago.

“When public officials cut shady backroom deals, they get rich and the rest of us get the bill. When some people get their property taxes cut in exchange for campaign cash, they get the money and … we get the bill,” she said. “These practices have gone on here for decades. … Stopping it isn’t just in the city’s interest. It’s in the City Council’s own interest,” Lightfoot said.

Lightfoot was joined on stage by outgoing mayor Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Sens.

Richard J. Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, Rep. Jesús “Chuy” Garcia, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

MARIAH COOPER

Out mag editor threatens to quit in freelance pay dispute Out magazine editor Phillip Picardi is considering resigning amid a massive pay dispute between Pride Media and its freelance contributors.

Freelancers have been awaiting compensation for months. In February, the New York Times reported that more

than 40 writers, photographers and editors had not been paid more than $100,000 for their work. Forty-two freelancers wrote an open letter on Medium demanding Pride Media, the company that owns the LGBT publication, to “pay us now.” Contributors also took to social media to air their grievances with Pride Media under the hashtag #OutOwes.

The issues arose when Out magazine editorial work was outsourced to independent production company McCarthy LLC and Grand Editorial, a company created by former Out magazine editor Aaron Hicklin, to manage payments. In 2017, Hicklin sold Grand Editorial to McCarthy making the production deal between McCarthy and Pride Media. McCarthy says Pride Media violated its contract resulting in the company owing McCarthy thousands of dollars. Pride Media countered with a lawsuit

N ATI O NAL NE WS • MAY 24, 2019 • WA SHINGTON BL A DE . COM • 13

claiming McCarthy’s owner Evanly Schindler’s criticisms led to a loss in advertisers.

Picardi, whose career blossomed under his mentor Anna Wintour, left Condé Nast Inc.’s LGBT publication Them and took over as Out’s editor in August 2018. In January, Picardi stated that he was “unaware of the full extent of this situation” when he took over as editor.

“I entered this position unaware of the full extent of this situation but remain optimistic about and committed to its resolution. My team and I stand together in rebuilding this brand on a foundation we can all be proud of,” Picardi wrote in a tweet.

According to the Daily Beast, Picardi has threatened to leave his position if freelancers aren’t compensated.

“Phillip told Adam [Levin Pride Media CEO] that he couldn’t continue to work for him when he was exploiting queer people for their labor,” a source told the Daily Beast.

Wintour reportedly suggested Picardi “hire a lawyer,” according to a source at the Daily Beast.

Pride Media recently went through another shakeup when its CEO Nathan Coyle resigned to become head of the Ford modeling agency in April.

MARIAH COOPER

Tyler Clementi Act targets anti-LGBT bullying With the goal of seeking to draw attention to anti-LGBT bullying at colleges and universities, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) reintroduced legislation last week seeking to require higher education facilities to adopt policies against harassment.

The legislation, called the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act, is named for the gay college student who died by suicide in 2010 by throwing himself from the George Washington Bridge after he experienced cyberbullying during his first semester at Rutgers University.

“No student should have to put their wellbeing, their safety, or their life in jeopardy just to access an education, but sadly we’re seeing students around the country take drastic measures because of bullying and harassment,” Murray said in a statement.

The legislation has 21 co-sponsors in the Senate, including lesbian Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), and 47 co-sponsors in the House.

“No student should have to live in

fear of being who they are,” Baldwin said.

“Our schools should not be, and cannot be, places of discrimination, harassment, bullying, intimidation or violence.”

Pocan said in a statement the legislation is especially needed in the aftermath of the Trump administration withdrawing protections for transgender students.

“No student should be harassed or cyberbullied for who they are, or who they love,” Pocan said in a statement. “Bullying is a real and persistent danger for many LGBTQ students at our colleges and universities, but there is no federal legislation that specifically protects students from being targeted based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

According to a statement from Pocan’s office, 1 in 5 college students are victims of cyberbullying and LGBT students are nearly twice as likely to experience harassment as their peers.

The legislation seeks to prohibit anti-LGBT bullying by requiring colleges receiving federal aid to establish policies prohibiting harassment based on actual or perceived race, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth and sex stereotypes), disability or religion.

The bill requires these schools to include their anti-harassment policy in a mandated security report distributed to all students and employees annually and to all prospective students upon request. The legislation also recognizes “cyberbullying,” which is defined as harassment “undertaken through electronic messaging services, commercial mobile services, electronic communications and other technology.”

Further, the legislation authorizes a competitive grant program for institutions of higher education to foster programs to prevent student harassment; provide counseling to students who have been harassed or accused of subjecting other students to harassment.

Jane Clementi, the mother of Tyler Clementi and CEO of the Tyler Clementi Foundation, said in a statement she welcomed the reintroduction of the legislation.

“We believe all institutions of higher education should have policies to keep all their students safe,” Jane Clementi said. “Because every student deserves a positive educational experience in a safe environment free of harassment, bullying or humiliation, where they can learn, study and thrive regardless of their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or whatever else makes them special and precious; and every parent should have peace of mind that their children will be protected and free of harm while in the schools care.”

CHRIS JOHNSON

Get outside and save this summer Save Money on Peak Savings Days This summer, you can relax and save money by saving energy.

On Pepco’s Peak Savings Days, the less energy you use the more money you could save on your bill. .

Learn more at pepco.com/peak © Pepco, 2019

1 6 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Victory Institute confab draws 300 in Colombia

LGBTQ Victory Institute President ANNISE PARKER speaks at the organization’s conference in Bogotá, Colombia, on May 17.

Photo courtesy of LGBTQ Victory Institute

BOGOTÁ, Colombia — More than 300 activists and elected officials from around Latin America attended an LGBTQ Victory Institute-organized conference that took place in the Colombian capital of Bogotá from May 16-18.

Colombian Congressman Mauricio Toro, Venezuelan National Assemblywoman Tamara Adrián, Belizean Sen. Valerie Woods, Antiguan Sen. Akika Lake, Cuban National Assemblyman Luis Ángel Adán Roble, Arizona state Sen. Tony Navarrete and Colorado state Rep. Brianna Titone are among those who attended.

Claire Lucas, a prominent Democratic activist in D.C. who was previously a senior advisor at the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Office of Innovation and Development Alliances, and Juan Carlos Archila of Censurados, a group in the Colombian city of Cúcuta that provides assistance to Venezuelans with HIV/AIDS, also participated in the conference.

Caribe Afirmativo, an LGBTI advocacy group that is based in northern Colombia, helped organize the conference.

“There’s energy and excitement and frustration because the conditions in so many of these Latin American countries that are represented is so hard,” Victory Institute President Annise Parker told the Blade during a May 17 interview. “I am inspired by the bravery of the folks who are standing up in very difficult conditions.”

Peruvian Congressman Alberto de Belaunde told the Blade later in the day the conference is “a really important meeting because this is the opportunity to talk to different LGBT politicians from around Latin America.” De Belaunde also noted Latin American countries “are in different stages of the LGBT rights fight.”

The conference took place against the backdrop of Costa Rica, Ecuador and other countries’ struggles with how to implement the Inter-American Court of Human Rights’ landmark 2018 ruling that recognizes same-sex marriage and transgender rights in the Western Hemisphere. It also coincides with persistent discrimination and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity throughout the region.

The conference on May 17 opened with a moment of silence that commemorated the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. The Equality Act, which would add sexual orientation and gender identity to federal nondiscrimination laws, passed in the U.S. House of Representatives later in the day.

Archila and other Colombia-based activists with whom the Blade spoke at the conference noted Venezuela’s economic and political crisis continues to have a devastating impact on people with HIV/ AIDS who live in the country.

Adrián — a supporter of Venezuelan National Assembly President Juan Guaidó who the U.S. and dozens of other countries have recognized as the country’s interim president — in 2015 became the first openly trans woman elected to the Venezuelan National Assembly.

She told the Blade on May 18 that Venezuelans wait up to eight hours in some parts of the country to fill their cars with gasoline. Adrián also said some parts of the country that are outside of the Venezuelan capital of Caracas only have electricity for a few hours a day.

“Venezuela unfortunately … is melting down as a country,” she said.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

I N T E R NAT I O NAL NEWS • MAY 24, 2019 • WAS HI N GTONB L A DE . COM • 17

Cuban lawmaker: LGBT activists ‘paid’ to march BOGOTÁ, Colombia — A Cuban lawmaker on Saturday suggested independent activists were “paid” to organize an unsanctioned LGBTI march that took place in Havana last week.

“It’s not only religious groups, but also these so-called activists are often times paid to hold this type of event,” said Luis Ángel Adán Roble in response to questions from the Blade during a panel at an LGBTQ Victory Institute conference that is taking place in the Colombian capital of Bogotá. “I am not saying that everyone who went to it were paid or anything.”

The National Center for Sexual Education, a group directed by Mariela Castro, the daughter of former Cuban President Raúl Castro, was to have held a march in Havana on May 11 in commemoration of the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

CENESEX on May 6 announced the cancellation of the Havana march and another in the city of Camagüey that was to have taken place on Friday. Independent LGBTI activists sharply criticized the decision and announced the unsanctioned march in Havana.

State security officials in the days leading up to the unsanctioned march told independent activists not to attend it. They also prevented some of them from leaving

their homes in order to attend it and other unsanctioned IDAHOBiT marches that were scheduled to take place elsewhere in the country. This Blade reporter was barred from the country just days before the march.

Juana Mora Cedeño and Isbel Díaz Torres were among the independent activists who were detained before the Havana march that Adán said “was not authorized.”

“Like for any march in any country in the world, you have to have authorization,” he told the Blade.

Maykel González Vivero, publisher of Tremenda Nota, the Blade’s media partner in Cuba, and other independent journalists on the island, along with reporters from international news agencies, reported several people who participated in the march were arrested. Pictures and videos that were posted to social media show men in civilian clothing manhandling some of the detained protesters before they were placed into cars.

Adán told the Blade that four people were detained after he said they attacked a police officer. He also criticized independent journalists for “only showing one picture, but not showing videos of these supposed detentions.”

Mariela Castro, with whom Adán is closely aligned, continues to insist without proof that opponents of the Cuban government in Miami and elsewhere organized the unsanctioned march.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

Taiwan lawmakers approve marriage bill

Lawmakers in Taiwan on May 17, approved a bill that will extend marriage rights to same-sex couples.

Photo courtesy of Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association

Lawmakers in Taiwan late last week approved a bill that extends marriage rights to same-sex couples.

“On May 17th, 2019 in Taiwan, Love Won,” tweeted President Tsai Ing-wen after the vote. “We took a big step towards true equality, and made Taiwan a better country.”

The vote took place less than seven months after a referendum on whether to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples failed.

Taiwan’s Constitutional Court in May 2017 ruled the provision of the island’s civil code that does not “allow two persons of the same sex to create a permanent union of intimate and exclusive nature for the committed purpose of managing a life together” is unconstitutional. The landmark ruling also said same-sex couples could legally marry within two years if Taiwanese lawmakers fail to “amend or enact relevant laws” that allow them to do so.

Taiwan will become the first country in Asia to allow same-sex couples to marry.

MICHAEL K. LAVERS

1 8 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

MAY 2427

RENAISSANCE WASHINGTON DC DOWNTOWN

5.24: OPENING RECEPTION 5.25: WORKSHOPS 5.26: PRIDE PRAISE PARTY AND MUCH MORE...

DCBLACKPRIDE.ORG M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 19

OPEN TO ALL

2 0 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Saving IT Surplus from landfills since 1989!

Ci5 DELL Latitude & HP EliteBook LAPTOPS From

$149

Dell Optiplex 3010 Core i3 3.3 Ghz w/Win10

$129

$59

WIN 7 Business Class Towers & Desktops

FREE GIFT! Bring this Ad to Receive a FREE Gift with the Purchase of Any Laptop or Computer Offer Expires 6-15-19

*Full Warranty Available on Website!

Alexandria Location Woman Owned Small Business

Thank You for supporting Local Small Businesses Hours:

4926-D EISENHOWER AVE 22304

Tues - Fri 10am-7pm Sat 10-6

www.Lambroinc.com

703-370-5440 Northern Virginia Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising that launched the LGBT revolution

5 Big Events -- Join Us!!

THURSDAY, MAY 30, 7 P.M.

Del. Mark Levine’s 3rd Annual Rainbow Extravaganza Talent Show Freddie’s Beach Bar 555 - 23rd Street, Arlington Tickets at www.MarkforDelegate.com

TUESDAY, JUNE 25, 10:30 P.M.

CALL FOR RESERVATIONS M-TH 11:30AM-10PM • F-SAT 11:30AM-11PM SUN. BRUNCH 11AM-3PM / DINNER 3-10PM

Diva Lounge Dance Party and Drag Show Eden Center, Falls Church $10 cover

SUNDAY, JUNE 23, 4 P.M.

Stonewall 50 Panel & Reception Hosted by the Falls Church News-Press & Social Action Ctte. of Falls Church Featuring Del. Danica Roem, Nicholas Benton & Lawrence Webb Moderated by the Blade’s Lou Chibbaro Falls Church Episcopal Church 150 E. Fairfax, Falls Church Free

THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 7 P.M.

Stonewall 50 Panel & Viewing Hosted by LGBT Democrats of Fairfax Details TBA Free

SATURDAY, JULY 13, 9 P.M.

2nd “Love Is Love” LGBT Party Featuring Sam-E Hosted by Clare & Don’s Beach Shack The State Theatre 210 N. Washington St., Falls Church

322 MASS. AVE. NE • 202.543.7656

CAFEBERLIN-DC.COM M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 21

Paid for by Benton Communications, Inc.

with the Washington Blade!

TUESDAY, JUNE 5

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6

Night Out at the Nationals Happy Hour 4-7PM Walters Sports Bar Free and open to the public

Comedian Leslie Jordan Live 7PM & 9PM Union Stage at the Wharf Tickets at washingtonblade.com/leslie

THURSDAY, JUNE 7

SATURDAY, JUNE 8

Pride Pils Can Launch Party 6-10PM (Free) Dacha Beer Garden Visit PridePils.com for more information

SATURDAY, JUNE 8

Inaugural Pride on the Pier Fireworks Show presented by Compass 9PM (Free) The Wharf Visit PrideOnThePierDC.com for more information and VIP tickets

Pride on the Pier presented by Absolut 2-9PM (Free) The Wharf

Visit PrideOnThePierDC.com for more information and VIP tickets

SATURDAY, JUNE 8 Pride Parade Viewing Party 4-7PM Studio Theatre Visit BladeFoundation.org/Pride for tickets

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12 Pride Yappy Hour 5:30-7:30PM (Free) Milk Bar Logan Circle Free and open to the public

Visit WashingtonBlade.com/Pride for Pride events details 2 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

BRIAN GAITHER

is a co-founder of the Pride Foundation of Maryland. Reach him @briangaither.

PETER ROSENSTEIN

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

VI E WPO I NT • MAY 24, 2019 • WA SHINGTONB L A DE . COM • 23

BROCK THOMPSON

is a D.C.-based writer who contributes regularly to the Blade.

MARK LEE

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

Keep your promise to protect each other.

BRIAN GAITHER

is a co-founder of the Pride Foundation of Maryland. Reach him @briangaither.

Wills & Trusts Powers of Attorney • Living Wills Partnership & Prenuptial Agreements

Gay men must fight for abortion access Without Roe, officials can again enforce laws against homosexuality

Abortion should be safe, legal, and available at your local drugstore. But it’s not. For years, accessing abortion has become increasingly difficult; and now the legislature of Alabama has made it absolutely illegal to perform one. Wherever they can, Republicans are working to outlaw sexual agency. And though gay men may not feel the immediacy of the risk to our own bodies, we need to. Attacks on abortion are also attacks on gay men.

The debate over abortion has always been, at its core, about whether any of us has the right to make decisions regarding our own sexuality. Moral judgments about the intent of sexual activity, what defines sexual health, and how we choose to live our sexual lives are the prime motivators of all attempts to restrict the constitutional right to abortion. The sort of politicians pretending to “moral authority” on the issue of abortion now are the same who deliberately did nothing while AIDS killed a whole generation of gay men.

Such moralizers will always consider sexual intimacy between men to be as objectionable as abortion because the way we share our bodies with one another has nothing to do with “making babies.” Abortion, available without shame, confirms that all sexuality is a valid expression of human dignity whether or not it involves procreation.

Our sexual freedom is based on the right to abortion, and we should honor that fact. We ADVERTISING PROOF cannot have one without the other.

ISSUE DATE: 10.26.12 SALES REPRESENTATIVE: BRIAN PITTS (bpitts@washblade.com) What’s happening in Georgia, Alabama, Missouri, and other places is the latest REVIEW AD FOR COPY AND DESIGN ACCURACY. Revisions must be submitted within 24 hours of the date of proof. Proof will be considered final and will be submitted for publication if revision is not submitted within 24 hours of escalation of moralizing legislators’ ongoing the date of proof. Revisions will not be accepted after 12:01 pm wednesday, the week of publication.Brown naff pitts NS omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) is not responsible for the content and/or design of your ad. Advertiser is responsible for any legal liability arising out of or relating to the advertisement, and/or any material to which users GN war against sexual agency. Legislatures can link through the advertisement. Advertiser represents that its advertisement will not violate any criminal laws or EVISIONS any rgihts of third parties, including, but not limited to, such violations as infringement or misapporpriation of any across the country have been passing laws copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, music, image, or other proprietary or propety right, false advertising, unfair /LOGO REVISIONS competition, defamation, invasion of privacy or rights of celebrity, violation of anti-discrimination law or regulation, for years that prescribe limits on when an or any other right of any person or entity. Advertiser agrees to idemnify brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the ADVERTISER SIGNATURE SIONS washington blade) and to hold brown naff pitts omnimedia llc (dba the washington blade) harmless from any and all By signing this proof you are agreeing to your contract obligations with the liability, loss, damages, claims, or causes of action, including reasonable legal fees and expenses that may be incurred washington blade newspaper. This includes but is not limited abortion canto placement, be performed, sometimes by brown naff pitts omnimedia llc, arising out of or related to advertiser’s breach of any of the foregoing representations payment and insertion schedule. and warranties. even before pregnancy is determined.

We believe that every person has a basic right to They’ve placed excessive and unnecessary public benefits, shelter and safety. Every day we work regulations on medical providers who with that goal in mind, providing free legal assistance perform abortions. They’ve banned public funding and private insurance coverage to D.C. elders most in need.* for abortion. They’ve mandated shameWe welcome the D.C. LGBTQ community inducing obligations on those seeking an abortion, such as reviewing ultrasounds and members to call our Hotline at 202-434-2120. listening to a fetal heartbeat. And they’ve allowed their sympathizers to loiter outside *Must be income-eligible, D.C. Resident and 60-plus LCE is an affiliate of AARP. locations where abortion is available for no

(240) 778-2330 • (703) 536-0220 www.PartnerPlanning.com

Serving the LGBT Community in DC/MD/VA since 1983

Lawrence S. Jacobs/McMillan Metro, PC

FREE LEGAL SERVICES LGBTQ FRIENDLY

purpose other than to harass and intimidate those trying to enter.

These restrictions on abortion access do more than assert conservative politicians’ medieval notions of sex and sexuality. Their goal is to create the conditions in which a test case emerges that can challenge and ultimately overturn Roe v. Wade at the Supreme Court.

As Trump gives them judges they want, they’re pursuing more opportunities to subvert four decades of judicial precedents.

If these efforts culminate in the overturn of Roe, every decision that’s made it possible for gay men to live their sexual lives without fear of prosecution and incarceration will be vulnerable to a similar fate. Roe is the legal basis for the Lawrence v.Texas decision, which decriminalized sodomy, and the Obergefell v. Hodges decision affirming same-sex marriage builds on Lawrence. Without Roe and the other decisions to protect us, public officials can once more enforce criminal statutes against homosexuality (which often remain in state law). Imagine the terror of gay men being arrested for having recorded their mutual love and commitment with the county clerk, then charged and convicted on the evidence of their own marriage.

Make no mistake, the moralizers are remorseless about how far they’re willing to go.

So great is their determination that, in an effort to catch the attention of the federal courts, lawmakers in both Alabama and Missouri wittingly outlawed abortion even in cases of rape and incest. The Alabama Legislature, going further, provided criminal penalties for doctors who perform abortions that are more severe than the sentences a judge can impose on convicted rapists.

Of course it’s outrageous, but we can’t afford to be outraged just in the abstract.

To feel the ache in our liberal sensibilities isn’t enough. We have to recognize the extent of the danger and fight to expand access to abortion, because every attack on abortion is targeted also at the bodies and sexual expression of gay men. If we’re unable, or unwilling, to accept that getting an abortion should be as easy as refilling a prescription at our local drugstore, then we’ve failed to understand what we ourselves have at stake.

24 • WA S HIN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • V IEW P O IN T

PETER ROSENSTEIN

琀栀攀

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

Can Democrats criticize without ‘trashing’ each other?

The fight for headlines has begun There are now 23 Democrats in the primary; six members or former members of the House of Representatives, seven senators, four current or former mayors, three current or former governors, one selfhelp author, one tech CEO and a former vice president who was also a senator. They’re all trying to win by differentiating themselves from the other 22. They do this in many ways including their personality differences, perceived intelligence, their records in office and current policy positions.

Some try to play to the anger in women, the LGBTQ community, immigrant and minority communities generated by how Trump has treated them. Others like Biden tell us being angry is not the way to win.

Some candidates have zero chance, or the same chance of winning I would have were I to declare my candidacy for president tomorrow. So why do they run and how should voters and the media deal with them?

Voters finally get to narrow the field to those who have a real chance at the nomination about nine months from now when the Iowa caucus takes place. Now I think that is a crazy place for Democrats to start because the less than 200,000 people who will show up to make their choice are definitely not representative of the population at large, but so be it.

My assumption is the posts on my Facebook page complaining one candidate or another or one pundit or another is ‘trashing’ one of the candidates will continue. But what constitutes “trashing” someone? Can you cite and call out your opponent’s policies and ideas, as you compare them to your own, say you disagree with them without being accused of trashing them? After all, this is a primary and the reason for primaries is to make clear to voters where you stand in relation to your opponents. Yes these 23 are opponents competing with each other for attention, for a headline, and finally the nomination.

The Democratic Party has made it easy this year to run in the primary. All Bernie Sanders had to say is ‘I am a Democrat,’ which he did at the same time he filed as an ‘independent’ to run for the Senate

in Vermont. If you don’t register even 1 percent in the polls but manage to get 65,000 individual donors you can be on the debate stage. Those donors need only give you $1 each. Since social media is generally free or very inexpensive it is not all that difficult to acquire those donors as some will give just to create havoc. The DNC went on to say those who qualify for the debate will then have to choose lots to see whether they participate on day one or day two of the first debate; either June 26 or 27. So it’s possible on day one we could see Joe Biden debate Marianne Williamson, Andrew Yang, Tim Ryan, Wayne Messam, Tulsi Gabbard and John Hickenlooper. Wonder what the ratings for that exciting night of television would be.

Some are running to be the vice presidential nominee; others are making a pitch to be in the Cabinet or are auditioning to become another talking head on CNN, MSNBC or Fox. It is not fair to suggest if one candidate says something less than positive about the ideas or policies of one of the others in the debate they should be accused of ‘trashing’ them. After all the questioners in the debate will most likely encourage that to make the debate interesting and highlight the differences among the candidates. That is what a debate is. It should not be considered ‘trashing’ the other candidate as long as the criticism is about what they say and not who they are.

If that is not acceptable let’s not pretend it’s a debate and call it a beauty pageant.

If it’s a beauty pageant each candidate will get 10 minutes to show us their talent, their smile, and likely cite a bunch of platitudes. They can all continue to do this until the first chance a voter gets to make their opinion known. So let us not accuse a candidate of ‘trashing’ another when we know a sharp exchange, a wellworded sentence, or a stumble, will differentiate them from the others and get them that headline. The opportunity to be remembered by the voters and have the media focus on you for at least a news cycle, getting you closer to the nomination, is what a primary is all about.

VI E WPO I NT • MAY 24, 2019 • WA SHINGTONB L A DE . COM • 25

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

㘀㨀㌀ 倀䴀

琀甀攀猀搀愀 礀猀 ㄀⼀㈀ 瀀爀椀挀攀 氀漀挀欀攀爀猀 ☀ 爀漀漀洀猀 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

Hookups =

Visit www.squirt.org to hook up today

MARK LEE

BROCK THOMPSON

is a long-time entrepreneur and community business advocate.

Follow on Twitter: @MarkLeeDC. Reach him at OurBusinessMatters@gmail.com.

is a D.C.-based writer.

He contributes regularly to the Blade.

Quick! Everyone to Rehoboth!

It’s time for the annual gay migration.

The mass exodus of D.C. gays, flowing past Annapolis, over the Bay Bridge, through small towns and cornfields, speeding past road signs that read simply, ‘To Beaches.’ This Memorial Day will make 11 years of me venturing out to the shores of Rehoboth Beach, Del., our little gay beach getaway beloved by so many.

How do I know it’s been 11 years exactly?

Facebook memories reminded me, because my friend Chris drank so much over the week he got a kidney stone. I drove him to the hospital in Lewes. Good times.

What will Rehoboth yield for D.C. gays this year? I hope it’s more fun and frivolity.

More of some of my absolute favorite things like hearing Pamala Stanley belt the hits of yesterday and today at the Blue Moon. More sizing up possibilities at Aqua. More exercising patience with just-out-of-the-gate teen waiters and baristas. Sipping that coffee and piecing together the night before, some things will never change and I hope they don’t.

But to be sure, Rehoboth has changed in just the 11 years I’ve been going - in some ways better, in some ways not so much. What has changed exactly? And will all the gays make the great summer migration? It seems like some of the younger gays might be giving up on Rehoboth. I may have aged out, or I’m no longer really connected socially to those in that age bracket. After all, I haven’t played kickball in years. And lining up air mattresses side-by-side and sharing a bathroom with eight gays isn’t really my thing anymore. But it once was.

But gays just have more options when it comes to vacations — Lost River, staycations, Pensacola. Gays are fickle in this regard. Are we off chasing the new thing? This is purely

anecdotal, but each year my friend Beau compiles his rather famous house map. Each little gay house is plotted out on a map of the town, assigned a number, and the full roster of who is staying is listed. A PDF circulates and it turns into a larger exercise of social media stalking and wishful thinking. At the very least you can visit your friends and get your steps in. This year, a total of 17 gay houses have registered. This is down from the high-water mark of just over 30 houses a few years ago.

On top of that, the summer share seems to be over. All those summers of boys renting for the entire season, house names, matching T-shirts, arriving late on Thursday night, leaving late on Sunday or even doing the “five-anddrive,” that is squeezing one more night in and leaving at 5 a.m. on Monday, just in time to roll into work back in the city. All that’s over as it seems landlords are refusing to rent for the entire summer, getting more for weekly rentals.

Demand for those went up after Sandy blew tourists from their usual places to all over the north Atlantic.

Will the gays return in droves to Rehoboth this summer? I say yes. And I predict the beach come Sunday will be just as packed, the line for bars, just as long, the end of the summer share and the availability of other options notwithstanding. There is still the allure of the kicking off summer with sand under your feet, a drink in your hand, and dozens of possibilities buzzing around you, that is of course a powerful draw. And all of this might sound silly, superficial, and of course privileged, but communities have been built around less.

What is more about Rehoboth is that it’s ours, and this community deserves a beach weekend every now and then.

SPEAK WITH OUR PREPLANNING ADVISOR, JAMIE ARTHURS AT (202) 966-6400 OR EMAIL JAMIE.ARTHURS@DIGNITYMEMORIAL.COM

5130 Wisconsin Ave. NW • DC • (202) 966-6400 • www.JosephGawlers.com

D.C. resists ending big-spending habits Leveling of revenues will force elected officials to make future choices The let’s-just-spend-more period of D.C. government largesse in recent years is quickly coming to an end, and local elected officials are predictably demonstrating a reflexive resistance toward adapting to new budgetary realities. That, of course, is what financially flat-lined the city and necessitated a federal takeover during the free-wheeler reckless check-cutting practice of money-kiting two decades ago.

District politicians, along with the left-leaning advocacy groups clamoring for even greater and ever larger outlays, need to begin confronting now the hard choices and required future spending cuts. The bucks really start coming up short beginning in the next fiscal year, and the smoke-and-mirrors currently being utilized won’t keep working.

Last week’s first of two required votes by the D.C. Council approving the city’s annual budget for the 2020 fiscal year were cast amid a subtly somber tone. Sure, there were the usual on-dais comments and inbox newsletters heralding more bucks for this-or-that program or project, but there was a distinct hollowness to the cash celebrations. They know what’s coming.

The reason is simple: While District revenues continue to increase due to a still-growing and ever-wealthier population, city funds aren’t keeping pace with political desires to spend more.

A whopping 8.2 percent spending increase in the current budget, despite only 3 percent projected growth in monies, results in a $15.5 billion annual cost beginning Oct. 1, of which $8.6 billion are in local funds. This recordsetting expenditure translates to more than $22,000 spent for each woman, man, and child among approximately 702,000 residents. The local government payroll has ballooned 13 percent in only three years, to over 33,000 workers. These spending hikes and government size are unsustainable, and both the D.C. auditor and independent CFO have put officials on notice.

Despite his commonsense entreaties, D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson was unsuccessful in convincing his colleagues not to begin filling in budget gaps with

miscellaneous new taxes. Some of these financial extractions, such as an increase in commercial property taxes that will be passed on to community small businesses, will have negative implications for the local economy and end up widening the financial shortfalls in coming years.

With the ink on recent tax reforms barely dry, D.C. Council members have begun unraveling that achievement. While implementation of Tax Revision Commission recommendations advanced by former Mayor Anthony Williams have allowed D.C. to claim one of the most equitable and progressively multi-stepped tax schemes in the country, the city remains burdened with the highest business taxes and top-end personal tax liabilities in the surrounding region and entire country. Progress in providing relief for local taxpayers and community enterprise should continue and be expanded, not walked-back to give politicians a heftier wallet.

For all the chatter by local pundits that the D.C. Council had not given Mayor Muriel Bowser what she wanted, it was the executive who played them like a fiddle.

Save for a few relatively minor tweaks here and there, the administration essentially won all it proposed. Bowser’s genius was her knowing that legislators would sop up all the proposed extra spending and eagerly embrace new tax impositions to pay for it.

What local taxpayers don’t hear from elected officials during agency performance reviews and at budget deliberation time is that they’ve ferreted out inefficiencies, extravagance and waste in the government allocations already being made. Instead of heralding how much additional money is being thrown in the air, it would be much more refreshing to hear the touting of corrective savings known to exist.

Until local politicians start emphasizing how city funds are being better and more judiciously spent, both the residents and local businesses contributing those funds won’t much fancy or favor spending more.

Besides, that’s exactly what’s needed when there aren’t burgeoning piles of new money to spend. Especially since that time has now come.

26 • WA S HIN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • V IEW P O IN T

10 202.262.7762 michael.moore@compass.com

Michael’s average days on market

103.4% Leveraging repeat business and a steady stream of referrals, Michael’s past performance has paved the way for the success he enjoys today. Adopting a hands-on approach, Michael ensures that each transaction is seamless from start to finish.

Michael’s average list to sale price

Michael loves that in real estate, no one day is the same, and he’s prepared for anything — whether it be an unexpected barrier to tackle or a new chance to go above and beyond for his clients.

Compass is a licensed real estate brokerage that abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is not guaranteed. All measurements and square footages are approximate. This is not intended to solicit property already listed. Compass is licensed as Compass Real Estate in DC and as Compass in Virginia and Maryland. 1232 31st Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 |202.448.9002

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 27

Last year’s D.C. Black Pride event drew thousands from all over the Eastern seaboard.

Washington Blade photo by Michaek Key

A ‘Harmonious’ Black Pride

Annual Memorial Day weekend event jam packed with seminars, parties, entertainers and more

By JOEY DIGUGLIELMO JOEYD@WASHBLADE.COM

One of D.C. Black Pride’s longestserving and most diligent volunteers doesn’t live in the region.

C. Hawkins, a black, gay Boston resident, went to D.C. Black Pride for the first time in 2002 on a whim with friends just after graduating from college. He started volunteering immediately.

“Part of it’s being from the South, we’re always willing to help out,” he says. “There was a call for volunteers and part of it was we didn’t want to pay to get into something, but if we volunteered we got in for free. When you’re in your 20s, that’s your motive. I can’t remember exactly. This was when it was at the old Washington Convention Center and it used to cost to get into some of the events but we wanted to save our money to go out, not to attend something in the daytime, so it just kind of went on from there.”

Hawkins, 41, kept helping out and attending over the years — he’s only missed twice since ’02 — because there was nothing like it when he lived in Chapel Hill, N.C., or when he moved to Boston for work four years ago.

“They would say they have Black Pride up here but I would say we don’t,” he says.

“It’s just grouped in with the general pride, it’s very small and more lesbian-oriented.

We just don’t have as many black gay people up here in Boston, so coming to D.C. gives me another outlet to interact.”

Kenya Hutton, D.C. Black Pride’s program director, and, like Hawkins, a volunteer, says this year’s programming “seems to have taken on a mind of its own.” Events are held at various venues but much of the programming takes place at the host hotel, the Renaissance (999 9th St., N.W.). Full schedule and details at dcblackpride.org.

Black Pride programs for the 29th annual event have been happening all week, although the official dates are Friday, May 24 through Monday, May 27. This year’s theme is “Our TRUTHS in HARMONY: D.C. Black Pride 2019” and as in years past, it’s a solid week of programming — open mics, seminars on health, faith and other topics, a poetry slam and more — with nearly roundthe-clock partying opportunities for both men and women.

In recent years, the promoters and Black Pride volunteers have settled into a more symbiotic relationship. On one hand, there’s a lot of money to be made by charging people to attend parties and see big-name acts like Kerri Hilson, Big Freeda and City Girls, but the more serious offerings, exhibits, workshops and even worship services give the whole thing gravitas. The Black Pride website says “something for everyone — D.C.B.P. is packed with all types of activities,” and it’s true.

“A lot of this comes from the community telling us what they would like to see,” Hutton, who’s been with the organization nine years, says. “It’s a good feeling to know this is something we’re doing by and

2 8 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

for the community.”

Highlights Hutton singles out for this year include: • a different approach to tonight’s opening reception. Black Pride planners reached out to a diverse group of regional organizations — everything from Team Rayceen, Pretty Boi Drag, May Is? All About Trans and dozens more — to copresent the event. It’s at 7 p.m. tonight and is sold out. Hutton says the rationale for the new approach was to show what the black LGBT people can accomplish by working together. It also ties into the harmony theme of this year’s motto.

• An “Ask the Doc” workshop on Saturday afternoon with health care professionals for men, women and trans attendees who can ask anything they want.

Questions can also be posed anonymously or texted from those watching via a live webstream.

• Career-oriented workshops such as “Resume Writing & Interviewing” and “Intro to Government Consulting,” also on Saturday at the host hotel.

• a trans and gendernonconforming youth town hall for ages 29 and younger Saturday at 1 p.m.

• the D.C. Black Pride Mary Bowman Poetry Slam on Saturday evening where 13 poets will compete for top prizes.

The event was named for the event’s former organizer, a lesbian who died unexpectedly last week.

Other events were held earlier in the week.

On Thursday, a Unity Ball was held with competition and prizes.

The annual Awards Reception was held Tuesday at The Park at 14th. One of this year’s honorees is profiled in Queery on page 36.

Black Pride volunteers (there are six) work pretty much year round on the event.

The event has rebounded, Hutton says, after “a dip about four-five years ago.”

“It’s refreshing to see it once again rise to the status as one of the most organized Black Pride events around,” he says.

Attendance estimates for the past couple years have been about 30,000.

Hutton expects it to be higher this year.

Folks from as far away as South America, U.K. and even Mozambique have e-mailed organizers of their plans to attend.

It’s impossible to know for sure, but Hawkins says about 65 percent of attendees are non-D.C.-area residents.

Hutton says doing the work each year is a labor of love.

“We have people who have been helping with this for 20 years,” he says.

“We just don’t get the kind of sponsorship levels that would allow us to get paid. We do it because we want to and because our heart is in it. We really want to showcase and provide for the community.”

D.C. Black Pride party time Editor’s note: This is a partial list of many events scheduled throughout the weekend. A full version of programming and parties is under “schedule” at dcblackpride.org.

LADIES’ EVENTS: UNLEASHED: Sweet Temptation All White Party at L8 Lounge Friday, May 24 10 p.m.-4 a.m.

727 15th St., N.W. $15 advance; $20 at door Music by DJ MIM and DJ Sammii Blendz CANDYLAND 6: Sexiest D.C. Black Pride Day Party at Stadium Club Saturday, May 25 3-10 p.m.

2127 Queens Chapel Rd., N.E. $12 in advance: $15 at door Music by DJs J Stackz, Deluxx, Jai Syncere, Sammii Blendz and DJ MIM UNLEASHED: D.C. 2K19 Chocolate City D.C. Black Pride official Mega Ladies Party Saturday, May 25 Howard Theatre 620 T St., N.W. 11 p.m.-4 a.m.

DJs Jai Syncere and Kid Swag General admission: $20 VIP $30 VIP table $150 UNLEASHED: The Finale Black Pride Rooftop Party Pride Closeout Rooftop Day Party Sunday, May 26 3-9 p.m.

Big Chief 2002 Fenwick St., N.E. $10 entry VIP passes available for all events at various pricing levels Full details at unleasheddc.com Women in the Life 25th anniversary Resilience Reunion Friday, May 24 8 p.m.-midnight Pop-Up Archive Gallery & open mic featuring live concert from BOOMSCAT Saturday, May 25 9 p.m.

Women in the Life 25th anniversary Resilience Reunion Dance Party Both events at D.C. Black Pride Hotel Renaissance Hotel 999 9th St., N.W.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA D E.COM • 29

Renaissance Ballroom/lower level Details at dcblackpride.org MEN’S PARTIES Daryl Wilson Promotions Presents Happy Hour/Meet & Greet Friday, May 24 3-9 p.m.

Renaissance Hotel 999 9th St., N.W. Tease: the official All Male Super Party Friday, May 24 10 p.m.-4 a.m.

Hosted by Gavin Houston (aka Jeffrey Harrington) Special guest: Monet X Change Ziegfeld’s/Secrets 1824 Half St., S.W. D.C. Pride Infamous Day Party Saturday, May 25 2-9 p.m.

The Park 920 14th St., N.W. Pride Homecoming Saturday Night Main Event Saturday, May 25 10 p.m.-4 a.m.

Miss Shalae (Beyonce impersonator) City Girls EchoStage 2135 Queens Chapel Rd., N.E. Wet and Wild Pool Party Sunday, May 26 1-8 p.m. shuttle available from host hotel The Culture Super Party Sunday, May 26 9 p.m.-4 a.m.

The Park 920 14th St., N.W. Rock the Block Monday, May 27 indoor/outdoor festival & show Elevate Super Club 15 K St., N.E. Naked All male nude dancers and variety stage show Monday, May 27 Ziegfelds/Secrets 1824 Half St., S.W. 9 p.m.-2 a.m.

Prices and full details at darylwilsondc.com

Continues on page 46

M I

Lease Leasea a2018 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Sport ALFA ROMEO GIULIA TI SPORT AWD

299

for $$ /mo 399 +tax

*

MAKES ANY ROUTE ANYTHING BUT ROUTINE. Room for everything except the ordinary. A uniquely Italian driving experience, Stelvio delivers 280 HP and 306 lb-ft of torque through a turbocharged, direct-injected engine. With an 8-speed transmission, patented AlfaLinkTM rear suspension and the most direct steering ration in its segment, Stelvio redefines the luxury SUV, infused with Alfa Romeo performance.

SCHEDULE YOUR TEST DRIVE TODAY Alfa Romeo of Arlington 2710 S. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22206 888- 7 6 3 -8 7 21

www.alfaromeousaofarlington.com

of Arlington

*ON APPROVED CREDIT. Offer expires May 31st, 2019 . Available only at Alfa Romeo of Arlington to qualified lessees with approved credit through Chrysler Capital. Delivery by May 31st, 2019 required. Subject to availability, this offer *ON APPROVED CREDIT. Offer expires Jan 31, 2019. Available only at Alfa Romeo of Arlington to qualified lessees with approved credit through Chrysler Capital. Delivery by Jan 31, 2019 required. Subject to availability, this offer [vin: [VIN: 611950]. Payment shown based on a 24-month closed-end lease for a new 2019 model year Giulia with MSRP of $49,940. Total cash due at signing is $2,999.00, plus first month’s payment of $399.00, security deposit waived. Total B61928]. based on a 24-month leaseend for for a new 2018 model AWD with MSRPfor of insurance, $45,490. Total cash due repairs, at signing is $4,999.00, plus first month's payment of excess $299, security deposit waived. amount ofPayment monthly shown payments is $9,576.

Purchase closed-end option at lease $28,965.20 plus year taxes.Stelvio Lessee is responsible maintenance, $.25 per mile over 10,000 miles per year and wear. Title, taxes, license, Total amountdestination. of monthly payments is$7,176. registration, And acquisition fee Purchase of $1095 option at lease end for $28,203 plus taxes. Lessee is responsible for insurance, maintenance, repairs, $.25 per mile over 10,000 miles per year and excess wear. Title, taxes, license, registration, destination. And acquisition fee of $895.

3 0 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Lease Maserati Levante Ghibli - for $599/mo Lease aa 2019 2019 Maserati $599/mo.

Maserati of Arlington 2710 South Glebe Rd, Arlington, VA 22206 888.402.2116 | www.maseratiofarlington.com *ON APPROVED CREDIT. Offer expires May 31st, 2019. Available only at Maserati of Arlington to qualified lessees with approved credit through Maserati Capital, must qualify for Lease program. Delivery by May 31st, 2019 required. Subject to avail*ON APPROVED CREDIT. Offer expires Jan 31, 2019. Available only at Maserati of Arlington to qualified lessees with approved credit through Maserati Capital. Delivery by Jan 31, 2019 required. Subject to availability, this offer [VIN: 317555]. Payment shown based on ability, this offer [VIN: 319441]. Payment shown based on a 36-month closed-end lease for a new 2019 model year Ghibli with MSRP of $76,965. Total cash due at signing is $5,000 plus first month’s payment of $599, acquisition fee of $795, taxes, tags, a 39-month closed-end lease for a new 2019 model year Levante with MSRP of $83,780. Total cash due at signing is $7,500, plus first month’s payment of $599, acquisition fee of $795, taxes, tags, processing and destination (security deposit waived). Total amount processing fee and destination (security deposit waived). Total amount of monthly payments is $21,564. Purchase option at lease end for $38,482.50 plus taxes. Lessee is responsible for insurance, maintenance, repairs, $.30 per mile over 5,000 miles of monthly payments $23,361.

Purchase option at lease forvehicle $46,079, taxes.

Lessee is responsible for insurance, maintenance, repairs, $.30 per mile over 5,000 miles per year and excess wear. Not applicable towards any other vehicles or special orders. per year and excess iswear.

Not applicable towards any end other or plus special orders.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 31

Singer MarcWayne on ‘Finding’ himself Out hip-hop artist/rapper readies D.C. Black Pride performance MARCWAYNE says he’s never hidden his sexuality but hasn’t made it a main element of his music either.

Photo courtesy MarcWayne

If you’ve been attending D.C. Black Pride’s annual opening reception for years, this year’s might look a bit different.

For its 29th annual event, D.C. Black Pride (a program of the Center for Black Equity), invited about 60 other organizations in the region — everything from Al Sura, Casa Ruby to Daryl Wilson Productions and dozens more — to co-present the event. It all ties in with this year’s theme “Our TRUTHS in HARMONY: D.C. Black Pride 2019.”

Because thousands come to D.C. Black Pride from all over, the event is sold out.

Clairity from Queen & Clair will emcee.

Local R&B artist Rinny will perform as well as MarcWayne.

The Blade caught up with MarkWayne, a former D.C. resident, by phone Monday from Newark, N.J., where the 25-yearold, openly gay rapper is now based. His comments have been slightly edited for length. Find out more about MarcWayne at findingmarcwayne.weebly.com.

WASHINGTON BLADE: Your debut EP “Finding MarcWayne” dropped in January.

Are you pleased with how it turned out and how has it been received?

MARCWAYNE: Really good. It’s compiled of my emotions and feelings for the past two years. The EP was a soulsearching journey of finding out who I was.

I got a lot of great reviews and we had over 2,000 streams the first week. It’s a really good vibe man, a good vibe.

BLADE: What did you learn about yourself in the process?

MARCWAYNE: I learned that I’ve allowed things to stir my feelings. I’ve been through some stuff, but through adversity comes triumph and through triumph comes happiness. It’s about my journey struggling not only as an LGBT person but as an artist and a person in New York City, which is not the easiest place to live. I’ve learned not to trivialize the strength I have.

BLADE: Are you in Newark for work or do you live there?

MARCWAYNE: It’s where I’m based for now but I’m always in New York for work.

Eventually I’ll be moving closer to the city or even to D.C., but for the moment I’m here. But I’ll be from Flint, Mich., til the death of me.

BLADE: What is it about growing up in Flint that still resonates with you?

MARCWAYNE: Just the rawness of Flint. It’s a very, very smart town where pretty much everybody knows everybody, but it’s genuine, it’s family oriented. I love love, I value friendship, I love humanity and I grew up in a city where people are close.

When I’m in New York or any big city, I’m like that little hometown kid who’s always trying to bring people together. I say, “Excuse me,” and stuff like that. Also there are a lot of people rooting for me from back home. They see somebody from Flint actually making it, so I feel that support.

BLADE: Has being out in the hip-hop world been a hindrance in your career?

MARCWAYNE: It’s been a challenge, I will definitely say that. We live in an

By JOEY DIGUGLIELMO JOEYD@WASHBLADE.COM

industry where the perception of LGBT artists is that we’re very over the top, we use a lot of vulgar words, sexual words to characterize who we are. And there’s nothing wrong with being who you are, but we’re in an industry that tries to block a lot of people like me. Like we’ll be talking about x, y or z and there’s a preconceived idea of what it means to be an LGBT artist. I stay away from the norm. There are people who like my music who don’t know I’m a gay artist. It’s not something that’s always clear on the surface of the music. I want people to see me for that first, then have them realize that it’s a gay rapper or a gay artist up there doing big things. I never really say, “Hey, I’m an out artist,” but if you listen to my music from 2015 onward, you can hear some of the lyrics talk about guys.

But I never made it that blatant.

BLADE: Are you in a relationship now?

MARCWAYNE: Yes I am, Im very happy. That and my EP, those are the best things that have happened to me this year.

BLADE: So this is kind of recent?

MARCWAYNE: Yeah, we started dating in February. It’s very fresh and new but it’s something I need and it’s been an inspiration for my music. Now my songs are about him. You might see me doing some more R&B-leaning stuff soon.

BLADE: Who are your musical influences?

MARCWAYNE: Bryson Tiller, Frank Ocean, Drake, Teyana Taylor and Yo gotti. As for women, I love Teyana Taylor and Brandy.

Brandy is a classic, but Teyana, her lyrics are deep. I didn’t start appreciating her music until early adulthood. Fashion was always my thing growing up and I studied at the Art Institute of Washington, but music has always been my heart and I really started moving more in that direction about three years ago.

BLADE: Have you done many Pride events?

MARCWAYNE: Yes. In Newark, Detroit, Flint, Chicago, but this is my first D.C. pride performance.

BLADE: What do you have planned for your D.C. performance?

MARCWAYNE: It’s gonna be dope.

I’ll be doing about a 15-minute set at the opening reception with Rinny. I want to highlight and promote that collaboration and togetherness. It’s gonna be a really good show, epic. Some singing, some rapping, some good times, all o ‘dat.

29th annual D.C. Black Pride CommUNITY Opening Reception Friday, May 24 7 p.m.

Renaissance Washington D.C. Downtown 999 9th St., N.W. sold out dcblackpride.org

3 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

JUNE 26, 2019

GET TICKETS WORLDPRIDE.ORG PRODUCED BY

WORLDPRIDE LICENSOR

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 33

HOST PARTNER

HOST PARTNER

PRINCIPAL SPONSOR

DJ LINA

TODRICK HALL

BILLY PORTER

CIARA

CHAKA KHAN

CYNDI LAUPER

WHOOPI GOLDBERG

BARCLAYS CENTER 7PM–10PM

This Week in the Arts provided by CultureCapital.com MUSIC

50 Years of Stonewall: LGBTQ+ Activism in the U.S. Thru Jul 11. Library of Congress. loc.gov.

A new display at the Library of Congress will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, which occurred June 28-July 1, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn, Greenwich Village, New York City. Materials are drawn from the papers of Lilli Vincenz and Franklin Kameny, two early LGBTQ+ rights pioneers. Kameny and Vincenz worked together frequently, both being present at some of the earliest LGBTQ+ protests in United States history.

Whitman 200: A Celebration of LGBTQ+ Writers May 24. HumanitiesDC at Bloom Bars. humanitiesdc.org.

A poetry and prose reading featuring Xemiyulu Manibusan Tapepechul, Venus Selenite, and Charity Blackwell, followed by a short open reading for LGBTQ+ writers. Hosted by Gowri K. Part of the Whitman 200 Celebration. May 23-June 3.

Check CultureCapital.com for a complete schedule of festival events.

A Misanthrope May 30-Jun 30. Avant Bard at Gunston. wscavantbard.org.

A Misanthrope is a brisk, biting comedy about a cynic who thinks insincerity is a sin—but the joke’s on him when he falls for an ingenue who’s more than his intellectual equal. Minnicino’s A Misanthrope is written in slang-filled rhyming couplets, one howler after another. Hypocrisy has never been more hilarious.

Twilight & Tipple Tours at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Pope-Leighey House Thru Oct 22. Woodlawn and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Pope-Leighey House. woodlawnpopeleighey.org.

Our tour series is a rare chance to see one of Wright’s houses illuminated against a night sky, bringing a whole new dimension and radiance to the typical tour experience. We only offer a few tours a year in the evening, so seize this great opportunity today! Grab a drink or two, which is included in the price of your ticket, and walk through the house on a leisurely, open house style tour with plenty of time to take stunning photos.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

THEATRE Comedy Down. May 25. Dupont Underground. dupontunderground.org.

FAME, The Musical, US Premiere in Spanish. Thru Jun 9. GALA Hispanic Theatre. galatheatre.org.

God of Carnage. Thru May 25. Keegan Theatre. keegantheatre.com.

Love’s Labor’s Lost. Thru Jun 16. Folger Theatre. folger.edu.

Mary Stuart. Thru Jun 9. Olney Theatre. olneytheatre.org.

One Destiny. Thru Oct 26. Ford’s Theatre. fords.org.

Shear Madness. Thru Jun 19. Kennedy Center. shearmadness.com.

Sooner, Later. Thru Jun 16. Mosaic Theater Company at Atlas. mosaictheater.org.

Spunk. Thru Jun 23. Signature Theatre. sigtheatre.org.

Tosca. Thru May 25. WNO at Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

DANCE Ballet Across America. May 28-Jun 2.

Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

2019 National Memorial Day Concert - Dress Rehearsal. May 25. National Memorial Day Concert. May 26. US Capitol West Lawn.

Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program: A Concert of Comic Masterpieces. May 24. WNO at Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

I-Jung Huang, violin; Chuang-Chuang Peter Fang, piano. May 24. Embassy Series at Anderson House. embassyseries.org.

Jazz in the Garden: Futurist. May 24.

National Gallery of Art at NGA Sculpture Garden. nga.gov.

Daniel Kahn and the Painted Bird. May 26. JxJ. City Winery.

National Memorial Day Choral Festival.

May 26. Unexpected Italy (II): Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. May 30-Jun 1.

Kennedy Center. kennedy-center.org.

National Memorial Day Parade. May 27.

Constitution Avenue between 7th and 17th Streets.

Spring Garlands—Richard Giarusso and Andrew Jonathan Welch in Recital. May 24. Georgetown Chorale at Christ Church. georgetownchorale.org.

The Avett Brothers with Thao and The Get Down Stay Down and Paleface. May 24. The Avett Brothers with The Felice Brothers and Paleface. May 25. 2019 Summer Blast Off! The President’s Own US Marine Band with Fireworks! May 26.

Wolf Trap. wolftrap.org.

Twilight Tuesdays: Dual Rhythm. May 28. Wednesday Night STARZ: Civic Duty Band. May 29. Silver Spring Civic Building at Veterans Plaza. silverspringdowntown.com.

Whitman 200: Songs of Ourselves. May 26. All Souls Memorial Episcopal Church at All Souls Church Unitarian. allsoulsdc.org.

Youssou NDOUR. May 29. Strathmore. strathmore.org.

MUSEUMS AU Museum at the Katzen. Kenneth Victor Young: Continuum. Thru May 26.

Testament of the Spirit: Paintings by Eduardo Carrillo. Thru May 26. Turbulence.

Thru May 26. american.edu.

Anacostia Neighborhood Library. Right to the City @Anacostia Neighborhood Library. Thru Apr 20. anacostia.si.edu.

Anderson House.

Revolutionary Reflections: French Memories of the War for America. Thru Oct 27. societyofthecincinnati.org.

Dumbarton Oaks. Written in Knots: Undeciphered Accounts of Andean Life.

Thru Aug 18. Beyond Knotting: Wari and Inka Tunics from the Collection. Thru Aug 18. Asian Art from the Bliss Collection. Thru Jun 1. doaks.org.

Folger Shakespeare Library. The Architecture of the Folger Shakespeare Library. Thru Jan 5. folger.edu.

Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain. La Cascada by Luzinterruptus.

Thru Sep 27. spainculture.us.

Library of Congress. Whitman 200: Happy Birthday Walt! – Digitized Walt Whitman Collections from the Manuscript Division. May 30. Baseball Americana. Thru Jul 27. Whitman 200: Whitman Bicentennial Display. Thru Aug 15. Art in Action: Herblock and Fellow Artists Respond to Their Times. Thru Aug 17. loc.gov.

National Archives. Rightfully Hers. Thru Jan 3. archivesfoundation.org.

National Gallery of Art. Drawing in Tintoretto’s Venice. Thru May 26. Venetian Prints in the Time of Tintoretto. Thru May 26. nga.gov.

National Geographic. Queens of Egypt.

Thru Sep 2. nationalgeographic.org.

National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Ursula von Rydingsvard: The Contour of Feeling. Thru Jul 28. More is More: Multiples. Thru Sep 15. New York Ave Sculpture Project. Thru Sep 20. nmwa.org.

Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian. Section 14: The Other Palm Springs, California. Thru Jan 1. The Great Inka Road: Engineering an Empire. Thru Jun 1. Our Universes: Traditional Knowledge Shapes Our World. Thru Sep 30. americanindian.si.edu.

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian.

Daguerreotypes. Thru Jun 2. Eye to I: SelfPortraits from 1900 to Today. Thru Aug 18.

Portraits of the World: Korea Exhibition.

Thru Nov 17. Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence. Thru Jan 5. In Mid-Sentence.

Thru Mar 29. npg.si.edu.

Postal Museum. Postmen of the Skies.

Thru May 27. John Lennon: The Green Album. Thru Jul 7. Beautiful Blooms: Flowering Plants on Stamps. Thru Jul 14. postalmuseum.si.edu.

The Kreeger Museum. Charles Hinman: Structures, 1965–2014. Thru Jul 31. kreegermuseum.org.

Zenith Gallery. Navigating Eternity. Thru Jul 6. zenithgallery.com.

GALLERIES CHAW. Capitol Hill Art League for Artists’ Choice Exhibit. Thru Jun 1. chaw.org.

Del Ray Artisans. Sacred Feminine Art Exhibit. Thru Jun 2. delrayartisans.org. gallery neptune & brown. Ben Tolman & David Nash: Drawings. Thru Jun 14. galleryneptunebrown.com.

Hill Center. Six new solo exhibitions. Thru Jun 23. hillcenterdc.org.

Korean Cultural Center DC. Korean Craft: Yesterday and Today. Thru Jun 21. koreaculturedc.org.

Glen Echo Park. Abstractly Speaking. Thru Jun 1. Abstractly Speaking. Thru Jun 2.

Outside the Box 2019. Thru Jun 2. Inspiring New Memories: Youth Art Exhibition. Thru Jun 2. glenechopark.org.

AND MORE...

Hill Center. Street Food: Classics of the Mediterranean. May 30. hillcenterdc.org.

3 4 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

al fresco dining buzz garden center lifestyle boutique landscape design

Store Hours: 8am-6pm May 27 9am-5pm May 28 9am-6pm

5258 River Road Bethesda, MD 20816 7405 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 Landscape Design/Build/Maintain call for appointment 301.762.6301 americanplant.net

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 35

QUEERY Nii-Quartelai Quartey Washington Blade photo by Michael Key

QUEERY: Nii-Quartelai Quartey The AARP senior advisor answers 20 queer questions

By JOEY DIGUGLIELMO JOEYD@WASHBLADE.COM Nii-Quartelai Quartey didn’t plan to have a “gay job” or career — it just kind of worked out that way.

“I always intended to do pioneering, consequential social justice work that reflected lessons from my lived experience,” says the 35-year-old Concord, Calif., native, who is senior advisor and national LGBT liaison for AARP. “But I never intended for LGBT work to be a significant part of my academic or professional career.”

Quartey came to Washington about three years ago when recruited to the AARP National Office. He’d been in Los Angeles from 2003-2016 and earned a doctorate and master’s degree from Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology. His work at AARP and beyond involves coalition building.

“It means understanding what your collaborators do well and understanding how to leverage their assets to drive efforts aligned with shared goals and values,” he says.

For his work, Quartey has received this year’s Welmore Cook Award from D.C. Black Pride (named after one of the co-founders of the event). The award is presented annually to two D.C.based, black LGBT residents providing “outstanding leadership.” The reception was held Tuesday at The Park at 14th.

Bishop Allyson Abrams and Bishop Emeritus Diana Williams of Empowerment Liberation Cathedral shared this year’s other Cook Award.

Quartey says he’s “deeply humbled” to receive the award and “stand on the shoulders of such a pioneering and consequential leader who had the wisdom to create D.C. Black Pride.”

Quartey and husband Montre Burton have been together for 10 years, married almost four. They live in Northeast Washington. Burton enjoys reading, brunch, travel, talking and Netflix in his free time.

How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?

I do not have one coming-out experience. Like most people, I come out every day in grand and subtle ways.

Still this pales in comparison to being the one to tell my mom, when my dad passed away.

Who’s your LGBTQ hero?

I have several heroes and sheroes. James Baldwin, Barbara Jordan, Sylvia Rivera, Ford Foundation President Darren Walker and Rainbow Railroad Executive Director Kimahli Powell come to mind at the moment.

Their boldness and bravery inspires me to dig deeper and be a brighter light in the world.

What LGBTQ stereotype most annoys you?

LGBTQ folks might have a heightened awareness around nuance and detail, but being LGBTQ doesn’t make us interior designers like Martha Stewart.

What’s your proudest professional achievement?

After receiving a request from Lambda Legal for AARP to file an amicus brief in support of Marshal Wetzel, my proudest professional achievement was the day AARP Foundation Litigation Chief Bill Rivera emailed me the brief we filed in the U.S. 7th Circuit Court.

Marsha had become the subject of harassment in an assisted living facility because she’s an out lesbian and the administrators did not act to keep her safe from harassment. I knew doing so was a consequential next step for our organization and the LGBT movement.

What terrifies you?

Images of clowns make me uncomfortable. Shaking the hands of people with dirt under the fingernails weirds me out!

What’s something trashy or vapid you love?

“Real Housewives of Atlanta” What’s your greatest domestic skill?

I am a novice plant dad but seasoned at flower arrangement. I enjoy coming home and waking up to fresh flowers. Whenever I have out-of-town visitors, I like for them to be welcomed into our home with fresh flowers, too.

What’s your favorite LGBTQ movie or show?

I really enjoy “Pose” on FX Network and “Special” on Netflix.

What’s your social media pet peeve?

Facebook instant messenger is not called Facebook instant response and should not be used with that expectation.

Stop putting your email in an instant message for a faster response.

What would the end of the LGBTQ movement look like to you?

I don’t think we’ll see the LGBTQ movement end in our lifetime but I imagine a more mature movement would include women, people of color and trans people in staff leadership roles, board leadership roles and leading on issues of the day that today are not considered tent pole issues in our community.

What’s the most overrated social custom?

Saying “Hi” at the beginning of every email.

What was your religion, if any, as a child and what is it today?

I was raised as a Christian and I still love the Lord, though my faith is more aligned with liberation theology.

What’s D.C.’s best hidden gem?

The Penthouse Pool at VIDA is pretty awesome. Feels like a splash of Los Angeles in D.C.

3 6 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

“A STUNNING PRODUCTION.” “POWERFUL.” “ARRESTING.”

–DC Theatre Scene

–Brightest Young Things

What’s been the most memorable pop culture moment of your lifetime?

It’s a tie between hearing Nelson Mandela speak at the Oakland Coliseum at 7 years old on the world tour following his release from prison and being on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” as 13-year-old student activist for raising money to send deserving young people to college.

Ellen McLaughlin’s

THE

ORESTEIA

What celebrity death hit you hardest?

The death of Prince made me feel like the world lost some of its magic.

His musicianship made so many people feel something.

If you could redo one moment from your past, what would it be?

I do not live my life with regrets. There are lessons in everything.

What are your obsessions?

Jamaican stew peas with dumplings; eyeglasses; and spades.

Finish this sentence — It is about damn time: America normalizes its consideration of people of color, women and gay people for president of the United States.

–The Washington Post

Freely Adapted from Aeschylus

Directed by Michael

Kahn

TICKETS START AT $44

ORDER TODAY! MUST CLOSE JUNE 2

Made possible by:

What do you wish you’d known at 18?

I wish I knew I was going to be bald by 35 years old. I would have had more fun with my full head of hair at 18. But don’t think for a second I’ve ruled out any interventions.

Why Washington?

D.C. is an international city and small town all wrapped up in one. What we do and do not do here matters to the world. If you are like me, deeply committed to being a mighty force for good, D.C. is good place to be the change you wish to see in the world.

SHAKESPEARETHEATRE.ORG 202.547.1122 Restaurant Partner: Photo of Kelcey Watson by Tony Powell.

Twinkle, twinkle, great big grin – Look at this new house I’m in!

Concrete floors and stainless steel give it that contempo feel.

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

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

• WA SHINGTONBLA D E.COM • 37

Counterclockwise from left: Comedian LESLIE JORDAN performs in Washington June 5.

ANGELAKOS. Photo by Jean Claude; courtesy Seth Cohen PR.

More laughs with Leslie The Washington Blade presents comedian Leslie Jordan’s “Exposed” stand-up comedy show at Union Stage (740 Water St., N.W.) on Wednesday, June 5 at 9 p.m.

Jordan has appeared on shows such as “Sordid Lives,” “American Horror Story,” “Will & Grace,” and most recently, Fox sitcom “The Cool Kids.” In his comedy show “Exposed,” Jordan recounts growing up as a Southern Baptist, tells tales from his acting career and more. Doors open at 9 p.m. Full dinner and drink menu will be available. Tickets are $45. Look for an interview with Jordan in next week’s Blade.

For more details, visit facebook.com/ washingtonblade.

Photo courtesy Jordan,

Night OUT is June 4 Team D.C. hosts Night OUT at the Nationals against the Chicago White Sox at Nationals Park (1500 S Capitol St., S.E.) on Tuesday, June 4 from 4-11 p.m.

Gates open at 4 p.m. with happy hour until game time. Pre-game ceremonies begin at 6 p.m.Tickets range from $19-55.

Every ticket purchase includes a Nationals Night Out T-shirt and $5 from every ticket sold will be donated to Team D.C.’s Student-Athlete Scholarships for local LGBT student-athletes.

For more information, visit teamdc.org.

Last year’s Latinx Pride.

Washington Blade photo by Michael Key,

and Bi Passion Pit frontman MICHAEL

Pride awards get new name

Latinx Pride returns with full slate

Capital Pride Honors is at the Luce Foundation Center in the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Renwick Gallery (800 G St., N.W.) on Friday, May 31 from 7:30-9:30 p.m.

The reception, formerly known as the Heroes Gala, takes place before the Countdown Pride Celebration Kick-Off Party.

Capital Pride Honors will honor the individuals, leaders and activists who have supported the local LGBT population. This year’s heroes include Kimberley Bush, Rea Carey, Ben De Guzman, Martin Espinoza, Amanda Hackett and Tony Nelson. Tickets range from $60-75 and include complimentary cocktails, culinary tastings and admission to the Countdown Pride Celebration Kick-Off Party.

For details, visit capitalpride.org.

The 13th annual D.C. Latinx Pride is June 1-6 with various events. This year’s theme is “Gritando Orgullo” (screaming pride).

A panel discussion will be held on Saturday, June 1 at 5 p.m. at Metropolitan Community Church of Washington (474 Ridge St., N.W.), a Latinx LGBTQ History Tour with Jose Gutierrez will be held on Sunday, June 2 at 3 p.m. starting at the corner of Colmbia Rd. and 18th St., N.W. in Adams Morgan. The walking tour will stop

by Salud Inc., one of the first D.C. Latino HIV/AIDS organizations, El Faro, the first D.C. Latinx LGTBQ bar, Bar Noa Noa, Perry’s Restaurant and more. Admission is free.

A group art show dubbed “La Platica: Elevando Arte, Poesia & Palabra” will be held on Tuesday, June 4 at 5 p.m. at HRC

3 8 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

TODAY

(1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) and the official dance party “Gritando Orgullo” will be Thursday, June 6 at 9 p.m. at D.C. Eagle (3701 Benning Rd., N.E.). All the events are on Facebook or visit latinoglbthistory.org.

Leather Pride is next weekend D.C. Leather Pride Weekend runs May 31-June 2 with various events all held at the D.C. Eagle (3701 Benning Rd., N.E.).

On Friday, May 31, the Birds of Prey Drag Show and a special Friday night edition of Daddy XL with DJs Strike Stone and Dean Sullivan will be held. DJ Honey spins at 7 p.m. during the Meaty Fridays Happy Hour.

On Saturday, June 1, The Highwaymen TNT will work the bar, special guest Hummer will make an appearance in the Eagles Nest, and in Exile upstairs, BRUT with DJs Ultra Pup and Dan Darlington will spin. DJ Popperz will spin in the main bar. No cover for the main bar. Individual events have entry fees.

The bar opens at noon on Sunday, June 2. The BLUF XL Tea Dance and Cigar Social will be held at 4 p.m. with the MidAtlantic Rubber Collective at the Club Bar. Look for the event on Facebook for full details.

Author and filmmaker John Waters appears at Politics and Prose Bookstore (5015 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) tonight at 7 p.m. to discuss his new book “Mr. Know-It-All.” Waters will be in conversation with Stephen Thompson. Admission is free. No reservation required. Seating is first come, first served.

For details, visit politics-prose.com.

Green Lantern (1335 Green Ct., N.W.) presents Blush, a new gay dance party, tonight from 10 p.m.-3 a.m. Geneva Confectionn hosts the party. Cover is $5 and includes clothes/coat check. For more information, visit greenlanterndc.com.

Birds of Prey Drag Show is at the D.C. Eagle (3701 Benning Rd., N.E.) tonight at 9:30 p.m. This show is part of D.C. Black Pride weekend. Performers will include guest drag performer Raquel Lord, recording artist Billy Winn and local queens Brooklyn Heights, Iyana Deschanel, Sasha Adams Sanchez, Alicia Love, Crystal Edge, Kedra Lattimore and Deja Diamond. Kristina Kelly hosts the event. This is an 18-and-over show. For details, visit dceagle.com.

Saturday, May 25 Indie-electronic band Passion Pit brings its “Manners 10 year Anniversary Tour” to the Anthem (901 Wharf St., S.W.) tonight at 8 p.m. The band is fronted by bisexual singer Michael Angelakos. The tour celebrates the 10 year anniversary of their debut studio album,“Manners.” Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

Tickets range from $40-119. For more details, visit theanthemdc.com.

Avalon Saturdays presents Battle of the DJs: Madscience vs. Wess at Soundcheck (1420 K St., N.W.) tonight from 10 p.m.-4 a.m. Drag show is from 10:30-11:30 p.m. There will be a Jameson and Tito’s open bar from 11 p.m.-midnight.

General admission tickets are $15. VIP tickets are $20 and include express entry and access to private VIP lounge with bar and bartender. For more information, visit dougiemeyerpresents.com.

Qwerty, an LGBT dance party, is at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.) tonight from 10 p.m.-2:45 a.m. DJ Adam Koussari-Amin, DJ Dvonne and DJ Jeff Prior will spin hardpop, queer-step, disco and more. Ruth Allen Ginsburg will give a performance.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 39

No cover. For more details, visit facebook. com/ctrldc.

Desiree Dik hosts Oddball at Slash Run (201 Upshur St., N.W.) tonight from 11:30 p.m.-2 a.m. Drag performers include Miss Buffy Wilde, Squealia, Cake and Blasfemme. Cover is $5. For more information, visit facebook.com/slashrun.

Sunday, May 26 Flash (645 Florida Ave., N.W.) hosts Flashy Memorial Day Weekend, a dance party, tonight from 10 p.m.-5 a.m. DJ Twin and DJ Sean Morris will play music on the main floor until 5 a.m. DJ Saint will spin tracks on the roof deck. Extended bar runs until 4 a.m. Cover is $20. For more information, visit facebook.com/flashydc.

Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.) hosts Church, a Memorial Day Weekend party, tonight from 9 p.m.-1:45 a.m. Geneva Confectionn, Jaxknife Complex and Pussy Noir will cohost and perform. Rev. Jesse Jackson and Wess the DJ will spin tracks. For more details, visit facebook.com/tradebardc.

Monday, May 27 Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.) hosts PrideTease, a day party hosted by Vernon A. Wall and Aaron Riggins, today from 2-7 p.m. DJs will play music from Capital Pride’s headliners and there will also be an opportunity to win prizes and Pride packages. There will also be popsicles and a surprise performance. For more details, visit facebook.com/tradebardc.

Tuesday, May 28 The D.C. Center (2000 14th St., N.W.) hosts genderqueer D.C., a support group for people who identify outside of the gender binary, tonight at 7 p.m. For more information, visit genderqueerdc.org.

Wednesday, May 29 Gay Women of Rehoboth take a bus trip to the Newseum today from 8 a.m.4:30 p.m. The bus leaves CAMP Rehoboth

(37 Baltimore Ave., Rehoboth Beach, Del.) at 8 a.m. and will head to the Newseum (555 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.). The group will visit the “Rise Up” exhibit. The rest of the day is free to explore D.C. The bus departs at 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $40 and include round-trip transportation, driver tip and admission to the Newseum. For details, visit camprehoboth.com.

The Lambda Bridge Club meets at 7:30 p.m. at the Dignity Center (721 8th St., S.E.) for duplicate bridge. No reservations required and new comers welcome. If you need a partner, call 703-407-6540.

Thursday, May 30 Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.) hosts a “RuPaul’s Drag Race” season 11 viewing party tonight from 9-10:30 p.m.

Jaxknife Complex hosts the party. There will be games and free drinks throughout the episode. Wess the DJ will spin tracks after the episode. Extended happy hour is until 10 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/tradebardc.

Venus Valhalla hosts Thirst Trap Thursdays at Pitchers D.C. (2317 18th St., N.W.) tonight at 11 p.m. Local drag talent will perform. For details, visit facebook. com/pitchersdc.

The National LGBTQ Task Force and NQAPIA (National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance) host the inaugural reception Heritage and Pride: A Celebration of LGBTQ+ API Communities to celebrate queer and transgender Asian Pacific Islanders. There will be light programming, hors d’oeuvres and drinks. For more information, visit thedccenter.org.

Friday, May 31 Alliance Française de Washington D.C. (2142 Wyoming Ave., N.W.) hosts Tristan Cabello, assistant director of the master of liberal arts at Johns Hopkins University Tristan Cabello to discuss “Gay Paris: A Short History of Gay Rights in France” tonight from 7-9 p.m. Light refreshments will be served after the Q&A. Tickets are $10 for AFDC members and $15 for nonmembers. For more information, search “A Short History of Gay Rights in France, talk

by Tristan Cabello” on Eventbrite.

MEGAN ANDERSON as Queen Elizabeth I and JAKE RYAN LOZANO as Mortimer in ‘Mary Stuart.’

Photo by Teresa Castracane Photography; courtesy Olney

Something about ‘Mary’

Classic German play gets clever Olney production

By PATRICK FOLLIARD

A battle of wills, words and intrigue, the decades-long feud between Queen Elizabeth I and her ill-fated cousin Mary Stuart ranks among English history’s most gripping power struggles. Their story couldn’t be more suited to dramatization, and in his classic “Mary Stuart” (1800), German playwright Friedrich Schiller toys with details but doesn’t stray far from the facts.

Now Schiller’s tale of two queens is being told at Olney Theatre Center with a fresh and suspenseful adaptation by Olney’s out artistic director Jason Loewith. By paring down language, cast and setting, Loewith (who also staged the production) achieves a superb amalgam of classic and current.

Once queen of Scotland (and briefly France), Mary now languishes in dank, cramped quarters as “the guest” of her powerful cousin, the Queen of England.

Mary, played by Eleasha Gamble with a mix of decorum and lively impetuosity, accepts her current situation with regal aplomb while harboring hope for a second shot at the big time.

A legitimate claimant to the English throne with a sizeable Catholic following, Mary is a threat that England’s highest Protestant jury has voted to neutralize.

Wary of regicide, Elizabeth remains decisively ambivalent. Megan Anderson’s Elizabeth is outwardly confident — tailored pants, commanding, a woman in a man’s world, etc. — but beneath the façade she’s not entirely secure. There’s also a lusty side, particularly when handsome younger men are around.

Olney’s intimate Mulitz-Gudelsky black box space has been configured in the round. Set designer Richard Oulette and Loewith’s beautifully simple set is a shiny black octagon with a sort of crown echoing the stage’s shape hanging high above.

It’s well suited to claustrophobic rooms, Elizabeth’s offices and a grassy field.

And the strong, six-person cast, dressed casually in muted tones like casually dressed college faculty members during fall semester (costume designer Ivania Stack cleverly adds an Elizabethan ruff, medal, crucifix or string of pearls to designate rank and station), play multiple roles. In addition to Elizabeth, Anderson lovingly assays Hannah Kennedy, Mary’s elderly companion. Gamble also plays the roles of various noblemen.

Talented actor Chris Genebach brings to life two pivotal, vastly different men: Sir Amyas Paulet, the harsh but principled jailor who won’t engage in shady moves to hasten the prisoner’s demise, as well as the Earl of Leicester, a strapping courtier who uses lovemaking to advance his agenda.

Genebach is equally effective in both parts.

Olney vets Paul Morella and Mitchell Hébert are perfectly cast as Elizabeth’s advisors Lord Burleigh and Shrewsbury, respectively.

Burleigh is itching to behead Mary and excise “popery” from the English isle; whereas, the elder Burleigh advises mercy.

Jake Ryan Lozano excels as Mortimer, Sir Palet’s young nephew who has access to Mary. Recently returned from the continent where he embraced Catholicism and fashion (a flowy, rose-colored scarf) he pledges his allegiance to Mary, confiding that’s he’s raised a posse to liberate her at long last. His dreams are inspired.

Unfortunately, he proves quite mad.

Though Mary and Elizabeth never met in history, Schiller couldn’t resist bringing them together. Released from her rooms for a day, Mary runs barefoot in the grass relishing a tease of freedom.

When Elizabeth arrives unexpectedly on the scene, Mary feigns humility. Elizabeth doesn’t buy it. She insists that her cousin queen lie prostate before her. In a genius bit of staging, both queens lie prostate, their faces close, and as the stage slowly begins to rotate, their feelings are revealed.

After the meeting, Mary’s end is decided.

Cagey as ever, Elizabeth wants to be rid of her rival, but doesn’t want the blame. She places the blame on a royal secretary.

This “Mary Stuart” trains the spotlight on power and patriarchy. And while Mary, the ostensible loser, meets her fate with royal dignity, Elizabeth’s glorious and onerous reign grinds on.

‘Mary Stuart’

Through June 9 Olney Theatre Center 2001 Olney Sandy Spring Rd, Olney, Md. Tickets begin at $54 301-924-3400 olneytheatre.org

4 0 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 41

From top: Baby Simba in the CGI remake of ‘The Lion King.’ Photo courtesy Walt Disney Studios The late FRANK KAMENY (left) with ‘The Lavender Scare’ director JOSH HOWARD

Full Exposure Films

Photo courtesy

Summer movie mayhem

Elton biopic, ‘Lavender Scare,’ fests galore and (of course) superheroes

By BRIAN T. CARNEY The summer 2019 movie season gets off to an exciting start today (May 24) with “Booksmart.” Directed by Olivia Wilde, the wildly original teen comedy stars Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever as best friends (one straight, one lesbian). On the eve of their high school graduation, the academic superstars realize they should have partied more and studied less.

On May 31, get out your feather boas and platform shoes for the highly anticipated opening of “Rocketman,” a musical fantasy about gay superstar Elton John. The film is directed by Dexter Fletcher, who took over at the helm of “Bohemian Rhapsody” after Bryan Singer was fired, and stars Taron Egerton as the legendary performer and Jamie Bell as

Bernie Taupin.

In “Papi Chulo” (slated for a June 7 release), out actor Matt Bomer plays a lonely TV weatherman who develops up an unexpected friendship with a middle-aged Latino migrant worker after having an onair meltdown and losing his boyfriend.

Helmed by out director Nisha Ganatra (the delicious “Chutney Popcorn”), “Late Night” stars Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling (who also wrote the screenplay).

Thompson’s a grumpy comic whose longrunning talk show is slipping in the ratings; Kaling’s the new head writer who’s brought in to save the show (June 7).

Thompson is also featured as a spy boss in “Men in Black: International.”

Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson,

who developed their playful banter as Thor and Valkyrie, take over the popular franchise on June 14.

Who can resist the tagline “More Shaft than you can handle!”? Richard Roundtree recreates his iconic role in “Shaft” when he leads three generations of his family in a search for justice (June 14).

Quentin Tarantino turns his lens on the infamous Manson family in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (July 26). The bloodsoaked cast includes Margot Robbie (Sharon Tate), Dakota Fanning (Squeaky Fromme), Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and the late Luke Perry in his final movie appearance.

Winner of the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival for writer/director Paul Downs Colaizzo, “Brittany Runs a Marathon” stars Jillian Bell (“Rough Night”) as an unemployed 30-something who runs into a delightfully diverse group of people and reclaims her life when she decides to train for the New York City marathon (expected Aug. 23).

While Disney executives figure out how to spend the record-breaking box office receipts from “Avengers: Endgame,” the studio is playing it safe this summer with remakes and sequels of classic animated movies. With Will Smith as the Genie, “Aladdin” takes a live-action magic carpet ride into theaters on May 24. “Toy Story 4” opens June 21. With a star-studded voice cast including Beyoncé, James Earl Jones, Donald Glover and John Oliver, the CGI remake of “The Lion King” roars into theaters July 19.

Also on the family-friendly front, there’s “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” (June 7) and The Angry Birds Movie 2” (Aug. 16).

On the CGI front, fans can return to the new and improved Marvel Cinematic Universe with the X-Men saga “Dark Phoenix” starring Sophie Turner (June 6) and “Spider-Man: Far From Home” with Tom Holland and Zendaya (July 2).

“Godzilla: King of the Monsters” brings the mighty monster back to the screen on May 30. His esteemed co-stars include Mothra, Rodan, the three-headed King Ghidorah, Millie Bobby Brown, Charles Dance, Vera Farmiga, Bradley Whitford, Kyle Chandler, Sally Hawkins, Aisha Hinds, CCH Pounder, David Strathairn and, of course, Ken Watanabe.

Other notable opening include: • Camp goddess Elizabeth Banks in “Brightburn” about a mysterious child from another planet (May 24) • Jim Jarmusch’s hipster zombie comedy “The Dead Don’t Die” with Bill Murrray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Selena Gomez, Steve Buscemi and Tom Waits (June 14) • Daisy Ridley as Ophelia in a retelling of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.” Clive Own, Naomi Watts and George MacKay play the royal family of Denmark. (June 28) • And finally, the long-delayed release of “Where’d You Go, Bernadette?” directed by indie auteur Richard Linklater and starring Cate Blanchett (Aug. 16)

Several local venues will feature interesting special programming this summer.

On Wednesday, June 5, the Avalon Theatre (theavalon.org) will screen “The Lavender Scare” as part of its Wednesday Signature Series. The award-winning documentary examines the Cold War campaign to purge all queer employees from the federal government. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with director Josh Howard, author David Johnson, LGBT advocate Kevin Jennings and Jamie Shoemaker, a gay federal employee who fought back and kept his job.

The summer programming at AFI Silver (afi.com/silver) in downtown Silver Spring includes retrospectives on “Recent Restorations,” “The Fourth Estate Film Series” and Part Two of the “United Artists Centennial Retrospective” which features the 1937 version of “A Star Is Born.”

AFI Silver will also be hosting “Silver Screens,” a series of free outdoor movies on Sonny’s Green. This year’s titles include “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” “Isle of Dogs” and “The Little Mermaid.”

Programming at Baltimore’s SNF Parkway (mdfilmfest.com), the year-round home of the Maryland Film Festival, includes “Pasolini,” an unconventional biopic about the controversial queer filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini (Willem Dafoe) (June 7), and “This One’s for the Ladies,” a fascinating documentary about the sexual and social identities of black male exotic dancers and their female patrons (June 21).

Rescued by community volunteers in 2015, the Old Greenbelt Theatre (greenbelttheatre.org) in the famous core of Greenbelt, Md., offers a wide variety of programming for diverse audiences.

The historic auditorium will be closed for renovations this summer; films will be screened at a temporary pop-up theater next door. To bid the old space farewell, there will be a joyous “Goodbye Gala” on Friday, May 31 and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show Experience,” complete with prop bags and the Sonic Transducers Shadow Cast, on Saturday June 1.

Local film festivals will be a great way to beat the heat this summer. On June 21, D.C. Shorts (dcshorts.com) will host a hilarious evening matching stand-up comics with short cinematic comedies.

From June 19-23, filmmakers from all over the world will gather in Washington for AFI DOCS (afi.com/afidocs), the annual celebration of documentary movies in all shapes and sizes. One of this year’s highlights will be “Gay Chorus Deep South;” writer/director David Charles Rodriguez and producer Bud Johnston will be participating in the prestigious AFI DOCS Impact Lab. Finally, Reel Affirmations, D.C.’s LGBT film festival, has announced two screenings for June: “Steam Room” and “Rafiki.” For schedules and announcements about other summer screenings, check out thedccenter.org/reelaffirmations.

4 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Best Gay Church

Empowerment Liberation Cathedral (ELC) A Church For All People &

Best Gay Pastor +Bishop Allyson Abrams, D.Min

happy pride! wish you a

ELC expands its territory after 5 years.

COMING SOON....

The Empowerment Justice Center (EJC) Will Open Our

WELLNESS CENTER

Located at 7530 Georgia Ave, NW, Washington DC *Opening June 2019

EmpowermentLiberationCathedral EmpowermentJusticeCenter

Empowerment Liberation Cathedral 5301 North Capitol St, NE, DC (PCUCC) Bishop Allyson Nelson Abrams, D.Min, Pastor

@EmpowerCathedral @EmpowermentJusticeCenter

www.empowermentliberationcathedral.org M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 43

From top: INDYA MOORE as Angel in ‘Pose.’ Photo by JoJO Whilden, courtesy FX; JEN RICHARDS as the young Anna Madrigal and DANIELA VEGA as Ysela in ‘Tales of the City.’ Photo courtesy Netflix.

Sizzling summer TV ‘Tales of the City’ revival brings back classic LGBT characters

By BRIAN T. CARNEY

The 2019 summer television season gets off to a terrifying start with “The Perfection.” Already hailed as one of the creepiest movies of the year, the homoerotic horror story stars Allison Williams (“Get Out”) as a former music prodigy and Logan Browning (“Dear White People”) as the new star pupil at her music school. Not for the faint of heart, the movie premieres on Netflix on May 24.

Also streaming today on Netflix is season two of Spike Lee’s “She’s Gotta Have It,” based on his popular movie of the same name.

Baltimore native DeWanda Wise stars as the pansexual street artist Nola Darling. Season one ended with Nola’s three boyfriends storming off and her girlfriend Opal Gilstrap (Ilfenesh Hadera) knocking on the door.

Season two opens 18 months later with the same characters in new configurations.

Also starting today on Netflix is “What/ If” a neo-noir thriller anthology that will focus on a different morality tale each season. In the first 10-episode season, Renée Zellweger stars as Anne Montgomery, a venture capitalist who tempts a young couple (Jane Levy and Blake Jenner) with an offer they probably should refuse. Security on the set is tight, but sources have confirmed that the cast has several gay characters, including Anne’s brother.

The critically acclaimed “Vida” is returning to STARZ for a 10-episode second season starting May 26. The popular series stars Melissa Barrera and Mishel Prada as two Mexican American sisters (one straight, one lesbian) who return to their childhood home in East L.A. after the unexpected death of their mother. As season two starts (May 23), they fight the forces of gentrification to save their mother’s bar with the help of their mother’s lover Eddy (played by non-binary actor Ser Anzoategui).

More timely than ever, with pivotal scenes for the series being shot on the National Mall and real-world protestors appearing in red cloaks like those worn on the series, season three of “The Handmaid’s Tale” starts on Hulu on June 5.

The entire principal cast, including Bradley Whitford as the enigmatic Commander Lawrence, is returning for the new season. “Gender traitor” Emily (Alexis Bledel) has escaped the dystopian world of Gilead with June’s baby, Nicole; June/ Offred (Emmy-winner Elisabeth Moss) has stayed behind to join the Resistance. The phrase “blessed be the fruit” has been replaced with “blessed be the fight.”

The beloved characters from “Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City” return June 7. As the new installment opens on Netflix, Mary Ann Singleton (Laura Linney) returns to family and friends in San Francisco after a 20-year absence. Olympia Dukakis is back as Anna Madrigal, the matriarch of 28 Barbary Lane (with trans actress Jen Richards playing her in flashbacks). The cast includes Murray Bartlett as Michael “Mouse” Tolliver and Paul Gross and Ellen Page as Mary Ann’s ex-husband and daughter.

The LGBT fan favorite “Big Little Lies” returns to HBO for its seven-episode second season on June 9. Meryl Streep joins the cast as Mary Louise Wright who has come to Monterey to investigate her son’s death.

Returning cast members include Laura Dern, Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Reese Witherspoon and Zoë Kravitz.

The HBO comedy series “Los Espookys” begins its six-episode season on June 14. The primarily Spanishlanguage (with English subtitles) show follows a group of friends who turn their love for horror movies into a peculiar business. The cast includes Julio Torres as Andrés, the brooding heir to a chocolate empire and his trophy boyfriend, Juan Carlos (José Pablo Minor).

The magnificent Zendaya leads a strong ensemble cast in “Euphoria,” an eightepisode series, which debuts on HBO on June 16. Based on the ground-breaking Israeli series of the same name, the show follows a group of high-school students as they navigate a minefield of drugs, sex, identity, trauma, social media, love and friendship.

Zendaya plays Rue Bennett, a drug addict fresh from rehab, whose life changes dramatically when she meets Jules Vaughn (Hunter Schafer), a trans girl who recently moved to town following her parents’ divorce.

The fabulous Lady Bunny seizes center stage in the documentary “Wig” which premieres on HBO on June 18. The movie includes appearances by Neil Patrick Harris and husband David Burtka, who helped produce the latest extravaganza, as well performances by dozens of drag queens past and present at the legendary Wigstock.

Finally, created and directed by out writer Russell T. Davies (“Queer as Folk”), the fascinating drama series “Years and Years” debuts on HBO on June 24. Starting in 2019 and extending 15 years into the future, the BBC production focuses on the Lyons family of Manchester, England.

The extended clan includes Daniel (Russell Tovey) and his husband Ralph as well as Stephen (Rory Kinnear) and his wife Celeste and their daughter Bethany who announces that she is “transhuman.”

The cast also includes Emma Thompson as an outspoken political figure whose controversial opinions divide the nation.

House Evangelista is back! Season two of “Pose” struts back into the FX spotlight on June 11. Season one of the wildly popular series made television history by focusing on the stories of trans performers from the New York ball scene of the 1980s and telling those stories with trans actors in front of the camera and trans writers and directors behind the scenes.

“Pose” scored big during awards season. It won several Dorian Awards from GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics including Best TV Drama and Best LGBTQ TV Show, Best Musical Performance (“Home”), Best TV Performance by an Actor (Billy Porter), and, Wilde Artist of the Year (Ryan Murphy).

Season two of the wildly popular series jumps ahead to 1990; the ball scene is threatened by the mainstream appropriation of voguing (thanks Madonna!) and by the spread of the HIV/ AIDS pandemic. The entire ensemble cast is expected to return. Broadway legend and devoted fan Patti LuPone will join the cast and appearances from Sandra Bernhard, Bette Midler and Judith Light are planned.

4 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

MAY 31, 2019 HONORS FIRST...DANCE ALL NIGHT!

N W O D T N HONO RS COU NT

IDE PRESE

L PR + CAPIITA T Y B + SAAM

T H E C A P I TA L P R I D E

!

C E L E BRATI N G OUTS TANDI N G MEMB ERS OF OUR COMMUNIT Y

HERO

Kimberley Bush

HERO

Amanda Hackett

HERO

Rea Carey

HERO

Tony Nelson

HERO

TY R A P F F O K E KIC D I R P L A I C FI

THE OF

HERO

Ben de Guzman Martin Espinoza

BILL MILES AWARD

Alan Thompson

Donald Burch

PAVING THE WAY

ENGENDERED SPIRITS

Larry Villegas-Perez

LARRY STANSBURY AWARD

Xemiyulu Tapepechul

BREAKING BARRIERS

Join us for THE CAPITAL PRIDE HONORS (formerly the Heroes Gala), a reception prior to the COUNTDOWN! Pride Celebration Kick-Off Party, in the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

We will acknowledge outstanding individuals, organizations, and activists who have furthered the causes important to the LGBTQ+ community in the National Capital Region and beyond.

IT’S THE COUNTDOWN TO PRIDE! Join SAAM, BYT, and the Capital Pride Alliance for a Pride kick-off party like you’ve never seen before with an OPEN BAR and stunning entertainment by MGM National Harbor including music, dancing, art activities, and plenty of other reveals! You will also be able to learn more about LGBTQ+ artists in SAAM’s collection.

Besides the open bar, killer music, and amazing performances, what we’re most excited for is to party the night away with AQUARIA, who you might know from the Met Gala and Drag Race and every social media platform.

This is a 21+ event!

HOSTED BY

SMITHSONIAN AMERICAN ART MUSEUM capitalpride.org/honors

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 45

capitalpride.org/kickoff

Busy Black Pride weekend arrives Continued from page 29 Omega Party D.C. events Opening reception and main pass distribution at host hotel Friday, May 24 The Fifthy Shades of Noir Warmup at Hard Rock Cafe Friday, May 24 999 E St., N.W. 8-11 p.m.

May 31 – August 27 Tuesdays at 8 p.m.

U.S. Capitol West Steps

Fridays at 7:30 p.m.

Air Force Memorial

Saturdays at 7 p.m.

National Harbor

FREE! No tickets needed.

No concerts on June 8 ,25, July 2, 5. Outdoor concerts subject to weather cancellation. For more info, please visit our website.

3,000 Men Supreme Fantasy Workout Friday, May 24 With Big Freedia Karma Super Club 2221 Adams Pl. N.E. 10 p.m.-4 a.m.

Mega D.C. Black Pride Appreciation Cookout Party Saturday, May 25 Aqua 1818 New York Ave., N.E. 4-9 p.m.

6K Men Indoor/Outdoor Supreme Fantasy Midnight Festival Saturday, May 25 Keri Hilson D.C. Eagle 3701 Benning Rd., N.E. Six DJs, 20 dancers and thousands of men 10 p.m.-5 a.m.

Pride Manhunt Day Party Sunday, May 26 Eden on the Rooftop 1716 I St., N.W. 5-9 p.m.

3k Men International Traffic Light Hookup Party Sunday, May 26 Ultrabar 911 F St., N.W. Performance by Lightskinkeisha 10 p.m.-4 a.m.

The Apocalypse Meatloaf Chapter XI Monday, May 27 Stadium Club 2127 Queens Chapel Rd., N.E. 9 p.m.-2:30 a.m.

Weekend passes available.

For tickets and full details, visit omegapartydc.com

D.C. Black Pride programming Other weekend highlights (all events at host hotel unless noted otherwise): Saturday, May 25 Rainbow Row organization and vendor expo — 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Health screenings — 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Workshop: “Building the Tribe” — 10 a.m.-noon Workshop: “Resume Writing & Interviewing” — 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Workshop: “Black, LGBTQ and Christian” — 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Workshop: “Ask the Doc: Understanding Health and Wellness” — noon-2 p.m.

ONYX University — noon-5 p.m.

Workshop: “Intro to Government Consulting” — 1-3 p.m.

Workshop: “Trans and Gender Nonconforming Town Hall” — 1-3 p.m.

Literary Cafe: “Remembering Audrey Lorde” — 2-4 p.m.

Workshop: “I Am Impact” storytelling — 2-4 p.m.

Workshop: “Substance Abuse, HIV and Suicide Among Black Queer Communities” — 2-4 p.m.

Workshop: “Trans and Non-binary Youth Town Hall” — 3-4:30 p.m.

7th annual PWAP Party With a Purpose — 3:30-7:30 p.m.

Tranquility Lounge — 3:30-8 p.m.

D.C. Black Pride Mary Bowman Poetry Slam — 6-9 p.m.

Sunday, May 26 Pride Praise Party — 9 a.m.-noon Pride in Harmony Sunday Funday Brunch and Open Mic Exhale Bar & Lounge 1006 Florida Ave., N.E. Sounds of Pride Concert — 1:30-5 p.m.

“One Night Stands” by AfricanAmerican Collective Theater — 4 and 8 p.m.

First Congregational United Church of Christ 945 G St., N.W Monday, May 27 Pride in the Park — 11 a.m.-6 p.m.

Fort Dupont Park Minnesota Ave., S.E.

www.usafband.af.mil 4 6 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Shirt T-Christo $248 Jean: Delaware : $198 Shoes: Mirage-Tenn $398

Full name: Dan Adler Occupation: Commercial Real Estate Favorite local restaurant: Floriana Favorite local bar/lounge: Dito’s Bar at Floriana Favorite vacation spot: Burning Man Favorite Charity: University of Virginia Favorite thing to do on a weekend: Watch a movie at home

Dan is wearing the latest items from the Summer 2019 collection.

Georgetown • 1517 Wisconsin Avenue NW • Washington, DC 20007 • 202.625.2677

Mention this editorial and receive a 20% discount on your regular price purchase only at HUGO BOSS Georgetown.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 47

No chimichangas here Lauded Mexico City-based chef brings skill to Buena Vida

By EVAN CAPLAN

+ Largest LGBT owned title company + Billions of dollars in transactions closed annually + 6 in house attorneys + Residential and commercial transactions + In home and in office refinance settlements + Licensed in DC, DE, MD, NJ, VA & WV

Chef GERARDO VAZQUEZ LUGO says his food philosphy is ‘fresh, yet respectful of ancient cultures.’

Photo couresy Buena Vida

Last year at this time, chef Gerardo Vázquez Lugo was a celebrated figure in his hometown of Mexico City, a driving force of the slow cooking movement with two lauded restaurants to his name. He did not yet, however, know his way around Arlington.

All that changed by March 16, when he took his spot at the helm of the threestory, three-concept Buena Vida/TTT Clarendon (2900 Wilson Blvd., Arlington/ buenavidarestaurant.com), where he is stamping his vivacious spirit and wildly creative skillet. Fajitas, however, will likely not be on the menu.

“I’m presenting the face of Mexican cuisine, a vision that is fresh yet respectful of ancient cultures,” he says. “It’s not what it seems we all think about Mexican food.

I’m sourcing fresh and seasonal products in traditional recipes reinvented in a modern way. Even though the recipes are simple they are sustainable and socially responsible cooking.”

Vázquez Lugo, who is gay, also remains the executive chef of Nicos, a homey restaurant his parents founded in 1957.

Sixty years later, Nicos was named one of ADVERTISING PROOF the 50 Best Restaurants in Latin America while maintaining its family roots in a city bursting with cutting-edge, avant-garde restaurants. He and his mother received The Diners Club Lifetime Achievement Award 2018 for their joint contribution to Mexican cuisine. He spends most of his ADVERTISER SIGNATURE By signing this proof you are agreeing to your contract obligations with the washington blade newspaper. This includes is notNicos limited to placement, timebutat in Mexico City but came to payment and insertion schedule. the U.S. to oversee the menu at Buena Vida.

Vázquez Lugo came to the Buena Vida project auspiciously. Owner Ivan Iricanin (CEO of Street Guys Hospitality, which runs the three Ambar restaurants, among others) took himself on a fact-finding trip to Mexico at the end of 2018 for his other Mexican destination, Buena Vida/TTT in Silver Spring.

At Nicos, he found himself impressed.

“I asked to see the chef,” he says,

703.237.5000 DONBEYERVOLVO.COM

Test Drive the All-New

VOLVO XC60

ISSUE DATE: 181026

NS GN EVISIONS /LOGO REVISIONS SIONS

SALES REPRESENTATIVE:

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

“but they told me he was a celebrity and couldn’t talk.”

The staff finally granted Iricanin 15 minutes for his presentation. Vázquez Lugo was in.

While Iricanin brings his original plan to bear at Buena Vida (three floors, three menus, three concepts, three soundtracks), it is Vázquez Lugo’s commitment to tradition and personal passion that arrive on the plate.

“My idea is to present Mexico away from chimichangas,” he says. “I want to change the stereotype of greasy pork for authentic heritage.”

In Mexico, Vázquez Lugo is a leader of the slow food movement, which dedicates itself to social and environmental responsibility. He’s brought this philosophy with him across the border to Buena Vida and its many spaces.

Upon entering, ground-floor TTT bustles as a relaxed streetside cafe (including patio seating) bursting with art. A bakery is the centerpiece, churning out from-scratch tortillas, fluffy tortas and sweets like buñuelos from the coast of Yucatan.

As a good D.C.-area restaurant, it’ll serve brunch as well as lunch and dinner.

A flight up, Buena Vida is the main attraction and where Vázquez Lugo finds his strength. At its core, it’s a “a menu showcasing traditional, indigenous fare,” he says.

“This restaurant is representative of Nicos and its commitment to tradition,” Vázquez Lugo says.

Interactive service is a mainstay there; Buena Vida waiters prepare Caesar salads tableside as Nicos staff does in honor of the iconic dish’s invention in Tijuana.

Family-recipe guac — a simple prep of avocado, onion and olive oil, without lime — comes this way as well.

Continues at washingtonblade.com

4 8 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Ready to Own, Ready to Live at National Harbor!

Only 3 remaining for this special!

VA loans with $0 down and all closing costs paid*

Tom Gaffney | Senior Loan Officer NMLS ID #182206

Current Incentives**

703.307.5877

tgaffney@fhmtg.com www.GaffneyLoans.com

• 1 year of Condo fees paid • Washer and dryer level 1 included • 2" faux wood white blinds – excluding the transoms • American Express $2500 gift card included

**not valid on previous contracts and must settle on or before 5/31/19.

First Heritage Mortgage, LLC 3201 Jermantown Road, Suite 800 Fairfax, VA 22030 First Heritage Mortgage, LLC | Company NMLS ID #86548 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org) This is an advertisement and not a guarantee of lending. Terms and conditions apply. All approvals subject to underwriting guidelines. Prepared: 09/05/2018.

*Closing costs paid when using First Heritage Mortgage and does not include pre-paids. Pricing and terms may change, please speak with Loan Officer.

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 49

** not valid on previous contracts and must settle on or before 12/31/18.

MHBR #6755

Potomac Overlook Brownstones from the $600's 503 Halliard Lane, National Harbor, MD 20745 sales@integrityhmw.com | (703) 955-1187

5 0 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

STONEWALL 50

GRAB A COFFEE. TAKE A SURVEY.

CHANGE THE WORLD. M A K I N G A D I F F E R E N C E I S E A S Y.

Take the 13th Annual LGBTQ Community Survey ® Join 45,000 LGBTQ citizens from 150 countries to take the largest survey of its kind!

LGBTQsurvey.com Community Marketing & Insights is Proudly LGBTQ-Operated, Founded in 1992.

Your survey information is confidential and secure, used for research only.

You will not be contacted for marketing purposes. Learn more: www.CMI.info

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 51

A MUSICAL CELEBRATION OF THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE SPARK THAT IGNITED THE PRIDE MOVEMENT

June 1 8PM | June 2 3PM | Lincoln Theatre | 1215 U Street NW For tickets, call 877-435-9849 or visit GMCW.org For tickets and groups of 10 or more call 202-293-1548

PRESENTED BY

f

e

s

t

IN COLLABORATION WITH

i

N A H T E MOR

0 5 1

v

a

l

11 DAYS

. . . s t n e ev

: E U EN

V OURGS E N O DES FAUB S C E PAR G STA S!!

O S TW CCE

EA E! E T R A F ED H T E SAV

5 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 53

FREE and all ages are welcome!

I N A U G U R A L F I R E W O R K S S H O W AT 9 P M

5 4 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

11th annua annual al DC CH Housing ousing E Expo xpo & Home Show w Saturday, June 15, 2019 | 10 am - 3 pm |

Washington Convention Center Hall D 801 Mt. Vernon Place NW

NEW FOR 2019 $5,000 FURNITURE FURNITURE GIVEAWAY $5,000 GIVEAWAY WHUR and Lillie’s Furniture Gallerie are partnering to raffle* a living room furniture set (sofa, chair, two tables, rug, and two pillows). * Furniture will be displayed on main stage. Raffle tickets will be at LFG booth; drawing will occur on main stage around 2:30 p.m. Winner does not need to be present to win. LFG will work with winner to arrange for furniture pick-up.

Also At This FREE Event 

Explore 125+ Exhibitors and 20+ Workshops



Explore Tools for Tenants and Landlords



Visit Home Design Center



Learn How to Stay Safe and Mobile at Home



Learn About Smart Home Technology



Get Kids and Teens Financially Fit



Stop by Small Business Marketplace



Win Prizes and Giveaways



Access Housing and Job Search Resources



Get Free Credit Reports and Counseling



Find Out About Home Purchase Assistance

Download

the Official Expo Event App.

The Event Code is 2019expo.

202-442-7200 dchousingexpo2019.eventbrite.com M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 55

Rehoboth Summer Kickoff Party

The Washington Blade held its 12th annual Summer Kickoff Party in Rehoboth Beach, Del. at the Blue Moon on Friday May 17. HRC National Press Secretary Sarah McBride served as guest speaker.

Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt

5 6 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Capital Trans Pride Capital Trans Pride held events over the weekend at Eaton Hotel D.C. and Studio Theatre. Events included workshops, a resource fair, gatherings and a screening of ‘The Garden Left Behind.’

Photos by Ted Eytan

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA D E.COM • 57

5 8 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

Greener grass and other falsehoods The perils of living on a septic system

By VALERIE M. BLAKE The late Erma Bombeck was a nationally syndicated humor columnist writing “At Wits End” beginning in the mid-1960s. In 1976, she wrote a book entitled “The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank.” It followed a young couple who left the city for what they thought would be an easy life in the suburbs, and the comical problems they faced. This is where my story begins.

In May 2018, I put my beach house, Chez Soleil, on the market. I am under contract by July 25 and during the home inspection, I learn that my septic tank has failed. Now, I’m a city girl with a little bit of the suburbs in me, just like the book, so I have no idea what to do about it.

Thankfully, my colleagues, Anh Boesch and Marilyn Emery, tell me about the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund under the jurisdiction of the Maryland Departments of Health (MDH) and the Environment (MDE).

Under certain conditions, they will finance the replacement of my septic system with a grant.

7/30/18 – I contact MDH and learn that grant money is available. My house is in the critical area and gets first crack at the funds. I submit forms to start the process and they send me a list of 78 local contractors who do septic work.

8/13/18 – By now, eight installers have viewed the premises and declined the job.

The lot is too small, the road is too narrow, the retaining wall prohibits use of their excavation equipment. Little things like that.

8/22/18 – Stephen Hayden of Paul Hayden Plumbing agrees to do the job and meets with the sanitarian from MDH. The job will require holding tanks instead of a septic system. MDH says tanks are not covered by the grant. I must remove the retaining wall I built three months earlier. My beautiful deck overlooking the water must come down.

Stephen finds a mason for the retaining

My water view came at a steep cost when the septic system failed.

Photo by jafara; courtesy of Bigstock

wall and verifies that I can get the grant because of the size of my yard (hooray!).

After three false starts, Stephen locates a contractor and asks him to verify that county code will allow the deck to be reinstalled. Contractor doesn’t know but accepts the challenge.

10/25/18 – With both contractors finally hired, MDH sends me a list of requirements to secure the grant. No, I can’t just hire Stephen, who has been working on this with me since August. I need three bids to install the holding tanks, which I can’t get until I received the specifications from MDE. 11/7/18 – Specifications arrive.

Christmas comes and goes before I can get other bidders even remotely interested in the job. Several don’t answer the phone or call me back. One will bid but is unavailable for six months. Another needs permission to bring his equipment across the neighbor’s front yard. Five voicemails to the neighbor yield no results.

1/3/19 – Happy New Year! I am finally able to submit three bids to MDH, which

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA D E.COM • 59

approves them six days later. I select Stephen Hayden again.

1/25/19 – Construction permit arrives, and I learn that I have been approved for a $20,000 grant, which will pay for about 60 percent of the job. Work must be completed within 45 days. Stephen has four customers ahead of me. Building inspector says we must have a structural engineer approve the deck plans.

3/20/19 – The deck contractor sends plans with the engineer’s approval to me.

Steps to the deck are drawn in the wrong place. He says it won’t matter because “everybody just draws plans by hand and permits are fast-tracked on Wednesdays.”

Then he goes on vacation.

3/22/19 – Holding tanks arrive with faulty lids and must be reordered.

MDH approves an extension of time for completion of the job. Extraordinarily patient buyers cancel the contract and I pour myself a Scotch and water.

4/22/19 – After two weeks of rain delays the job begins, and tank installation

is complete four days later. The mason reinstalls the retaining wall the following week. Where’s the deck guy?

5/6/19 – Mr. Deck sheepishly tells me that we will need a full set of architectural plans drawn after all, and we must run everything by MDE for approval. No fasttracking for this gal.

5/24/19 – Still waiting. Still drinking.

Whatever happens, the next buyer will get a fully renovated, water view cottage, with a new septic system, retaining wall, and deck.

And I will never buy a house on a septic system again, no matter how much greener the grass is.

Valerie M. Blake is a licensed Associate Broker in D.C., Maryland and Virginia and Director of Education & Mentorship at RLAH Real Estate. Reach her at 202-246-8602, DCHomeQuest.com, or follow her on Facebook at TheRealst8ofAffairs.

DEADLINES

SHARE ADS ARE FREE.

All Classified Ads - Including Regular & Adult Must Be Received

By Mondays at 5PM So They Can Be Included in That Week’s Edition of Washington Blade and washingtonblade.com

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.* *25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.*

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

BULLETIN BOARD

MASSAGE

COUNSELING COUNSELING FOR LGBTQ People. Individual/ couple counseling with a volunteer peer counselor.

GMCC, servicing since 1973. 202-580-8661. gaymenscounseling.org. No fees, donation requested.

EMPLOYMENT ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT. Metropolitan Community Church of Washington is hiring a part time Admin. Contact admin@mccdc. com for full job description and details.

Representing the GLBT

community for over 35 years.

Family adoptions, estate planning,

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.*

CASH FOR ESTATES; MOVING, ETC. I buy a wide range of items. Buy out / clean up. TheAtticLLC.com, Gary Roman 301-520-0755.

*25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

FULL SERVICE LAW FIRM

SHARE ADS ARE FREE

PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS ONLINE

immigration, employment. (301)

891-2200. Silber, Perlman, Sigman & Tilev, P.A. www.SP-Law. com.

*25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

WHOLISTIC SERVICES, INC. Seeking Full Time Direct Support Professionals to assist intellectually disabled adults with behavioral health complexities in group homes & day services throughout D.C. Requirements: Valid Driver’s License, able to lift 50-75 lbs., complete training program, become Med Certified within 6 months of hire, pass security background check. (Associates degree preferred) For more information please contact Human Resources @ 301-392-2500.

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.

LIMOUSINES KASPER’S LIVERY SERVICE Since 1987.

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

Phone 202-554-2471.

TELL ‘EM YOU saw their ad in the Blade classifieds!

CLEANING

LEGAL SERVICES

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

ADOPTION, DONOR, SURROGACY legal services.

Jennifer represents LGBTQ clients in DC, MD & VA interested in adoption or ART matters. 240-863- 2441, JFairfax@jenniferfairfax.com.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Results-Oriented • Affordable

Larry Cohen, LICSW

30 years serving the LGBT community

202-244-0903 socialanxietyhelp.com

See website for NPR story on my work

SIMPLE AFFORDABLE PROVEN RESULTS

CALL TODAY TOPLACE YOUR AD

202.747.2077

DAVE LLOYD & ASSOCIATES Top 1% Nationwide NVAR Life Member Top Producder

703-593-3204

WWW.DAVELLOYD.NET ENTHUSIASTICALLY SERVING DC & VIRGINIA

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.* *25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

SIMPLE AFFORDABLE PROVEN RESULTS

CALL TODAY TOPLACE YOUR AD

202.747.2077

6 0 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

DEADLINES

SHARE ADS ARE FREE.

All Classified Ads - Including Regular & Adult Must Be Received

By Mondays at 5PM So They Can Be Included in That Week’s Edition of Washington Blade and washingtonblade.com

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.* *25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

Place your HOUSING TO SHARE ad online at washingtonblade.com and the ad prints free in the paper and online.*

PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS ONLINE

WASHINGTONBLADE.COM

RENT / DC

Playmates and soul mates...

*25 words or less prints free - anything more is $1/word.

PLUMBERS ELECTRICANS COMPLETE ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS, INC. quality work by professionals at reasonable rates, residential / commercial.

Serving the DMV for over 20 years, no job too small.

301-530-1925.

HOME IMPROVEMENT PLASTERING & STUCCO Quality work. DC licensed http://www.rtbullard.com.

703-845-1565.

BRITISH REMODELING HANDYMAN

Local licensed company with over 25 years of experience.

Specializing in bathrooms, kitchens & all interior/exterior repairs. Drywall, paint, electric & wallpaper. Trevor 703-303-8699.

DIAL A PLUMBER, LLC - FULL SERVICE PLUMBER JUST SAY: I NEED A PLUMBER! Bathroom Sinks, Tubs, Vanities, Kitchen Sinks, Disposals, Boilers & Furnaces, Hot Water Heaters, Drain Service! 202-251-1479.

Licensed, Bonded & Insured.

DC Plumbers License #707.

Visa, MasterCard, American Express accepted.

MOVERS AROUND TOWN MOVERS. Professional Moving & Storage. Let Our Movers Do The Heavy Lifting.

Mention the ‘Blade’ for 5% off of our regular rates. Call today 202.734.3080. www. aroundtownmovers.com

M AY 24, 2019 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 61

Washington:

202-448-0824

BEAUTIFUL HISTORIC BLOOMINGDALE – Large 1000 sqft, 2BR/1BA Eng. Bsmt.

Kitchen, w/ granite upscale appl. Full-size W/D. Bath w/ radiant-heat flr., storage. NO dogs, NO smoking. Walk to restaurants, shopping, Green & Red line. 1m to Capitol Hill.

Gated front & back, Security, Rent $2,150.00 + 1mth sec. dep. Email, elizabethj8560@ yahoo.com.

BODYWORK THE MAGIC TOUCH: Swedish,

Massage or Deep Tissue. Appts 202486-6183, Low Rates, 24/7, In-Calls.

18+ MegaMates.com

Make Summer 2019 Your Year to Move to the Beach!

24438 Putters Drive, The Peninsula Offered at $1,499,900 | MLS Number: DESU140020 EXCEPTIONAL LUXURY Original Echelon model home in The Peninsula, a Jack Nicklaus signature golf course in eclectic Coastal Delaware, delivers amazing style, custom design, and unparalleled amenities with low property taxes.

36347 Warwick Drive, Rehoboth Beach Offered at $499,900 | MLS: 1007522996 ALWAYS IN SEASON Spacious and like-new, this luxury low-maintenance carriage home offers impeccable taste and style!

16698 Ki ngs H i ghway S t e . A , L e w e s , D E 1 9958 • ( 3 02) 645- 6 66 4 • L e e A n n Gr o u p . c o m

6 2 • WAS H IN GTO N B LAD E.CO M • M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9

M AY 2 4 , 2 0 1 9 • WA SHINGTONBLA DE.COM • 63

Celebrating 10 Years in DC HIVcare.org

Dr. Roxanne Cox-Iyamu, MD

William, AHF Client

New Location! 2141 K Street NW Suite 707 | (202) 329-7189