Local
UPDATE: Md. braces for close vote on marriage
House committee advances bill; GOP lawmaker announces support
About 500 LGBT rights supporters turned out for the annual Lobby Day in Annapolis this week. For the first time, Gov. Martin O’Malley addressed the gathering. (Washington Blade photo by Steve Charing)
The Maryland House of Delegates is preparing for a close vote on a bill to legalize same-sex marriage on Friday.
The vote is expected just days after the measure was moved to the floor following approval by a joint committee on Tuesday.
Gov. Martin O’Malley introduced the Civil Marriage Protection Act as part of his legislative package. A similar measure passed the Senate but died in the House last year after supporters determined they didn’t have sufficient votes for passage in the lower chamber.
“Today’s vote on the Civil Marriage Protection Act is a significant step forward for the passage of this bill in Maryland,” O’Malley said in a statement after Tuesday’s committee vote. “Together, we will continue our work to ensure that our State protects religious freedom and provides equal protection under the law for all Marylanders.”
The Judiciary Committee and the Health & Government Operations Committee heard joint testimony last week on the marriage bill. The committees voted jointly over several hours late Tuesday afternoon. The vote was 25-18 in favor, with one abstention, Del. Sam Arora (D-Mont. Co.), a former supporter of the bill.
“We just took another step toward civil marriage equality becoming a reality in Maryland; the momentum is with us,” the group Marylanders for Marriage Equality said in a statement. “We thank all supportive Delegates for their leadership on this very important issue that will improve the lives of thousands of Maryland families and help put the state on the right side of history.”
Del. Kathleen Dumais (D-Montgomery County), who serves as vice chair of the Judiciary Committee, said the marriage bill was scheduled to be taken up on the House floor on Thursday for a second-reading vote following an informal first-reading of the bill on the floor on Wednesday. All bills are open to proposed amendments during the second reading. She said a final, third reading, debate and vote on the bill was expected to take place in the House on Friday.
“I feel positive that it will pass the House this year,” she told the Blade on Wednesday.
Although supporters hailed the joint vote by the two committees to approve legislation to legalize same-sex marriage, a breakdown of the vote shows that the bill lost among Judiciary Committee members by a vote of 11-10, with the one abstention by Arora. The vote breakdown shows that Health and Government Operations Committee members voted to approve the bill by a margin of 15-7, with one member absent.
The large margin of approval by the HGO Committee clearly put the bill over the top in the combined vote. The development confirms speculation that House Speaker Michael Busch (D-Anne Arundel County) gave the HGO Committee jurisdiction over the bill along with the Judiciary panel this year because he knew in advance that the Judiciary Committee lacked the votes to approve a marriage bill.
The Judiciary panel approved the bill last year by a one-vote margin, with Chairman Joseph Vallario (D-Calvert & Prince George’s County) voting for the bill. Vallario voted against the bill at Tuesday’s joint committee session. Arora also voted for the bill in committee last year but made it clear that he would not vote for it on the House floor.
His abstention this year highlights the surprise and disappointment among many LGBT activists in Maryland who supported Arora’s 2010 election campaign in which he ran on a platform of support for a same-sex marriage equality bill. Last year he initially signed on as a co-sponsor for the bill before he announced that based on religious beliefs he could no longer support the legislation.
No vote was taken in the joint committee session on a proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, but the joint panel voted down five proposed amendments to the Civil Marriage Protection Act, including:
• An amendment to eliminate all sex education in public schools, which failed 26-17;
• An amendment calling for parental consent before using materials that address “non-traditional families” in schools, which failed 27-16;
• An amendment to prohibit minors from marrying someone of the same sex, which failed 26-17;
• An amendment to change the effective date of the bill to Jan. 1, 2013, which failed 24-21;
• And an amendment to change the bill from marriage to civil unions, which failed 27-17.
In a related development, Del. Robert Costa, a Republican from Anne Arundel County, announced Tuesday that he will vote for the marriage bill.
“I think it’s not a state function to decide who can marry,” the Annapolis Capital quoted him as saying. “I do what I believe is right for people. I don’t think that matters. I represent constituents and not a party.”
The announcement drew quick praise from LGBT advocates.
“The fact that Del. Costa is going to support this bill publicly is really demonstrating the momentum for this and how quickly the momentum is growing,” Equality Maryland Executive Director Carrie Evans told the Blade. “It’s significant like Sen. Allan Kittleman’s vote was last year. We know it isn’t a partisan issue. We finally see evidence that it’s not. Del. Costa represents a fairly rural district and he’s with us.”
And in another development, a one-time supporter of the same-sex marriage bill who startled LGBT advocates last year by saying she was backing away from her support told the Blade that she has yet to decide how she will vote on the bill this year.
Del. Jill Carter (D-Baltimore) told the Blade last week that she’s concerned that some news media outlets incorrectly reported last year that she voted against the same-sex marriage bill in committee.
“In fact, I voted for it,” she said. “I’m not ready to say what I’ll do this year.” She voted for the bill in committee Tuesday.
Carter spoke to the Blade outside a House of Delegates hearing room in Annapolis on Feb. 10 in which two committees conducted a joint hearing on both the Civil Marriage Protection Act, which would allow same-sex couples to marry, and a separate bill calling for a state constitutional amendment to restrict marriage to a union only between a man and a woman.
Similar to last year, political pundits in the state believe the Maryland Senate is poised to pass the marriage bill and reject the proposed constitutional amendment.
But observers say the marriage bill’s prospects in the House of Delegates are uncertain. Supporters say they hope to persuade the small number of delegates that declined to back the bill last year and who are needed for the bill’s passage this year to change their minds and vote for it.
Virginia
Man went on ‘homophobic rant’ inside Va. pub that displayed Pride flags
Suspect arrested on charges of public intoxication, assaulting police officer
The Hawk & Griffin British Pub located in Vienna, Va., posted a message on Facebook last week saying a man was arrested after going on a “homophobic rant” inside the pub on June 28 when he saw that LGBTQ Pride flags were displayed at the pub for Pride month.
“Last night we had an incident here at the pub when a man came off the street to accost patrons in our beer garden because of our flags displayed for pride month,” the Hawk & Griffin Facebook posting says. “He then spit on our windows and came inside to confront our staff and patrons with homophobic rants,” the posting continues.
“Our manager and staff handled the situation very professionally and police were called to investigate and later arrested a man a couple of blocks away,” the message says. “We want to thank the Vienna Police Department for their quick response. We are and will continue to be community focused and we will never stop working to create and maintain a place of inclusion and tolerance,” the statement concludes.
Vienna police charged Justin Wayne Hendricks, of no known address, with misdemeanor counts of being “drunk in public” and providing false identification to a police officer and with a felony count of assault on a police officer. A police spokesperson said Hendricks was also found to be in violation of an outstanding arrest warrant from Alexandria, Va., related to a prior charge of failing to register as a sex offender.
The spokesperson, Juan Vazquez, said Hendricks is currently being held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center. Online records for the Fairfax County General District Court show that Hendricks is scheduled to appear at a preliminary hearing on Oct. 9.
“On Friday, June 28, around 9:28 p.m. the Vienna Police Department responded to reports of an intoxicated individual threatening customers of the Hawk & Griffin,” a Vienna police statement says. “Upon the arrival of the officers the individual had already left the premises but was promptly located at an address nearby,” according to the statement.
The statement adds that Hendricks was subsequently charged with being drunk in public, providing false information about his identity to police, and assault on a police officer along with being served with the outstanding warrant related to the prior charge in Alexandria of failing to register as a sex offender.
Details of the prior sex offender charge couldn’t immediately be obtained from online court records. However, the online records show that Hendricks has at least a dozen or more prior arrests between 2014 and 2023 on charges including public intoxication, trespassing, and failing to register as a sex offender.
Police spokesperson Vazquez said it would be up to prosecutors with the office of the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney to determine if a subsequent hate crime related charge would be filed in the case.
Virginia
Parades, community events held to mark Pride Month in Va.
Upwards of 30,000 people attended PrideFest in Norfolk on June 22
Activists across Virginia last month held a series of events to mark Pride Month.
Hampton Roads Pride, a volunteer-run organization founded in 1997, held 37 different Pride events throughout the region in June.
Their biggest event, PrideFest, which is part of their larger three day event, Pride Weekend, celebrated its 36th anniversary on June 22. Pride Weekend took place from June 21-23 and began with a block party at NorVa in Norfolk.
PrideFest took place at Town Point Park, and an estimated 30,000 people attended. More than 70 venders participated, while Todrick Hall and Mariah Counts are among those who performed.
Another PrideFest event with a DJ in the afternoon and live music at night took place in Virginia Beach on June 23. Congressman Bobby Scott and U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) are among those who attended Pride events in Suffolk on June 30.
Norfolk Mayor Kenneth Alexander, along with members of the Norfolk and Virginia Beach City Councils, also attended the Pride events in their respective cities. Jamar Walker, the first openly gay federal judge in Virginia, also took part.
“You know people all throughout Pride Month, at all of our various events, tell me all kinds of stories about their own experiences and the past of this community … and some of our older folks especially, remember when we couldn’t have this,” Hampton Roads Pride President Jeff Ryder told the Washington Blade on Monday during a telephone interview.
“It was a great year,” he added. “It was a big achievement for us to have unique celebrations in each of our seven communities. Each of these cities is so different from one another, but to be able to create a Pride celebration that’s unique in each of those places was really great, and I think really well received by folks who may not have felt represented previously. We’re always trying to do better, to embrace every aspect of our community, and take a big step forward there this year.”
State Dels. Adele McClure (D-Arlington County) and Alfonso Lopez (D-Arlington County) are among those who spoke at Arlington Pride that took place at Long Bridge Park on June 29. The Fredericksburg Pride march and festival took place the same day at Riverfront Park in Fredericksburg.
Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin on June 10 hosted a Pride Month reception in Richmond.
Youngkin in previous years has hosted Pride Month receptions, even though Equality Virginia and other advocacy groups have criticized him for supporting anti-LGBTQ bills.
The Republican governor in March signed a bill that codified marriage equality in Virginia. Youngkin last month vetoed a measure that would have expanded the definition of bullying in the state.
Baltimore
Baltimore street named in honor of trans activist
Iya Dammons is founder of support groups Safe Haven in Baltimore, D.C.
Baltimore city officials and LGBTQ activists participated in a ceremony on June 29 officially dedicating the renaming of a street in honor of transgender woman Iya Dammons, who founded and serves as executive director of the LGBTQ services organization Maryland Safe Haven.
A section of Baltimore’s 21st Street at the intersection of North Charles Street, where the Maryland Safe Haven offices are located, has been renamed Iya Dammons Way.
The ceremony took place six years after Dammons founded Maryland Safe Haven in 2018 and one year after she launched a Safe Haven operation in D.C.in 2023 located at 331 H St., N.E.
A statement on its website says Safe Haven provides a wide range of supportive services for LGBTQ people in need, with a special outreach to Black trans women “navigating survival mode” living.
“Through compassionate harm reduction and upward mobility services, advocacy support, and community engagement, we foster a respectful, non-judgmental environment that empowers individual agency,” the statement says. “Our programs encompass community outreach, a drop-in center providing HIV testing, harm reduction, PrEP, medical linkage, case management, and assistance in accessing housing services,” it says.
Among those participating in the street renaming ceremony were Baltimore City Council member Zeke Cohen, interim director of Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs Alexis Blackmon, and Dominique Morgan, an official with the national foundation Borealis Philanthropy, which provides financial support for transgender supportive nonprofit organizations, including Safe Haven.
“This is a significant achievement and historic moment for our city,” a statement by Maryland Safe Haven announcing the ceremony says. “Iya Dammons has been a tireless advocate for transgender rights and has worked tirelessly to provide safe spaces and resources for transgender individuals in our city,” it says. “This honor is well-deserved, and we are thrilled to see her contributions recognized in such a meaningful way.”
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