Connect with us

Local

Markell: Same-sex marriage is in Delaware’s ‘best interest’

Governor on new bill, Ken Mehlman and gay GOP state leader

Published

on

Jack Markell, Equality Delaware, Delaware, gay news, Washington Blade, gay marriage, same sex marriage, marriage equality, HB 75, marriage equality

Jack Markell, Equality Delaware, Delaware, gay news, Washington Blade, gay marriage, same sex marriage, marriage equality, HB 75, marriage equality

Gov. Jack Markell (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell told the Washington Blade on Friday the push to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples in his state is about ā€œhaving a sense of what’s right.ā€

ā€œIt’s also about having a sense of what’s in the best interest of our state,ā€ he said as he discussed the impact he said nuptials for gays and lesbians would have on Delaware’s economy. ā€œBusinesses want to hire the very best people. They don’t care about their race. They don’t care about their gender. They don’t care about their sexual orientation. They just want to get great people. We want to have the kind of welcoming environment where talented people no matter their background feel welcome.ā€

Markell, who signed Delaware’s civil unions bill into law in 2011, spoke with the Blade a day after he and other elected officials attended a Wilmington press conference at which state Rep. Melanie George Smith (D-Bear) formally introduced the same-sex marriage proposal.

None of House Bill 75’s 22 co-sponsors in both legislative chambers are Republican.

The governor told the Blade that former Republican National Committee Chair Ken Mehlman expressed a ā€œwillingness to make some phone calls he thought would be helpfulā€ when they met in New York City after the civil unions law took effect in January 2012.

ā€œI’m sure we’ll tap into a lot of people who are interested in helping,ā€ Markell said.

He added he feels marriage rights for same-sex couples should not be a partisan issue. The governor also responded to reports the executive committee of the Sussex County Republican Committee on Monday approved a non-binding resolution to remove John Fluharty, the state GOP’s gay executive director, over his support of same-sex marriage.

ā€œIt’s just one more reason that the Republicans really need to think through how they’re going to win elections in the future,ā€ Markell said. ā€œPeople are looking for political parties that are open and inclusive and that have big tents. I know a lot of Republicans who don’t share the view of some of those who wanted to push him out.ā€

Neighboring Maryland is among the nine states and D.C. in which same-sex couples can legally marry.

Lawmakers in Rhode Island and Illinois are expected to vote on proposals in the coming weeks that would extend marriage rights to gays and lesbians in their respective states.

Markell said he spoke earlier this year with Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley about same-sex marriage, although he described the issue as ā€œstate-by-state.ā€ He applauded Equality Delaware for its efforts leading up to HB 75’s introduction.

ā€œThe most important thing we have is a very strong group of advocates,ā€ Markell said. ā€œThey [Equality Delaware] have done just an excellent job and I think that will be the single most important factor in getting something done here.ā€

A Global Strategy Group poll that Equality Delaware commissioned in February shows 54 percent of Delawareans support same-sex marriage. An ABC News/Washington Post survey released last month indicates 58 percent of Americans back nuptials for gays and lesbians.

ā€œWe’re a reflection of the changing mood nationally around this issue,ā€ Markell told the Blade in response to a question about how he feels Delaware factors into the same-sex marriage movement that continues to gain momentum. ā€œFour years ago in Delaware it was legal to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, and we have a potential of going in four years from that to marriage equality. That is a major step forward.ā€

Advertisement
FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM
SIGN UP FOR E-BLAST

Maryland

A Baltimore theater educator lost jobs at Johns Hopkins and the Kennedy Center

Tavish Forsyth concluded they could not work for Trump

Published

on

Tavish Forsyth, a queer artist and educator, posted a nude video on YouTube in protest of the Trump administration’s takeover of the Kennedy Center earlier this year. (Photo by Jessica Gallagher for the Baltimore Banner)

BY WESLEY CASE | Tavish Forsyth had come to a conclusion: They could not work for President Donald Trump.

So the 32-year-old Baltimore resident stripped down, turned on their camera, and lit their career on fire.

ā€œF—— Donald Trump and f—— the Kennedy Center,ā€ a naked Forsyth, an associate artistic lead at the Washington National Opera’s Opera Institute, which is run by the Kennedy Center, said in a video that went viral. The board of the nation’s leading cultural institution had elected Trump just weeks prior as its chairman after he gutted the board of members appointed by his predecessor, President Joe Biden.

The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

Continue Reading

District of Columbia

Little Gay Pub to host April 25 celebration of life for Patrick Shaw

School teacher, D.C. resident praised for ā€˜warmth, humor, kindness’

Published

on

Patrick Shaw (Photo via GoFundMe)

Co-workers and friends will hold a celebration of life for highly acclaimed schoolteacher and D.C. resident Patrick Shaw beginning at 5:30 p.m. Friday, April 25 at The Little Gay Pub 1100 P St., N.W.

Little Gay Pub co-owner and Shaw’s friend, Dusty Martinez, said Shaw passed away unexpectedly on April 19 from a heart related ailment at the age of 60.

ā€œPatrick touched so many lives with his warmth, humor, kindness, and unmistakable spark,ā€ Martinez said. ā€œHe was a truly special soul – funny, vibrant, sassy, and full of life and we are heartbroken by his loss.ā€

In an Instagram posting, Shaw’s colleagues said Shaw was a second-grade special education teacher at the J.F. Cook campus of D.C.’s Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter School.

ā€œPatrick brought warmth, joy, and deep commitment to Mundo Verde,ā€ his colleagues said in their posting. ā€œHis daily Broadway sing-alongs, vibrant outfits, and genuine love for his students filled our community with energy and laughter.ā€

The posted message adds, ā€œPatrick was more than a teacher; he was a light in our school, inspiring us all to show up with heart, humor, and kindness every day. His spirit will be deeply missed.ā€

The Washington Blade is preparing a full obituary on Patrick Shaw to be published soon. 

Continue Reading

District of Columbia

D.C. police seek help in identifying suspect in anti-gay threats case

Victim threatened with assault, called ā€˜faggot’ as he left Capitals game

Published

on

D.C. police are seeking help from the public in identifying a male suspect whose image was captured by a video surveillance camera.

D.C. police are seeking help from the public in identifying a male suspect whose image was captured by a video surveillance camera after he allegedly shouted anti-gay slurs and threatened to assault a man at 6th and H Streets, N.W. on March 20 at about 9:54 p.m.

A police report says the victim told police the incident took place shortly after he exited the nearby Capital One Arena where he had attended a Washington Capitals hockey game.

The police report says the incident began when the victim saw the suspect yell a racist slur at a person behind the victim and started to berate a valet operator.

ā€œSuspect 1 then turned his attention to Victim 1 and called him a ā€˜faggot’ among other homophobic slurs,ā€ the report says. It says the victim then used his phone to record the suspect, prompting the suspect to walk away before returning and ā€œsnatchingā€ the phone from the victim’s hand.

ā€œSuspect 1 walked several feet as Victim 1 followed, requesting his phone back,ā€ the report continues. ā€œSuspect 1 stopped and turned to Victim 1 and while yelling other obscenities exclaimed ā€˜if you keep recording, I’m going to kick your ass.ā€™ā€ The report concludes by saying the victim was able to recover his phone.

It lists the incident as a ā€œThreats To Do Bodily Harmā€ offense that is a suspected hate crime.

ā€œAnyone who can identify this suspect or has knowledge of this incident should take no action but call police at 202-727-9099, or text your tip to the Department’s TEXT TIP LINE at 50411,ā€ according to a separate police statement released April 23.

The statement says police currently offer an award of up to $1,000 to anyone who can provide information that leads to an arrest and indictment of the person or persons responsible for a crime committed in D.C.

D.C. police spokesperson Tom Lynch said the case has been under investigation since the incident occurred on March 20. He said the video image of the suspect, most likely obtained from a security camera from a nearby business, was released to the public as soon as it was obtained and processed through the investigation.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Advertisement

Sign Up for Weekly E-Blast

Follow Us @washblade

Advertisement

Popular