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Virginia Democrats nominate statewide candidates

McAuliffe, Northam and Herring will face off against anti-gay GOP ticket

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Gay News, Washington Blade, Gay Virginia, Terry McAuliffe
Terry McAuliffe, Christopher Schaffer, Levar Stoney, Equality Virginia, gay news, Washington Blade

Terry McAuliffe (center) at an Equality Virginia fundraiser in Arlington, Va. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Virginia Democrats on Tuesday officially nominated three men as their party’s statewide candidates.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, state Sen. Ralph Northam (D-Norfolk) defeated former U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra by a 54-46 percent margin in the lieutenant governor primary. State Sen. Mark Herring (D-Leesburg) defeated former federal prosecutor Justin Fairfax by a 52-48 percent margin in the attorney general contest during the election that saw very low voter turnout across the commonwealth.

Former Democratic National Committee Chair Terry McAuliffe will face off against Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli for governor in the Nov. 5 general election after he ran unopposed in the primary.

ā€œI look forward to coming together to ensure the Democratic ticket wins a clean sweep in November,ā€ Chopra said in a statement on Tuesday night. ā€œThe work to bring fairness, equality, and opportunity to Virginia continues.ā€

ā€œI look forward to supporting Terry McAuliffe and the rest of our very strong Democratic ticket in November,ā€ Fairfax added.

Northam will face E.W. Jackson in the general election, while Herring will square off against state Sen. Mark Obenshein (R-Harrisonburg.)

ā€œToday, Virginia Democrats nominated three individuals that share a common bond: a clear history of support for policies — including higher taxes, big government programs and anti-competitive regulations — that will move Virginia backwards,ā€ Cuccinelli’s campaign spokesperson, Dave Rexrode, said in a statement after the polls closed.

Virginia Democrats and LGBT rights advocates have repeatedly criticized Cuccinelli and the GOP ticket for their opposition to marriage rights for same-sex couples and other gay-specific issues.

Cuccinelli in March filed an ultimately unsuccessful challenge to a three-judge panel’s ruling that overturned Virginia’s sodomy law. He also spoke at an anti-gay marriage event at a Manassas church last October to which the Washington Blade was denied access.

Jackson, who founded Exodus Faith Ministries in Chesapeake, has previously compared gay men to pedophiles and described them as psychologically, mentally and emotionally ā€œvery sick people.ā€ Equality Virginia pointed out to reporters last month after the Republican Party of Virginia officially nominated their statewide ticket that Obenshein opposed a measure a Virginia House of Delegates subcommittee tabled in February that would have banned discrimination against LGBT state employees.

Obenshein also sponsored a measure that Gov. Bob McDonnell signed in March that bans public universities from denying recognition and funding to student groups that discriminate in their membership based on sexual orientation and other categories that federal law does not protect.

“Virginia Democrats have nominated a mainstream equality-oriented ticket, setting up a stark contrast with the most anti-gay Republican ticket in Virginia history,ā€ state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) told the Blade on Tuesday. ā€œCuccinelli, Jackson and Obenshain have a clear record of division, derision and denial.ā€

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Maryland

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

Tavish Forsyth concluded they could not work for Trump

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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.

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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’

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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. 

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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

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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.

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