Local
Anti-gay Maryland lawmaker charged with DUI
Police arrested state Del. Don Dwyer along Route 100 in Anne Arundel County early Tuesday
![Don Dwyer, Maryland, gay news, Washington Blade](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2013/05/Don_Dwyer_thumb_public_domain.jpg)
Anne Arundel County police early on Tuesday arrested for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcoholĀ a Maryland lawmaker who vehemently opposes same-sex marriage.
A police report that WBAL in Baltimore obtained said officers stopped state Del. Don Dwyer (R-Anne Arundel County) on Route 100 near Edwin Raynor Boulevard in Pasadena at 12:42 a.m. It said Dwyer told officers he had had two beers earlier in the night at a tavern in Baltimore City.
The police report said the officer who arrested Dwyer āimmediately noticed a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath and person.ā It also noted Dwyerās speech was āvery slow and slurred.ā
Dwyer also failed three field sobriety tests.
Dwyer faces a charge of driving while impaired and other traffic offenses that include driving with an expired registration.
Dwyer, 55, said before state lawmakers approved a same-sex marriage bill in February 2012 the legalization of nuptials for gays and lesbians in Massachusetts in 2004 indoctrinated the commonwealthās public students to homosexuality.
The Anne Arundel County Republican in 2006 tried to remove Baltimore Circuit Court Judge M. Brooke Murdoch after she found Marylandās same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional. Dwyer also sought to impeach Attorney General Doug Gansler, who is expected to declare his candidacy to succeed Gov. Martin OāMalley in 2014, after he announced in 2010 the state would recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in other jurisdictions.
Dwyer links alcohol abuse to marriage vote
Dwyerās arrest comes nearly a year to the day after a boat he was operating crashed into another vessel on the Magothy River in Anne Arundel County. The incident left him, two other adults and four children injured.
Dwyer in May pleaded guilty to operating a boat while under the influence of alcohol. He was to have served probation under a plea bargain he reached with prosecutors, but an Anne Arundel County judge sentenced him to 30 days in jail and ordered him to pay a $1,000 fine.
Dwyer appealed the sentence, but entered a second guilty plea in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court early this month. A retired judge from Harford County who was brought in is scheduled to sentence Dwyer in October.
The Anne Arundel Republican told the Maryland Gazette in January that then-Del. Tiffany Alston of Prince Georgeās County and two Republican delegates who voted for the same-sex marriage bill contributed to his alcohol abuse.
āThat betrayal really affected me,ā Dwyer told the newspaper. āI was physically ill.ā
Neither Dwyer nor his office immediately returned the Washington Bladeās request for comment.
Virginia
Parades, community events held to mark Pride Month in Va.
Upwards of 30,000 people attended PrideFest in Norfolk on June 22
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/06/20240629_Shi-Queeta_Lee_at_Arlington_Pride_insert_c_Washington_Blade_by_Michael_Key.jpg)
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.
āYou 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,ā Hampton Roads Pride President Jeff Ryder told the Washington Blade on Monday during a telephone interview.
āIt was a great year,ā 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.ā
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.
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/07/20240629_Iya_Dammons_at_street_naming_ceremony_in_Baltimore_insert_courtesy_Iya_Dammons.jpg)
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 Baltimoreās 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 ānavigating survival modeā living.
āThrough compassionate harm reduction and upward mobility services, advocacy support, and community engagement, we foster a respectful, non-judgmental environment that empowers individual agency,ā the statement says. āOur programs encompass community outreach, a drop-in center providing HIV testing, harm reduction, PrEP, medical linkage, case management, and assistance in accessing housing services,ā it says.
Among those participating in the street renaming ceremony were Baltimore City Council member Zeke Cohen, interim director of Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scottās 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.
āThis is a significant achievement and historic moment for our city,ā a statement by Maryland Safe Haven announcing the ceremony says. āIya 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,ā it says. āThis honor is well-deserved, and we are thrilled to see her contributions recognized in such a meaningful way.ā
Baltimore
Despite record crowds, Baltimore Prideās LGBTQ critics say organizers dropped the ball
People on social media expressed concern about block party stampede
![](https://www.washingtonblade.com/content/files/2024/06/Screenshot-2024-06-29-at-18.01.33.png)
BY JOHN-JOHN WILLIAMS IV | This yearās Baltimore Pride Week attracted 150,000 people ā record attendance that far exceeded initial projections of 100,000.
But some see room for improvement and want organizers to address safety issues and make changes so the annual event that celebrates the LGBTQ population is better run.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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