Local
2nd group petitions bankruptcy court for NAPWA trademarks
$15,000 offer for six names owned by defunct group
NAPWA’s National Gay Men’s AIDS Awareness Day on Sept. 27, 2012 in Freedom Plaza. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
The D.C.-based Community Education Group, which provides AIDS-related services aimed at minority communities, has offered to purchase the name of the National Association of People with AIDS and five additional names used by the association before it filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last February.
In an Oct. 31 letter to the trustee in charge of NAPWA’s case before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of Maryland, Community Education Group Executive Director A. Toni Young extended an offer of $15,000 for the trademark rights to each of the six names.
The names, in addition to NAPWA’s, include National HIV Testing Day, National Gay Men’s Awareness Day, National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, Healthy Living Summit, and AIDS Watch.
The offer by Community Education Group came about one month after the D.C.-based national group Health HIV offered to pay $3,000 for the trademark rights to just one of those names – National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
Trustee Laura Margulies responded to the Health HIV offer by requesting and receiving permission from the bankruptcy judge to reopen NAPWA’s bankruptcy case, which had been closed three months earlier, to allow consideration for the trademark sale.
Court records show that at Margulies’ request, Judge Paul Manes on Nov. 1 agreed to modify an earlier decision to reopen the case for one week by keeping it open at least until Dec. 23 to enable other parties to bid on the trademark rights.
Young told the Blade that her group learned of Health HIV’s bid for one of the names from a Blade story about the proposed trademark sale published on Oct. 26. She said her group made its offer, in part, to slow down the process of the sale of NAPWA’s names and to make the process more transparent.
“We want to partner with other national AIDS groups to make sure the events associated with these names are not lost,” said Young, who added that the various events that NAPWA established under the names played an important role in educating the public about HIV AIDS and its devastating impact on gay men and on other minorities.
“We don’t want to lose these things,” she said.
Brian Hujdich, executive director of Health HIV, did not respond to calls from the Blade for comment on his group’s plans for using the name it sought to purchase.
A gay man was murdered in Petersburg, Va., on March 13.
Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray, who was also known as Saamel and Mable, was a drag queen who won the Miss Mayflower EOY pageant in 2015. Reports also indicate Sanchez-McCray, 42, was a well-known community activist in Virginia and in North Carolina.
Local media reports indicate police officers found Sanchez-McCray shot to death inside a home in Petersburg.
Sanchez-McCray’s brother, Jamal Mitchell Diamond, in a public statement the Washington Blade received from Equality Virginia and GLAAD, said Sanchez-McCray was not transgender as initial reports indicated.
“Our family has always embraced the fullness of who he was. He used the names Saamel, Shyyell, and Mable interchangeably, and we honor all of them. There is no division within our family regarding how he is being represented — only a shared commitment to preserving his truth with love and respect,” said Diamond.
“He was also deeply committed to community work through Nationz Foundation, where he worked and completed multiple state-certified programs to support marginalized communities,” added Diamond. “That work meant a great deal to him.”
Authorities have not made any arrests.
The Petersburg Bureau of Police has asked anyone with information about Sanchez-McCray’s murder to call Petersburg-Dinwiddie Crime Solvers at 804-861-1212.
District of Columbia
Trans Day of Visibility events planned
Rally on the National Mall scheduled for Saturday
The Christopher Street Project has a number of events planned for the 2026 Trans Day of Visibility, including a rally on the Mall and an “Empowerment Ball” at the Eaton Hotel. Plenaries, panel discussions and meetings with members of Congress are scheduled in the three days of programming.
Announced speakers include N.H. state Rep. Alice Wade; Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Precious Brady-Davis; activist and performer Miss Peppermint (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”); Lexington, Ky. Councilwoman Emma Curtis; Rabbi Abby Stein; D.C. activist and host Rayceen Pendarvis; Air Force Master Sgt. Logan Ireland; among other leaders, advocates and performers.
Conference programming on Thursday and Friday includes an educational forum and a Capitol Hill policy education day. Registration for the two-day conference has closed.
The “Trans Day of Visibility PAC Reception” is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 from 7:30-9 p.m. at As You Are (500 8th St., S.E.). Special guests include Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada) and Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Tickets are available at christopherstreetproject.org starting at $25.
The National Council of Jewish Women and the Christopher Street Project host a “Trans Day of Visibility Shabbat” on Friday, March 27 from 7-8 p.m. at Sixth & I (600 I St., N.W.). The service is to be led by Rabbi Jenna Shaw and Rabbi Abby Stein.
The “Now You See Me: Trans Empowerment Social & Ball” is scheduled for Friday, March 27 from 6-11 p.m. at the Eaton Hotel (1201 K. St., N.W.). The trans-themed drag ball is hosted by the Marsha P. Johnson Institute with support from the D.C. Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs, the Capital Ballroom Council, the Christopher Street Project, the Center for Black Equity, Generation for Common Good, and Parenting is Political. RSVP online at christopherstreetproject.org.
The National Transgender Day of Visibility Rally is scheduled for Saturday, March 28 on the National Mall at 11 a.m. The rally will include speakers and performances. Following the rally, attendees are encouraged to participate in the “No Kings” rally being held at Anacostia Park.
Virginia
Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ends
Voters in November will consider repealing marriage amendment
The Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ended on March 14.
Lawmakers have yet to approve a budget, but they did pass a resolution that paves the way for a referendum on whether to repeal the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Lawmakers also advanced House Bill 60, which would protect PrEP users from insurance discrimination.
Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger has until April 13 to decide to pass, amend, or veto legislation before it goes back to the House of Delegates on April 22.
Spanberger on Feb. 6 signed the bill that sets the stage for the marriage amendment referendum. Voters will consider whether to “remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law?”
Equality Virginia has been working during this legislative cycle to urge lawmakers to allocate funding towards LGBTQ rights. The budget would expand funding for schools, competency training for the 988 suicide hotline, and funding to provide gender affirming care to LGBTQ youth.
“As the budget moves through conference and the Reconvene Session approaches on April 22, Equality Virginia remains focused on ensuring our victories this session translate into durable protections,” Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Progress on marriage equality, nondiscrimination protections, and HIV care funding was essential, but Virginia must do more.”
Gay man murdered in Va.
Trans Day of Visibility events planned
Virginia General Assembly’s 2026 legislative session ends
Polish court rules country must recognize same-sex marriages from EU states
