Opinions
Franken should stay, Moore should be defeated
Assessing consequences for the men accused of abuse
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
I have great respect for the women who are now coming forth and accusing various men of inappropriate behavior. We know men can be pigs. Many of these women have suffered for years in silence and it has impacted their lives in many ways.
But it is also time for us to determine how we differentiate what the consequences should be for the men being accused. They must be based on what they did. Not all their actions and transgressions are the same. Each incident, and each man, should be viewed separately. There are some men who have been serial abusers and others who did something wrong once. Even if all the actions a man has been accused of may have been wrong the repercussions may be different. It may be appropriate to give some of the men a chance to make apologies and not have their lives destroyed.
In the case of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) some suggest we don’t know the full story. What we know is from a picture as well as from what the woman involved said. So we can respect her and also respect the senator’s apology when combining it with the fact she has said she accepts his apology. Why wouldn’t that be enough for the rest of us to accept it?
Then there is the case of Judge Roy Moore running for the Senate in Alabama. Among other offenses he is accused of is pedophilia and people say they believe his victim. According to the law pedophilia is not only an offense to the individual victim but an offense to society. There are some heinous acts that fall into that category, including rape or attempted rape and I am sure there are others.
The point I’m trying to make is there are differences in some of the offences and inappropriate actions men have been accused of toward women. Recently, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) in a New York Times interview said she thought Bill Clinton should have resigned over the Lewinsky scandal. But as many pointed out, while what Bill Clinton did with Lewinsky was wrong, Lewinsky was a 22-year-old woman who has often said her relationship with him was consensual. Let’s also remember Clinton was punished. He was impeached, though not convicted, and was stripped of his license to practice law. He has also been appropriately labeled a sleaze for the rest of his life.
So some legitimately question why Gillibrand brought this up now and was she the right person to do it. To many it seems she made a political calculation as the writer of the column also reports, “In previous years Ms. Gillibrand has also noted Mr. Clinton’s support for her own run for office. “I was lucky enough to receive guidance and mentorship from Hillary during that run, and was truly honored that President Bill Clinton campaigned for me in my first run for Congress in 2006.”
If it was for political reasons I think it might have backfired on her. Attacking someone you claimed to respect and used to help advance your career can only make your motives questioned. The senator claims it was to make a point on what is happening today. But she is a very smart woman and there are many other ways to make the points she tried to make.
What is clear are the allegations against Harvey Weinstein and others including those against our current president have opened up a floodgate of memories for many women. Many of the men accused had the power to impact their lives and careers. If this new courage women are showing finally brings us to a more equal playing field it will be a great step forward for our society.
Maybe this new recognition of women’s power will finally give us the impetus needed to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. It is past time to include women officially in the Constitution, which is something the American people have been unwilling to do up to now.
Peter Rosenstein is a longtime LGBT rights and Democratic Party activist. He writes regularly for the Blade.
Opinions
Congratulations to Lewis George and all winners in D.C.’s primary
New mayor will have to navigate a hostile president
The primary is just about over and we are about to have a new mayor in D.C.
For the first time D.C. has ranked choice voting. Because of this, we don’t have a final winner for every race on election night. It will take a few days to declare some winners. I opposed ranked choice, and would rather see a run-off between the top two candidates, but the voters of D.C. spoke, so we have ranked choice.
Let me congratulate Janeese Lewis George, the apparent winner of the primary for mayor. Now it will be on to the general election where we can be close to 100% certain she will be the next mayor. I campaigned against her for a variety of reasons, and those reasons still hold. But she will have my support, and I congratulate her on her win. It is my hope she will become a good mayor for all the people of the District. That she will be a mayor we can all trust, and work with. That she will always speak up for the LGBTQ community, and speak out against anyone who wants to discriminate against us. Just as I hope she will actively fight antisemitism, Islamophobia, sexism, and racism. That she will fight for economic equality. So, again, I give her my full support at this time, trusting she will do all those things, because we all want only the best for all the people of the District. So, Janeese Lewis George, I salute you on your win, and wish you success.
In addition to a new mayor, we will have a new delegate to Congress, Robert White. I wish him well, and hope he will work to form the coalitions we will need if we are ever to get statehood. But also hope his first goal as we fight for that, will be to get us legislative and budget autonomy. Then we reelected Brian Schwalb as Attorney General, Phil Mendelson as Council Chair, and Zachary Parker as Council member for Ward 5. I hope they all continue the good work they have been doing. Then congratulations to Oye Owolewa for his win as Democratic Council member- at-Large. Then in the special election for Independent Council member-at-Large, Elissa Silverman reclaimed her seat. I hope those who endorsed her will fare better than I did when I previously endorsed her. I was nominated by the mayor for a seat on a board, and Ms. Silverman said she couldn’t participate in my committee review, or vote for me, as it would look bad for her as I had endorsed her. Figure that one out. Thankfully, the other 12 members of the Council had no problem confirming me.
I hope the people in Ward 1 will get fair and equal representation, from former Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America chair, Aparna Raj, who apparently won that election. Congratulations also to Matthew Frumin, reelected in Ward 3, and Charles Allen, reelected in Ward 6. Then congratulations to my friend Phil Pannell, and all the others elected to Democratic Party posts.
With the new members of the Council, and the new mayor, we can definitely anticipate some changes in how our government is run, and which issues will be a priority. I just hope considering the frustration we all feel with the felon in the White House, they will be able to hold in check some of their thoughts, understanding he can inflict pain, and has shown a willingness to do so, on the people of D.C., if he is challenged too fiercely, and too directly, especially true when the challenge comes from the mayor. He can, and will, react negatively, and we have seen that. The new mayor must know how to walk a tight rope, because it’s a skill she will need when dealing with the lying, racist, sexist, homophobic felon in the Oval Office. Disgusting or not, he will be around for the first two years of the new mayor’s term. I would rather see him in jail, but so be it.
The new mayor and the Council will be working on some of the same issues that have been around for a number of years, and some new ones. They will still be fighting the rat problem, and I mean the animals, and then we look forward to the new RFK stadium, and the Commanders return to D.C. The team made certain promises, and it is up to the government to hold them accountable, including working with the community, building affordable housing, a new supermarket, and a host of other commitments. They must monitor hiring to ensure residents of D.C. are given all the opportunities possible, for jobs at every level on the various projects.
Again, congratulations to all the winners.
Peter Rosenstein is a longtime LGBTQ rights and Democratic Party activist.
Letter-to-the-Editor
Primary Day is not the end of election season in D.C.
Ultra-local positions on November ballot; city’s future at stake
Fellow citizens and voters in the District of Columbia!
Primary Day has passed. By now there should be some idea whom our new Congressional representative, mayor and members of the City Council may be. Hopefully Mr. Trump’s chest beating threats to take over the District resulted in more voters than ever sending a crystal-clear message to the White House.
Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, delivers the final decisions and requires every registered vote to cast final votes on the aforementioned positions. WAIT! There are other elected positions to fill.
The DC Board of Education will have candidates in Wards 1,3, 5, and 6. Finally, there are the ultra-local positions: all those running for the entire Advisory Neighbor Commissions in all eight wards. There are 345 Single Member Districts around the city representing around 2,000 neighbors.
Love your city and want to have a say in your area? Then consider running for the ANC. To learn more, check out www.oanc.dc.gov.
Of course, also check out the DC Board of Elections at www.dcboe.org.
There might also be some initiatives/referenda to be decided on the November ballots.
Do let the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund/Institute know if you are running either for the Board of Education or your local ANC at www.victoryfund.org.
Opinions
Corporate LGBTQ Pride 2026 on life support
A rainbow washout as marketing dollars disappear
Terrified of becoming targets of right wing media and activists, businesses and brands are fleeing Pride support in 2026. The fear of boycotts and retribution have seen Pride sponsorships plummet to previously unseen levels. Further, there is now a complete corporate reevaluation of marketing and advertising activities in the LGBTQ consumer sector writ large.
No more rainbow washing. For the past 30 years, corporations have literally wrapped their brands in rainbow colored monikers during the month of June. This practice, know as “rainbow washing,” sought to ingratiate companies with the over $1 trillion LGBTQ consumer segment. From rainbow filled Oreos to rainbow wrapped Burger King Whoppers, brands actively engaged in developing relationships with this coveted consumer. Now, it’s considered taboo.
No more multi-million dollar beer sponsorships in the aftermath of the Bud Light disaster. For the first time since the over 100 Pride festivals accepted marketing opportunities, major brands including Bud Light, Miller and Corona have decided that reputational risk, boycotts and the like are more dangerous than the commercial reward. Their non-participation and the significance of this loss cannot be overstated.
When right-wing bloviators co-opted the meaning of the word woke, they turned a positive definition into a pejorative. Now, corporations and brands are petrified of being labeled as woke, and in turn, are curtailing marketing outreach to niche consumer segments, LGBTQ included.
Anti-woke legislation has now appeared in a multitude of states, primarily around transgender issues. Bathroom bills, as they are known, are ubiquitous. Boys playing in girls sports,is portrayed as a national emergency. These issues are a constant presence on social media as well as at every level of government, and have had a major impact on LGBTQ-related corporate activities.
But perhaps most devastating, is the federal government effort to enact elements of the right-wing’s Project 2025 agenda, seeking to eradicate DEI at every level. Companies, universities, and nearly all institutions that previously championed diversity, equity, and inclusion, have rapidly and radically disbanded and defunded all DEI efforts and activities within their organizations. Discontinuing supplier diversity initiatives, defunding support for internal ERG’s (employee resource groups), and decamping from participation in HRC’s (Human Rights Campaign) Equality Index. Importantly, this index is considered the gold standard for corporate DEI evaluation, and its repudiation is having a profound effect on corporate behavior.
DEI is now in the ICU on life support, with little chance of resuscitation. Companies that once embraced DEI have retreated in fear, in spite of critical positive facts. In 2023, McKinsey and Company, no bastion of liberalism stated, “that for five years, our research has shown a positive, statistically significant correlation between company financial outperformance and diversity, on the dimensions of both gender and ethnicity.”
What happens next is unknown. We have entered uncharted territory where the confluence of so many factors is having negative effects. June 2026 has seen many companies severely curtail or fully exit partnerships with Pride organizations and LGBTQ marketing programs in general, citing among other things, economic concerns. However, no company can honestly deny that overall fear and the increasingly hostile climate for DEI and LGBTQ issues have prompted brands to rethink their overall support and initiatives. This, despite pressure from stakeholders and shareholders, and vital employee recruitment and retention efforts.
Political winds have outcomes. It would be naïve to think that there might be an immediate rethinking should the Congress or presidency change parties. Business cycles, though more agile than government, take longer to work through. Years, not months. So just as quickly as “rainbow washing” has come to a precipitous end, so too is the arrival and reckoning with the blistering Rainbow Washout.
Andrew A. Isen is the founder and president of WinMark Concepts, a D.C.-based marketing and communications firm. For 35 years, WinMark has been advising companies and brands on defining and developing effective LGBTQ business strategies.
Congratulations to Lewis George and all winners in D.C.’s primary
‘Mani Fiesta tu Orgullo’: memoria, resistencia y celebración marcan inicio del Mes del Orgullo en El Salvador
Primary Day is not the end of election season in D.C.
N.Y. governor’s race presents stark contrast on LGBTQ rights
Rehoboth’s ‘Poodle Beach’ to be honored with historical marker
PHOTOS: Lost River Pride
The advantages of owning your home
PHOTOS: Pride on the Pier
David Archuleta on Mormon faith, ‘Idol,’ more in new book
