District of Columbia
Zachary Parker sworn in as new D.C. Council member
Restores out representation, vows to advocate for ‘overlooked’ communities
Former D.C. school board member Zachary Parker was sworn in on Monday as the first openly gay member of the D.C. Council since 2015 at an inaugural ceremony in which other elected officials, including D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and six other Council members, were also sworn in.
Parker, a Democrat, won election in November to the Ward 5 Council seat by a wide margin after winning a hotly contested Democratic primary for the Ward 5 seat in June.
“I stand here today knowing what I can give toward my neighbors and District residents is directly related to what I am willing to risk,” Parker said in his inaugural speech at D.C.’s Walter Washington Convention Center where the inaugural ceremony was held.
“By one of the widest margins seen in this election cycle, Ward 5 neighbors elected an educator born on the south side of Chicago with a simple based vision that all District residents deserve good and accountable government,” he said in referring to his role as a teacher before running for public office.
“That means we must serve as responsible stewards of the District’s resources examining how we spend taxpayer money while also making sure we extend support to those in greatest need,” Parker said in is speech. “It also means making government more accessible and accountable to you, the people,” he said.
“What’s more, for the first time since 2015, there will be an out gay on the Council,” Parker continued. “And for the first time ever, that Council member will be black,” he said.
“With this honor comes the responsibility to address the ridiculously high rates of queer youth homelessness, fight to protect federal protections that are under assault by officials just down the street, and ensure that we’re investing in the people and organizations that are fighting every day for our LGBTQIA plus neighbors,” Parker told the gathering to loud applause.
Also taking the oath of office at the ceremony were D.C.’s newly elected Attorney General Brian Schwalb and newly elected Ward 3 Council member Matthew Frumin, both Democrats.
The others, in addition to Mayor Bowser, who was sworn in to her third term in office, included incumbent Council Chair Phil Mendelson (D-At-Large) and incumbent Council members Anita Bonds (D-At-Large), Kenyan McDuffie (I-At-Large), Brianne Nadeau (D-Ward 1), and Charles Allen (D-Ward 6).
Transcript of inaugural address:
Zachary Parker
Ward 5 D.C. Council member
Inaugural Address
Walter Washington D.C. Convention Center
Jan. 2, 2023
[His address immediately followed his swearing in by a D.C. Court of Appeals judge]
Thank you all for your patients. And good morning, D.C. I want to first start by extending congratulations to our mayor, Muriel Bowser, on an historic swing again that has yet to come. And Chairman Mendelson and Council members Bonds, McDuffie, Nadeau, and Allen on your re-election.
I also want to give a special congratulation to the other freshman, Council member Matt
Frumin. It will be great to have another education advocate. I for one, first and foremost, will always be an educator.
It’s always an honor to share the stage with our warrior on the Hill, Congresswoman Norton. Congratulations to you as well as to our newly minted Attorney General Brian Schwalb. Thanks to the judges who have joined us to officiate today’s swearing-in ceremony, particularly Chief Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby. And thanks to my family and friends who traveled near and far to be here today.
And every member of Team Zachary. You know who you are. Your unwavering commitment and support mean the world to me.
When I was here four years ago giving remarks after being sworn-in to the State Board of Education I referenced the classic line from Charles Dickins’ A Tale of Two Cities. “It is the best of times. It is the worst of times.”
And I have referenced that line to describe the disparities that exist within D.C. and within our schools. Where for many, it is the best of times. They are flushed with resources. But for many more, it is the worst of times. And people are holding on for dear life.
And I stand here knowing that despite the disparities that persist, Washington, D.C. is the greatest city in the world and one day will become the 51st state in the United States. So, speaking with that tradition I started in my tenure four years ago, today I want to call on another literary work. This time by the brilliant James Baldwin – The Fire Next Time.
One can give nothing with whatever without giving oneself. That is to say risking oneself, Baldwin writes. He said, If one cannot risk oneself then one is simply incapable of giving.
I stand here today knowing that what I can give toward my neighbors and District residents is directly related to what I am willing to risk. Neighbors have cast their votes, their sacred votes for me to risk standing alone for those things that are right and what’s good for the greater good. Our neighbors have cast their votes for me to take a risk and taking on the darts and arrows that are a common place in this business to fight for their interests.
And you know, and I agree, that we cannot mistake absolutism for principles or continue to put profit over people or bastardize words like equity while upholding systems that disadvantage black folks and brown folks and poor folks.
Baldwin also teaches us that change is renewal and that nothing is constant. I’m humbled that my election represents needed change in Ward 5 and on the D.C. Council as the District emerges from a global pandemic. By one of the widest margins seen in this election cycle, Ward 5 neighbors elected an educator born on the south side of Chicago with a simple based vision that all District residents deserve good and accountable government.
That means we must serve as responsible stewards of the District’s resources examining how we spend taxpayer money while also making sure we extend support to those in greatest need. It also means making government more accessible and accountable to you, the people.
What’s more, for the first time since 2015, there will be an out gay on the Council. And for the first time ever, that Council member will be black. With this honor comes the responsibility to address the ridiculously high rates of queer youth homelessness, fight to protect federal protections that are under assault by officials just down the street, and ensure that we’re investing in the people and organizations that are fighting every day for our LGBTQIA plus neighbors.
So today – and I’m wrapping – if you are feeling the same calling for renewal in the District that I do, where all our neighbors have a shared quality of life and can live in safe and healthy communities and where natives and residents who have long lived in the District can benefit from this city’s prosperity. If you feel the same responsibility that I do to give voice to communities that are often overlooked and to prioritize getting things done versus political points, then I invite you to join me on this journey.
For when times change, so must we. And the time has found us to chart a new path for the District’s renewal. Thank you again Ward 5. It is the honor of my life to represent this community that I love. Thank you.
[loud applause]
District of Columbia
Community mourns passing of D.C. trans rights advocate SaVanna Wanzer
Acclaimed activist credited with founding D.C. Trans Pride
Three D.C.-based LGBTQ advocacy organizations released statements on April 24 announcing that highly acclaimed D.C. transgender rights advocate SaVanna Wanzer has passed away.
A family member told the Blade that Wanzer died on Friday, April 24 of natural causes. She was 63.
Among other things, the advocacy groups noted that Wanzer is credited with being the lead founder of the D.C. Trans Pride and D.C. Black Trans Pride celebrations and events.
“As a trailblazing transgender activist, educator, and founder of D.C. Trans Pride, D.C. Black Trans Pride, and May Is All About Trans, SaVanna created and led transformative transgender programming during D.C. Black Pride that ensured trans voices, stories, leadership, and lived experiences were centered, celebrated, and protected,” according to the statement from the Center for Black Equity, an LGBTQ organization.
“Her work was not just about representation, it was about liberation, community, and making sure Black Trans lives were honored in rooms, stages, policies, and movements that too often overlooked them,” the statement says.
In its own statement, the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy organization, called Wanzer an icon of D.C.’s Black trans community and longtime leader in many LGBTQ organizations.
“SaVanna Wanzer was a D.C. legend,” Tori Cooper, HRC’s Director of Strategic Outreach and Training, said in the statement. “She advocated for many years for the trans community and for people living with HIV, and served with many organizations, including D.C. Black Pride, Capital Pride, and NMAC [National Minority AIDS Council],” the statement adds.
“I can say firsthand that SaVanna will not just be missed for her work, but for her sisterly wisdom and her sense of humor,” Cooper said in the HRC statement.
In its own statement, Capital Pride Alliance, which organizes D.C.’s annual LGBTQ Pride events, called Wanzer a “trailblazer” in her role as founder of Capital Trans Pride, D.C. Black Trans Pride, and the May Is All About Trans events. It says she served on the Capital Pride Board of Directors
“SaVanna was not just an advocate and community organizer but also a knowledge holder and elder voice in our movement,” the statement adds
In an undated statement on its website released before Wanzer’s passing, the D.C. group Food and Friends, which provides home-delivered meals to people in need, including people with HIV and cancer, says Wanzer had been one of its clients in the past. It says she had been living with heart problems since she was 16 and learned she had HIV in 1985 when she went to donate blood while working at the time for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. It also says she had diabetes, which was under control.
Among her many involvements, Wanzer also served as a volunteer for D.C.’s Whitman-Walker Health, which provides medical services for the LGBTQ community along with other communities. In 2015, Whitman-Walker selected Wanzer as the first recipient of its Robert Fenner Urquhart Award for her volunteer services at Whitman-Walker for more than 20 years.
The Center for Black Equity appeared to capture the sentiment of those in the LGBTQ community who knew Wanzer in the concluding part of its statement on her passing.
“Her vision continues to guide us,” it says. “Her courage continues to inspire us. Her impact will continue to live through every person, every Pride, and every space made more possible because she dared to lead,” it says. “Rest in power, SaVanna Wanzer. Your light remains with us.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser posted a remembrance on social media: “I am deeply saddened by the passing of SaVanna Wanzer. SaVanna Wanzer’s impact spans more than three decades in Washington, DC. The founder of DC Trans Pride, DC Black Trans Pride, and May Is All About Trans, she was a fierce advocate and a beloved leader. We are grateful for SaVanna’s commitment to making sure that transgender people—especially Black trans residents—are visible and respected.
“Her legacy lives on in the communities she built and the countless lives she touched. My condolences are with all who loved SaVanna Wanzer.”
The family member said funeral arrangements are expected to be announced early next week. This story will be updated.
District of Columbia
Second trans member announces plans to resign from Capital Pride board
Zion Peters cites ‘lack of interest in the Black trans community’
Zion Peters, a member of the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors who identifies as transgender, told the Washington Blade he plans to resign from the board “due to the lack of interest in the trans community, specifically the Black trans community.”
Peters continued, “Nobody has checked on me in the last two months so that shows their level of unprofessionalism towards their board members and the community as a whole.”
If he resigns, Peters would be the second known trans person to resign from the Capital Pride board since February, when longtime trans activist Taylor Lianne Chandler informed the board of her resignation in a detailed letter that was sent to the Blade by an anonymous source.
Chandler, who served as chair of the Capital Pride Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, and Intersex Committee, stated in her Feb. 24 letter that she resigned from the board out of frustration that the board had failed to address instances of “sexual misconduct” within the Capital Pride organization. The organization’s and the board’s transgender-related policies were not cited in her letter as a reason for her resignation.
The Blade learned of Peters’s plans to resign from an anonymous source who thought Peters had already resigned along with four other board members identified by the anonymous source. The others, who Capital Pride confirmed this week had resigned, include Anthony Musa, Bob Gilchrist, Kaniya Walker, and Dai Nguyen.
Musa and Gilchrist told the Blade they resigned for personal reasons related to their jobs and that they fully support Capital Pride’s work as an organization that coordinates the city’s annual LGBTQ Pride events.
The Blade has been unable to reach Walker and Nguyen to determine their reasons for resigning.
Capital Pride CEO Ryan Bos and Board Chair Anna Jinkerson didn’t respond to a Blade question asking if they knew why Walker or Nguyen resigned.
In response to a request by the Blade for comment on the resignations and the concern raised by Zion Peters about trans-related issues, Bos and Jinkerson sent separate statements elaborating on the organization and the board’s position on various issues.
“We can confirm that the individuals you referenced, except for Zion, no longer serve on the Capital Pride Alliance Board of Directors,” Jinkerson said in her statement.
She added that following the WorldPride festival hosted by D.C. last May and June that was organized by Capital Pride Alliance, the group anticipated a “significant level of board transition,” with many board members reaching the end of their terms. But she said many board members chose to extend their service or apply for an additional term, showing a “powerful reflection of commitment.”
Without commenting on the specific reasons for the resignations of Peterson, Walker, and Nygun, Jinkerson noted, “As with all volunteer leadership roles, transitions occur for a range of personal and professional reasons, and we appreciate those transitions with both understanding and gratitude.”
In his own statement, Bos addressed Capital Pride’s record on transgender issues.
“The Capital Pride Alliance is committed to supporting and uplifting the Trans community through our work with the Trans Coalition under the Diversity of Prides Initiative, our partnership with Earline Budd on the LGBTQ+ Burial Fund with a focus on our Trans siblings, our collaboration with the National Trans Visibility March, and our ongoing investment in programming for Transgender Day of Visibility and Transgender Day of Remembrance,” Bos said in his statement.
“We also recognize there is always continued work to be done, and we always welcome feedback from our community to ensure our commitment remains unwavering,” he said.
At the time of her resignation in February, Chandler said she could not provide specific details of the instances of sexual misconduct to which she referred in her resignation letter, or who allegedly engaged in sexual misconduct, saying she and all other board members had signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement preventing them from disclosing further details.
Board Chair Jinkerson in a statement released at that time said she and the board were aware of Chandler’s concerns but did not specifically address allegations of sexual misconduct.
“When concerns are brought to CPA, we act quickly and appropriately to address them,” she said. “As we continue to grow as an organization, we’re proactively strengthening the policies and procedures that shape our systems, our infrastructure, and the support we provide to our team and partners,” she said.
District of Columbia
Curve magazine honors Washington Blade publisher
Lynne Brown named to 2026 Power List
Washington Blade Publisher Lynne Brown has been named to the 2026 Curve Power List celebrating LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary individuals in North America who are blazing trails in their chosen fields.
“From sports and entertainment icons to corporate leaders and lawmakers, these individuals are breaking barriers, challenging norms, and shaping the future,” Curve Foundation/Curve magazine said in announcing this year’s list, which includes ABC newscaster Robin Roberts, comedian/actress Hannah Einbinder, and singer/actress Renee Rapp, among others.
Brown has worked for the Washington Blade for nearly 40 years. She was named publisher in 2007 before becoming a co-owner in 2010.
“I am honored to be recognized by Curve magazine during Lesbian Visibility Week,” Brown said. “Receiving this Curve honor is twofold. I was an early subscriber to Curve. I enjoy the product and know its history. Its journalism, layout and humorous features have inspired me.
“As an owner/publisher, receiving recognition from a similar source acknowledges my work and efforts, with a sincerity I truly appreciate. Franco Stevens, the publisher of Curve, is a business person of duration, experience, and purpose. The fact that they are in the media business, and honoring me and my publication makes it a tiny bit sweeter.”
Nominations for the Curve Power List come from the community: peers, mentors, fans, and employers.
Curve explained the significance of the list in its announcement: “An annual, publicly nominated list of impactful LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary changemakers is crucial in current times to counter discrimination, legislative rollbacks, hostility, and the invisibility of queer women within mainstream and marginal spaces and endeavors. Such a list also fosters encouragement and solidarity, and elevates voices and achievements—from high-profile roles to under appreciated areas of life.”
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Calendar: April 24-30
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