The year 2015 was filled with memorable events for Baltimore’s LGBT community and those in the surrounding area. Some events were happy and some were sad. Some memories will last a lifetime and others will be quickly forgotten. We at Baltimore OUTLoud were proud to bring you another year ofnews and information. Here is a look back at some of the events we covered in 2015:
JANUARY: Baltimore OUTLoud started the year be revisiting the attack of Kenni Shaw who was assaulted on December 25, 2012 as he left a corner store in the Oliver neighborhood. Shaw asserts that the attack stemmed from his being perceived as gay. The assault received widespread coverage in the media and gained the attention of newly appointed Baltimore City Police Commissioner Anthony Batts who established an advisory board to meet regularly with LGBT people. The police and the state’s attorney’s office declined to categorize the assault as a hate crime. The only attacker arrested was released on bail and after a number of postponements the case was dropped by the prosecutor. This case only goes to show that the struggles of the LGBT community are not over.
January 9th, Dimitria Blackwell (AKA Paul Liller) was crowned Miss Hippo 2015. Eva Couture was selected first runner-up. January 18th author Linda Fausnet discussed her book Queen Henry at a meeting of PFLAGWestminster. The novel tells the fictional story of a homophobic baseball player for the Baltimore Orioles who takes an asthma treatment that mysteriously transforms him into a gay man.
January 28th in an effort to consider the needs of LGBTQ youth in the foster care system, three organizations co-sponsored an information session for potential foster parents. Hearts & Homes for Youth, PFLAG-Howard County, and Equality Maryland teamed up to co-host the event at the Owen Brown Interfaith Center in Columbia. The January 23rd issue of Baltimore OUTLoud contained a front page article on a new equality organization launched by former GLCCB executive director Kelly Neel. The North Baltimore Equality Center provides needed services and programs to residents of Baltimore’s Charles Village and Waverly neighborhoods.
January 29th the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Transgender Community Center of Baltimore, GLCCB, announced that William Redmond-Palmer was removed as GLCCB president and will be replaced by Christopher Adkins, the previous vice president.
FEBRUARY: The February 6th issue of Baltimore OUTLoud cheered the news that Maryland Governor Larry Hogan had reversed his early missteps related to non-discrimination provisions in Medicaid and the removal of the words “gender identity” from an executive order. After pressure from FreeState Legal and Equality Maryland, Governor Hogan re-issued the executive order to reflect current state law that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. This issue also announced that Colette Roberts, the co-founder of the PFLAG-Columbia / Howard County chapter who led the organization for 15 years would be inducted into the Howard County Women’s Hall of Fame held by the Howard County Commission for Women.
February 4th ViiV Healthcare announced a four-year, $10 million program addressing the HIV epidemic among black men who have sex with men. The program will focus on men in Baltimore, Maryland and Jackson, Mississippi, two cities hit hard by HIV/AIDS.
MARCH: March 2nd Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski whose strong efforts on behalf of LGBT rights have been evident over the years announced, that she will not be seeking a 6th term. On March 4th retired neurosurgeon from Johns Hopkins University and presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson stated on CNN, when asked by Chris Cuomo if being gay is a choice said, “Absolutely. Because a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight and when they come out, they’re gay.”
March 11th the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra announced their 100th season in Baltimore.
The March 20 issue of Baltimore OUTLoud included an interview with Baltimore’s 2015 Pride coordinator who announced that Pride would be held on July 25th and 26th and not in June as in past years. He also added that the block party would return to Mt. Vernon and the Pride Festival would return to Druid Hill Park after having been held in Mt. Royal in 2014.
March 15, a group representing Boston Pride became the first openly LGBT group to march in the 114th annual South Boston St. Patrick’s Day Parade. On March 24th a bill that would allow lesbian couples to receive the same health care benefits for artificial insemination as heterosexual couples do passed in the Maryland Senate by a 37 – 10 vote margin.
March 28th the B’More Proud LGBTIA Leadership Summit was held at UMBC. The conference consisted of LGBTIA students from area colleges and universities and their allies.
APRIL: On April 9th the three-member Baltimore City Liquor Board unanimously denied the new ownership group of the Baltimore Eagle a requested liquor license transfer claiming that the renovations of the building was not completed in the required 180 days, deeming the license dead. Over a hundred people attended the official re-opening of the GLCCB at the organization’s new headquarters at the city-owner Waxter Center.
April 25th peaceful protest in downtown Baltimore over the death of Freddie Gray while in police custody turned violent. On April 27th the violence and destruction spread too many parts of the city resulting in Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake calling for a week-long curfew. Images of the fires, looting, and destruction were shown all over the world on television and the Internet.
On April 28th a Marriage Equality rally was held in Washington at the U.S. Supreme Court.
MAY: May 13th members of the LGBTQ community were treated to a town hall conference hosted by Chase Brexton Health Care on the subject of PrEP, a pre-prophylaxis drug that is designed to prevent HIV infection among HIV-negative people who engage in high-risk activity.
The front page of the May 15th issue of Baltimore OUTLoud confirmed the sad news that had been circulating in Baltimore’s LGBT community for weeks. After 43 years the Club Hippo was closing and would be converted into a CVS drug store. This issue also announced that Chesapeake Pride held in August at Mayo Beach for the past 9 years would not be held in 2015 due to financial difficulties.
On May 15th “A Night under the Stars” the LGBTQ prom was held at the Pier 5 Hotel in Baltimore.
On May 16th the 4th annual Hagerstown Hopes, a festival in support of the LGBTQ community, was held in Doubs Woods Park in Hagerstown, Maryland. Also on May 16 a big crowd at the Club Hippo saw 12 contestants compete for the title of Miss Gay Maryland America with Sasha Renee from Hagerstown taking home the crown. Aryianna Myst was named first alternate.
JUNE: Washington, D.C. celebrated the 40th annual Pride on June 13th and 14th. The 5th annual Gay Pride at River Riders in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia was held June 21th, and heavy rain in Frederick on June 27th did not stop the 4th annual Frederick Pride. Although Baltimore’s Pride celebration was not scheduled until July, it felt like Pride night in Baltimore on the evening of June 26th as the LGBT community packed the bars to celebrate the Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage. The decision upheld same-sex marriage across the nation and set off rainbow themed celebrations and light shows from the White House to Disneyland. Also making news during Pride month was Julie Baker, a homeowner in the Overlea community in Baltimore County who received a note from a neighbor complaining the all the rainbow decorations in her yard were “relentlessly gay” and that she should “tone it down because this is a Christian area and there are children.” Ms. Baker turned to social media and started a GoFundMe page to buy more rainbow decorations and rose over $43,000.
JULY: July 6th saw the continuation of staff turnover at the GLCCB as executive director Joel Tinsley-Hall resigned and was replaced by Paul Liller, GLCCB deputy director. Tinsley-Hall had served as executive director since October 2014 succeeding Kelly Neel who was intern director following the resignation of Matt Thorn.
July 8th Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake fired Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts. Baltimore OUTLoud noted that Batts had made a real effort to reach out to Baltimore’s LGBT community.
July 25th Baltimore celebrated 40 years of Pride. Besides the move from June to July, other changes included moving the parade from Charles Street to Cathedral Street and the block party from the parking lot at Charles and Eager to the parking lot behind the Hippo. Even with all the changes, Baltimore Pride 2015 was by all appearances a big success as crowds packed Mt. Vernon to hear headliners Cazwell and Martha Wash. Baltimore Pride attendees were also blessed with wonderful weather on July 26th for the Pride Festival’s return to Druid Hill Park.
AUGUST: Facing a severe financial crunch that led to the laying off of its director, Carrie Evans in June, Equality Maryland announced on August 3rd that the organization would continue its work of being the voice of Maryland’s LGBT community, but would do so in a reduced fashion.
At a press conference at Baltimore police headquarters on August 6th Interim Police Commissioner Kevin Davis announced an arrest in the murder of transgender woman Mia Henderson whose body was found in an alley on July 16th, 2014.
August 8th thousands of fans packed M & T Bank Stadium to see popular boy band One Direction. Included in the crowd were many rainbow flags, beads and shirts as part of the band’s fan-driven initiative known as Rainbow Direction, an organization dedicated to stamping out homophobia in the band’s fan base.
In August; three years after a botched robbery led to the murder of Larry Peterson and Alex Ulrich in Mt. Vernon, a Baltimore jury convicted Quinton Decarlo Bass of the crime. Ulrich died from gunshot wounds during the incident and Peterson died in May 2014 following multiple surgeries and rehabilitation as a result of shots to his torso.
On August 17th Arcadia Publishing released the pictorial book: LGBT Baltimore by Louise Parker Kelley.
A ceremony was held at the intersection Eager Street and Charles Street on August 22nd to honor Club Hippo owner Chuck Bowers. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake announced that the intersection where the club is located would be renamed Chuck Bowers Way in honor of Mr. Bowers, “a major catalyst for the LGBT community.” The bar was scheduled to close after 42 years.
SEPTEMBER: The September 4th issue of Baltimore OUTLoud contained an interview with Jabari Lyles, the outreach specialist from FreeState Legal project, teacher, and co-chair and education manager at GLSEN-Baltimore who had recently taken the position of President of the board of directors at the GLCCB, the 4th person to hold that position in the past ten months. The same issue also said goodbye to Baltimore OUTLoud columnist and former managing editor Steve Charing who retired from the newspaper after many years.
Looking to improve care for older LGBT individuals who often live alone, Chase Brexton Health Care launched SAGECAP ( Services & Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders), an initiative that will provide resources, education and support for informal, unpaid LGBT caregivers in the community.
Saturday, September 26th large crowds packed Club Hippo for one last dance followed by the final drag show on September 27th. The dance side of the club closed after the final show and the saloon side served its last drink on October 3rd.
OCTOBER: Senate Bill 743 and its companion House Bill 862 took effect on October 1st making it easier for transgender Marylanders to amend the gender on birth certificates by eliminating the requirement that a person undergo surgery first.
The Center for Black Equity Baltimore, the parent of the organization of Baltimore Black Pride, celebrated its 13th annual Pride with the theme: “Bridging the Gap, Embracing our Uniqueness.
The October 30 issue of Baltimore OUTLoud looked back 60 years at the October 1st, 1955 raid of Baltimore’s Pepper Hill Club during which all 162 people at the bar were arrested. The Pepper Hill was a segregated white gay bar and those arrested were charged with disorderly conduct. The next day most of the charges were dismissed.
NOVEMBER: On November 5th Baltimore OUTLoud lost a longtime member of the family as Chaplain Edward ‘Skip’ Koritzer died. Chaplain Skip was well known in the local LGBT community and was a photographer for this newspaper.
At a town hall meeting on November 10th the GLCCB gave an update on the financial results of the 2015 Baltimore Pride Festival and announce that the 2016 Baltimore Pride Festival will be held on July 23rd and 24th.
November 20th many took time to honor lives lost with the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. Members of the transgender community and their allies participated in a March and rally in front of City Hall in Baltimore.
November 21st the first of what will hopefully be many LGBTQ Jewish film festivals took place at Congregation Beit Tikvah, a Reconstructionist synagogue in Roland Park as they hosted a series of three film screenings.
DECEMBER: On December 1st groups all over the Baltimore area held events in observance of the 28th annual international World AIDS Day. Many local events were held under the “B’more Aware of HIV” banner.
December 3rd thousands gathered in Mount Vernon Place for the 44th annual lighting of Baltimore’s Washington Monument kicking off the holiday season. With over 16,000 LED bulbs this local landmark has once again been turned into the area’s largest Christmas tree.
As another year comes to an end we at Baltimore OUTLoud look forward to continuing to be your independent source of news and events in the area’s LGBT community as we have been for over 13 years. See you in 2016! We hope it will be a year to remember.
Read the full story here.
