A scene from the 2023 Capital Pride Honors reception with Admiral Dr. Rachel Levine, the first transgender Assistant Secretary of Health (second from left)
The Capital Pride Alliance will host its annual Capital Pride Honors on Friday, May 31, at MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill Maryland.
A set of various awards, the Honors are bestowed on LGBTQ individuals, allies, or LGBTQ-owned/allied businesses that have advocated for issues important to the LGBTQ community, have donated their time and money to LGBTQ causes, or have made significant contributions benefitting the local LGBTQ community in the D.C. metropolitan area.
This year’s Honors will feature performances from Crystal Waters, DJ Honey, and the Black Leaves Dance Company. Lorenzo Hall, anchor for local CBS affiliate WUSA, will emcee. Because alcohol is served on premises, admission is limited to those aged 21 and over.
This year’s Capital Pride Hero Awards recipients are:
Hope Giselle, transgender activist and author who launched AllowMe, a nonprofit promoting the personal and professional growth of young LGBTQ people of color.
Jamison Henninger, the leader of the D.C. Area Transmasculine Society.
Kenya Hutton, deputy director and soon-to-be executive director of the Center for Black Equity.
Carol Jameson, the retired CEO of HealthWorks for Northern Virginia, who developed various programs aimed at addressing healthcare disparities.
Tula, a longtime local drag performer.
José Alberto Uclés, the former Ward 5 commissioner for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and the director of the D.C. Capital Pride Festival from 1997 to 1999.
Iaya Dammons, founder of Baltimore Safe Haven and founder and interim executive director of DC Safe Haven, will be honored with the Breaking Barriers: Community Impact Award.
Receiving the Larry Stansbury award for “exemplary contributions” to Pride is Destination DC, a private, non-profit corporation with a membership of more than 1,000 businesses or organizations that support D.C.’s travel and tourism sector.
The Bill Miles Award, given for outstanding volunteer service to an individual who has made “exemplary contributions” to the Capital Pride Alliance and its various programs, initiatives, and sponsored activities, will be given to two individuals: Bryan Davis the current Volunteer Chair of the organization, who previously served as Capital Pride’s executive producer and chair for accessibility and its interpreter coordinator, and William Hawkins, the current chair of Health and Safety for the Capital Pride Alliance.
The 2024 Capitol Pride Honors will be held from 7:30 to 11 p.m. on Friday, May 31, at MGM National Harbor, 101 MGM National Ave., in Oxon Hill, Maryland.
Tickets, which range from $49 to $98 per person, include access to hors d’ouevre tasting stations, an open bar for alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and entertainment.
All proceeds benefit the Capital Pride Alliance and the 365 Pride Fund. To purchase tickets, or for more information, visit www.capitalpride.org/event/honors-2024.
If you need relief from these stressful and angst-ridden times, you're sure to find something to salve your soul in this section. If you crave a good laugh attack, for starters, look to the "Because They're Funny Comedy Festival," or seek out specific comedians and eccentrics known to get the job done, be it John Waters or Paula Poundstone (both coming to the Birchmere), or Jessica Kirson or Margaret Cho (coming to the Warner), or Leslie Jones, who will be at The Clarice later this winter. To name only five.
Of course, if you'd prefer to get serious and really contemplate and converse about our woeful state of affairs, you'll find plenty of ways to do that, as well. Start by consulting the lineup of noted authors coming to local bookstores and even a certain historic synagogue.
The Capital Pride Alliance and WorldPride DC organizers hosted a "wrap-up party" on September 30 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to unveil the WorldPride 2025 Impact Report, highlighting the celebration's economic and cultural reach.
The event, featuring food, drinks, and live performances, celebrated WorldPride’s success while giving LGBTQ community members a chance to reflect on the experience and the lessons learned from hosting a large-scale festival in D.C., helping build an infrastructure the city can use for future events.
The fall looks primed to be a strong season of concerts by -- and appealing to -- the LGBTQ community. Among the highlights in the category of the well-known, consider Andy Bell (Lincoln), Jane Lynch (Strathmore), Renee Rapp (Merriweather), DOECHII (Anthem), and of course All Things Go (Merriweather). In the category of merely appealing, not gay per se, consider The Queens (Capital One Arena), Deborah Cox (Bethesda Theater), and Judith Hill (The Hamilton).
That barely scratches the surface. There's a lot of new -- or perhaps new to you -- queer artists out there, just waiting for you get into them including Katie Pruitt (Union Station, Rams Head), Rio Romeo (Songbyrd), Aaron Lee Tasjan (Jammin Java), Dixon Dallas (Union Stage).
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
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