Washington Blade - May 11, 2006
Lou Chibbaro Jr

They made their positions known during a May 8 forum sponsored by the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city's largest gay political group.

The two-hour event, held at the Human Rights Campaign headquarters near Dupont Circle, drew nearly 300 people, including gay campaign workers for each of the candidates.

Stein Club President Mario Acosta said the support the candidates showed for virtually all gay rights issues except marriage was in keeping with the city's tradition of electing gay-supportive mayors.

Washington Post editor and columnist Colbert King, who served as the forum's moderator, set the tone when he asked, "Do you support the legalization of same-sex marriage in the District of Columbia?"

"I said in my opening statement, and I'll say it very succinctly in response to this question," said former Verizon executive Marie Johns. "The Johns administration will be fully in favor of marriage equality."

Johns issued a statement two weeks ago announcing her support for same-sex marriage.

Ward 4 Councilmember Adrian Fenty, who became the first of the mayoral candidates to declare support for same-sex marriage more than a year ago, told the forum he would also speak out against a potential D.C. ballot amendment to ban gay marriage in the city.

"We should not only promote same-sex marriage, but work to educate and then work against those who would try to have such amendments in the District of Columbia or anywhere else in this country," Fenty said.

D.C. Council Chair Linda Cropp, who along with Fenty is considered a frontrunner in the mayoral race, joined Ward 5 Councilmember Vincent Orange and businessman and lobbyist Michael Brown in expressing support for civil unions rather than same-sex marriage.

The three said they want same-sex couples to have the same rights, benefits and responsibilities that come with marriage, but they were fearful that pushing full same-sex marriage at the present time would prompt Congress to intervene and overturn a gay marriage bill.

At the conclusion of the forum, Acosta-Velez introduced political unknown Artee Milligan, who is a gay candidate for mayor. He was given three minutes to discuss his views. Acosta-Velez said the Stein Club was not aware of Milligan's candidacy when it informed the candidates about the candidates' forum in February.

Milligan, a Ward 4 resident who serves as executive director of a local, nonprofit group, said he supports full, same-sex marriage rights and has been a long-time supporter of gay rights and improved AIDS services in the District. He told the Washington Blade his sexual orientation is known among his campaign supporters and circle of friends, and he has had discussions with members of some local gay groups.

Several hundred Washington, D.C., residents attended the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club's Mayoral Candidates Forum. (Photo by Adam Cuthbert)

Milligan received applause for his same-sex marriage position but drew boos when he informed the crowd that he had worked in the past for the Exxon-Mobil Corp.

Reading questions submitted by members of the audience, King pressed the five major candidates earlier in the forum for answers on subjects ranging from the city's high HIV-infection rate and gay adoption to discrimination against transgender people and the contribution by gays to the city's economic development.

Tensions flared only once among the candidates in what was a largely low-key, cordial discussion of the issues.

In responding to a question about the rising HIV infection rate among women in the District, Brown accused Cropp of taking a "homophobic position" at another forum last month by attributing a significant part of female HIV infections to "men on the down-low."

Gay and AIDS activists have used the term "on the down-low" to describe African-American men who have sex with other men but who usually don't consider themselves gay and have sexual relations with women.

Cropp responded by leaping to her feet and demanding to be allowed to respond to Brown's accusation. After waiting for moderator King's go-ahead, Cropp said "talk is cheap," then listed what she said were her extensive accomplishments in advancing gay rights and AIDS-related legislation and funding in the Council for more than 20 years.

"Put them all together," she said, pointing to her fellow candidates. "They can't beat the Linda Cropp record."

Brown supporter Sterling Washington, the former president of the D.C. Coalition, which represents African-American gays, said Brown was right to bring up the down-low issue. Washington said Cropp's references to the "down low" issue represent a subtle way of blaming black gays for the spread of AIDS to women. He argued that studies show most straight women contract HIV through sexual contact with heterosexual men or through intravenous drug use.

Phyllis Jones, Cropp's campaign manager, dismissed claims that Cropp's reference to men on the down-low indicates she is blaming black gay men for spreading HIV to women.

"She has been an advocate all along, for years, for safer sex and for needle exchange programs to curtail the spread of AIDS across the board," Jones said.

Opposing gay marriage ban

In discussing their views on same-sex marriage, all five candidates said they would oppose a city ballot measure to ban gay marriage and would seek to persuade religious leaders, including the city's influential black churches, to support legal rights for same-sex couples.

In response to a question from King, each of the candidates criticized a recent sermon given by Bishop Alfred A. Owens Jr., pastor of Greater Mount Calvary Church in Northeast D.C. In a Good Friday sermon, Owens used the terms "faggot" and "sissy" to describe gay men.

"I feel very strongly that two people who love each other should be able to be together and they should have the same rights and the same privileges as everyone else," Cropp said, in discussing the same-sex marriage issue.

She said if D.C. were to pass a gay marriage bill any time soon, Congress would likely overturn it and take steps to repeal existing protections for same-sex couples, such as the city's far-reaching domestic partnership laws.

"So strategically, as I have talked to many people in the community, we have to be vigilant on trying to bring about equality but make sure we don't take a step backwards," Cropp said.

In his response to King's question on gay marriage, Orange gave a direct answer: "No, I do not," he said.

Orange added that he believes the gay community is divided over whether to move ahead on gay marriage, and noted that some gay leaders have expressed opposition to the introduction of a same-sex marriage recognition bill in the D.C. Council anytime soon.

"We should have sustainable advances as opposed to ideal advances," Orange said. "Sustainable advances are domestic partnership, civil unions, expanding the rights for power of attorney, making sure your partner has health care benefits. These are the things that we can sustain while we continue to move forward."

Brown said his personal views differ from his role as a public official.

"I'm clearly for, and if you're a Democrat you have to be for, marriage equality," Brown said. "There's no question about that. But there's also a realism we have to face."

Similar to Cropp, Brown predicted Congress would intervene to prevent the city from adopting a gay marriage bill.

"So what I'm for is civil unions, as your leader, with all the teeth that you can have-property, wills, visiting folks in the hospital, whatever kind of way you want to treat yourself that has all the teeth of marriage. You just can't call it that."

Johns and Fenty said later that they, too, are aware that Congress would likely block an attempt by the city to pass a gay marriage bill. Both said they feel it's important to express a public commitment for same-sex marriage.

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