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| Of the candidates running for District mayor, including (from left to right) Michael Brown, Vincent Orange, Marie Johns, Adrian Fenty and Linda Cropp, only Johns and Fenty back gay marriage. (Photo by Adam Cuthbert) |
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HOME > NEWS > LOCAL
By: LOU CHIBBARO J COMMENTS
 
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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.
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 g
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