Jeff Marootian, vice president of Gertrude Stein Democratic Club. (Blade file photo)
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JOEY DiGUGLIELMO
Friday, May 09, 2008
Two gay groups — one local, one national — are partnering in hopes of increasing the number of gay Advisory Neighborhood Commission members in Washington.
Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, the city’s largest gay political group, and Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund, which provides financial and campaign support for gay candidates on all levels, hope to increase the number of gays among the city’s 293 commissioners.
Gay D.C. resident John Klenert, a Victory Fund board member and Stein Club member, conceived of the idea.
“I just realized these were within the mission of both groups,” Klenert said. “It’s a good way to get local people involved in the community.”
Klenert plans to invite gay ANC commissioners who are running in November, when all the two-year ANC terms end, to a summer workshop. Since ANC commissioners are elected officials, the workshop will advise them on how to campaign successfully and inform them of what issues gay candidates for public office are likely to face.
Victory Fund has Washington offices but it’s undetermined where or when the training will occur.
“They provide an outstanding, comprehensive training so we’re excited about this,” said Jeff Marootian, vice president of the Stein Club.
Gay bars, such as BeBar and those displaced by Nationals Park, have had well-documented zoning and location struggles in the last few years but Klenert said suggestions that seeking increased gay ANC leverage is driving the training program aren’t true.
“That’s not the reason,” he said. “We have gay people in all eight wards and we have a stake in the same things our so-called straight neighbors have. This goes beyond gay bars.”
Jack Jacobson, a gay ANC commissioner, plans to participate.
“I think any initiative that draws more diversity into the system is a great thing,” he said.
It’s unknown how many ANC commissioners are openly gay. Jacobson guesses it’s between 20 and 25.
ANC commissioners are not paid. Each represents about 2,000 residents. Anyone interested in the training should contact Victory Fund’s Shawn Werner at 202-842-7317 or shawn.werner@victoryfund.org.
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