LGBTQ Democrats of Montgomery County

LGBTQ Dems Announce Planning Board Forum

5/8/2019

April 29, 2019 - Montgomery County, MD - The LGBTQ Democrats of Montgomery County invite you to a public forum to hear from candidates for the Montgomery County Planning Board. The forum will be held on Monday, June 3, from 7:00pm – 8:30pm at the Silver Spring Civic Center and moderated by Adam Pagnucco, opinion columnist for Bethesda Magazine. RSVP or provide feedback for candidate questions here.

The five-person Montgomery County Planning Board plays a major role in the land use decisions throughout Montgomery County ––from zoning, building heights and density to creation of new parks and developments affecting the 1.1 million county residents.

There are two vacancies on the Planning Board and a total of 24 applicants. In June, the County Council will narrow the field of candidates and then select two appointees.

Prior to the Council making their final selection, the Montgomery County LGBTQ Democrats want to educate the public on the critical role the Planning Board plays in shaping our communities and future growth of the county. We believe that it's important to hear directly from candidates about their goals for zoning, development and other planning issues –– especially as they relate to LGBTQ people.

To give feedback to the event organizers so they can tailor questions to community concerns, and to RSVP, please complete this form.

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LGBTQ Dems Announce 2019 Legislative Priorities

1/22/2019

January 8, 2019 - Montgomery County, MD – The LGBTQ Democrats of Montgomery County today announced its legislative priorities for 2019 addressing key issues affecting the LGBTQ community. Members of the club met last week with over a dozen elected officials and representatives of the Montgomery County Democratic State Legislative group prior to the new legislative session.

The Advocacy Committee identified 5 concrete policy and advocacy goals to pursue in 2019:

Changing outdated and exclusive ID and name-change laws, which unduly burden trans, non-binary and gender-nonconforming (GNC) people
Fully funding the Ending Youth Homelessness Act as youth homelessness disproportionately affects LGBTQ youth
Pursue legislative and administrative solutions that identify non-acceptance of LGBTQ children as abuse paired with safe, sustainable housing for children impacted by abuse in the home
Advocating for a remediation plan to get Maryland back on track with HIV/AIDS public health benchmarks
Promoting and advocating for the rights of LGBTQ youth who may be kicked out of their homes or otherwise abused by intolerant parents and guardians

“Many people wrongly believe that when voters in Maryland passed marriage equality in 2012 that the big issues affecting our LGBTQ community had been solved,” said Michael Knaapen, president of the LGBTQ Democrats of Montgomery County. “Our trans siblings are struggling without key legal protections and adequate healthcare services. Over 46% of our LGBTQ youth run away due to discrimination from their families yet risk being placed back in those very same homes. Maryland is falling behind its 2020 benchmarks to improve HIV health outcomes as HIV infection rates are increasing among gay men in Maryland. We look forward to working with state and local officials to address these serious issues affecting Montgomery County LGBTQ residents.”

Candidate Surveys & Election Endorsement Questionnaires

6/16/2018

Candidate questionnaires and surveys are an inevitable part of local elections. Here are the responses for our endorsed candidates.