Next Up: Tuesday, January 7, 7 PM
The Capital Pride Alliance, in partnership with Team Rayceen Productions and the 50th Anniversary subcommittee of World Pride 2025, presents “An Evening with LGBTQ + Heroes”.
The Capital Pride Alliance is celebrating 50 years of pride in our nation’s capital. As part of that celebration, we want to highlight some of the organizers in our community who have received an honor from our organization. Please join us for a monthly virtual live event featuring some of these honorees who will share their history and thoughts on what pride means.
The January event will be held in-person at The Human Rights Campaign as well as virtual. Doors will open at 6:45pm.
Pastor/Bishop & Spiritual Leader
Senior Pastor of Empowerment Liberation Cathedral
About Bishop Allyson Abrams, DMIN, PhD
Bishop Allyson Abrams, DMIN, PhD is an articulate, dynamic, creative individual. She is the founder and pastor of Empowerment Liberation Cathedral located in the Nation’s Capital. She is the founder and president of Empowerment Justice Center, a 501c3 organization. With her passion for real estate, she founded MyVision LLC and is a realtor in DC and MD and also has become a real estate investor. Dr. Abrams is a graduate of the Mecca, Howard University, receiving her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. She later received the Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry from United Theological Seminary. She also received her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from Wayland Baptist Theological Seminary in 2021.
Dr. Abrams has used her energetic influence in many walks of life and has been trumpeter for justice for over 20 years. She was elected to serve on the Oak Park, Michigan’s School Board as President and Trustee. She was trained in Politics by Michigan State’s Public Policy Fellowship program (MPLP). She now serves as an organizer with the State of MD with WinWithBlackWomen and collaborative of the DMV. She is a former Vice President of South Oakland County’s NAACP. She currently serves as a Commissioner on the Washington DC Mayor’s Interfaith Council. Bishop Abrams, through Empowerment Justice Center, hosts phone banking every Tuesday for 2 hours – calling voters in swing states.
She leads a prayer call every Tuesday morning with WinWithBlackWomen DMV to pray for the Democratic Nominee for president, other candidates down the ballot, and the election She has door knocked on Saturdays with the Democratic Committee in MD & Prince George’s County and she is an advocate for justice. She is certified to register voters in MD and has registered college students as well as other adults in the community. Dr. Abrams formerly served on the National Small Business Administration’s Leadership Council. Bishop Abrams currently is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. While Bishop Abrams enjoys the many ways, she contributes to society, she most enjoys being the wife of Dr. Diana Williams and the mother of 3 college graduate children.
Nightclub and Bar Owner
and Operator
Washington, DC
About Ed Bailey
A native Washingtonian, Ed Bailey has worked in the nightlife industry in the LGBT community for three over decades. In addition to being a nationally acclaimed DJ and a DC public school basketball coach, he has been the owner or operator of ten prominent nightclubs and bars in the District throughout his career that have helped change the landscape of nightlife for LGBTQ citizens in the greater Washington DC area. From Tracks to Nation to Town, Number Nine, and Trade, his highly visible gay businesses have proven to be tremendous sources of charity, safe spaces, and social outlets for hundreds of thousands of LGBTQ people.
Bailey, along with business partners John Guggenmos and James Boyle, have not only been nationally recognized for the creation of vibrant and dynamic nightlife experiences, but they have also gained notoriety for having instituted generous charitable giving as a cornerstone of their businesses. They have assisted countless organizations to raise awareness and funds that are needed for the important work that those groups do in the DC area and nationally. The efforts of this ownership group in both the creation and operation of nightlife spaces and the dedication to their community are unparalleled among LGBTQ owned businesses and have not only garnered tremendous acclaim among the community but the sincere respect of their fellow nightlife community.
Director
Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs
About Ben DeGuzman
Ben DeGuzman has been a leading voice on issues of LGBT justice, racial equity, immigrants’ rights, and veterans affairs for more than twenty years. He currently serves as the Director of the Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (MOAPIA), the largest office of its kind in the country centering Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) constituents. He came to MOAPIA from the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, where he helped the office assume production of the annual 17th Street High Heel Race, continuing this longstanding DC institution.
Prior to working for Mayor Muriel Bowser, Ben played key roles at a variety of nonprofit organizations and campaigns for two decades. He was a cofounder of the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance, a federation of AANHPI LGBTQ locally based organizations. As an advocate for equity for Filipino WWII Veterans, he led legislative advocacy efforts that resulted in the creation of the Filipino WWII Veterans Equity Compensation Fund and the awarding of the Filipino WWII Veterans Congressional Gold Medal.
In 2019, he was recognized as a Capital Pride Hero and received the LGBTQ Advocacy Award for The Outstanding Filipinos in America (TOFA). Mayor Bowser gave him a Community Service Award in 2015 for his local and national work in Washington, DC.
He has authored articles and op-eds that have appeared in academic journals, news media, mainstream, and anthologies, including the Encyclopedia of Asian American Issues Today.
Director DeGuzman is a resident of LeDroit Park in Ward 1 and a proud son of Filipino immigrants.
President / CEO
Center for Black Equity
About Kenya Hutton
Kenya Hutton is a dedicated advocate with over 20 years of experience in HIV prevention and public health. As the President and CEO of the Center for Black Equity, Kenya leads global efforts to uplift Black LGBTQ+ communities through health equity, advocacy, and leadership development. He serves as the Co-Chair of the Human Rights Conference for World Pride 2025, championing global dialogues on equity and inclusion. A visionary organizer, Kenya drives initiatives addressing systemic disparities, including access to medications and HIV response strategies. Known for his compassionate leadership, Kenya continues to redefine what it means to lead in a global human rights movement.
Empress of Pride and
Goddess of DC
Community Liaison for Team Rayceen Productions
About Rayceen Pendarvis
Rayceen Pendarvis is an event host, interviewer, moderator, speaker, wedding officiant, community advocate, and lifelong Washingtonian. This includes hosting and co-hosting events by Team Rayceen Productions (including The Ask Rayceen Show, a monthly community gathering and variety program which ran for ten years, including at the HRC Equality Center from March 2017 to March 2020). As an inspirational speaker, disseminator of information, frequent host of LGBTQ events, and a tireless advocate for the community, Rayceen has earned the monikers High Priestess of Love, Queen of the Shameless Plug, Empress of Pride, and Goddess of DC. Online, Rayceen can be found on social media and as a co-host and panelist on the Team Rayceen YouTube channel. For more information, please visit Rayceen.com.
Veteran Transgender Activist
About Bobbi Elaine Strang
Bobbi Elaine Strang has served the community in a variety of leadership positions including President of GLAA, the Executive Board of GLOV (now the DC Anti-Violence Coalition), the Board of Directors for the Metropolitan Community Church, on officer with the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club (now the Stonewall Democrats), a member of the Transgender Day of Remembrance, as a co-facilitator of the Center Careers Program at the DC LGBT Center and as a guitarist with the music ministry of Metropolitan Community Services.
Professionally, she was the first openly transgender individual to work at the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services where she provided case management in Project Empowerment and now serves as a Claim’s Examiner for the Office of Workmen’s Compensation. She is grateful to all the community advocates who came before her and made this possible.
Moderator
About Benjamin Coy
Benjamin Coy is an award-winning digital strategist and dynamic fashion creative with expertise in content strategy, influencer marketing, and brand development. As Communications Marketing Campaign Manager for the National LGBTQ Task Force and Action Fund, Benjamin focuses on Black and queer liberation, intersectionality, and LGBTQ+ advocacy. A recognized speaker and thought leader, Benjamin is a co-host and moderator with Team Rayceen Productions, co-host of the “Cocktails and Culture Podcast,” and hosts the National LGBTQ Task Force’s Instagram Live series “X is a Queer Issue.” Benjamin holds a BA in Mass Communication from Bethune-Cookman University and an MA in Strategic Communication from American University. In 2024, Benjamin was added to PR Week’s Pride in PR list of 30 inspirational LGBTQ PR practitioners in the world.
The Capital Pride Alliance, through its stewardship of diverse programming and events, specifically year-round LGBTQ+ Pride festivities centered in Washington, DC and the National Capital Region, serves to celebrate, educate, support, and inspire our multi-faceted communities in order to grow and preserve our history and protect our rights for current and future generations. Learn More