Before Mayor Patrick Wojahn headed College Park, MD, he was a key figure in the movement for what activists described as “marriage equality” both through an activist group and through his own relationship.
As one of the nine plaintiff couples in the Deane vs. Conaway lawsuit filed in 2004, Kolesar and his partner, Patrick Wojahn, saw two years of legal entanglements finally pay off with the judge’s support of same-sex marriage.
Judge Brooke M. Murdock ruled a 1973 state law which prohibited same-sex marriage was discriminatory and caused by bias, bringing an end to the first stage of the lawsuit, which was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Equality Maryland and nine gay couples chosen to be the “face of the gay community,” Kolesar said.
Wojahn was not just a test case, he was an activist.
Until the new legislative term resumes, advocates are trying to drum up public support for same-sex marriage in the state. “We’re working on rebuilding support in those areas and looking at how we’re going to proceed,” says Patrick Wojahn, chair of the Equality Maryland Foundation. “We’re trying to get [legislators who defected] back on board or get other people on board.”
Wojahn even made it sound like he was mentored by Pete Buttigieg.
During his Council elections and his first run as a mayoral candidate, Wojahn knew he had no choice but to run as an openly gay man because of his media prominence with the marriage equality lawsuit.
But being elected as an out gay mayor landed him a fortuitous mentor.
“I actually met Mayor Pete Buttigieg shortly after I was elected mayor in 2015,” Wojahn said. “I went to the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ Winter Meeting in D.C. in January and he was assigned to be my buddy.”
The two continued to talk over the phone and Buttigieg explained the conference to him and what would take place at the meeting. Later, they would both attend a White House reception during the Obama administration where Dave and Chasten (Buttigieg) would meet as well.
Buttigieg continued to mentor Wojahn, advising him on how to get the most out of his participation in the conference.
“I now serve in a leadership role as vice chair of city livability and bicycling in part due to his mentorship.”
They also talked about the challenges of being an openly gay mayor with Buttigieg sharing with his mentee the story of his coming out while serving in office.
The Buttigieg campaign hailed Wojahn’s endorsement of him during the Democrat primaries.
The media has carefully avoided talking about this when Mayor Patrick Wojahn was first arrested or now when he pled guilty.
The former mayor of a Maryland college town pleaded guilty Wednesday to more than 100 counts connected to the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material.
Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy’s office said the plea deal calls for Wojahn to serve a 30-year prison sentence.
An attorney listed in online court records did not immediately return an email seeking comment Wednesday evening. When Wojahn stepped down, he said in his resignation letter he planned to “deal with my own mental health.”
Maybe Buttigieg could mentor him some more.
I’m surprised, really amazed that Maryland made a law against gay marriage… IN 1973!
Was Nostradamus in the legislature?
Buttgig and Wojahn are butt buddies. It figures. I mean, the weirdo totally looks like a kiddie porn freak. If you were to imagine a pervert, it would be him. Super creepy.
Lil’ Petey is pretty weird looking too, if you ask me. He looks like a gay munchkin.
Yeah, and also like a gay Alfred E. Neuman.
Who, me?
Yeah, what a fruit loop.
Whoever down voted me eats shit for breakfast.
How does it taste, Megalito? Shitty?
The LGBT+ community contains both good people and bad people. But because it is so politicized there are very few of the good ones who are openly critical of the bad ones. This is why we have these problems of sexualizing children in schools. It is clearly an agenda being advanced by people who are morally compromised.
Everybody is a mix of good and bad. Love the sinner, hate the sin. No sin is particularly special because the little sin removes you from Holiness to the same infinite degree as murder. But there are degrees of sin and different kinds of sin.
Sex is a core identity for everyone. This is why sexual perverts define themselves by their sexual choices: “I am trans. My pronouns, my identity is _____.”
Sexual sin is particularly harmful in its practices. Adultery destroy marriage and relational trust. Fornication destroys ability to achieve non-sexual intimacy (especially in women). Rape is a life-killing sin, causing its victims to suffer more and lasting harm. Homosexual sex carries a lot of terrible diseases and harms.
There are good people who are sexual perverts. I know and love them in my own family. But we cannot escape reality – their sin is a deeply spiritual one affecting their very identity. The acts which naturally flow from it are abominable. It is no accident that pedophiles do what they do. No accident that homosexuals suffer more from diseases traced to their practices.
I feel sure that the LGBT+ community would remain largely silent even in the absence of “politicization.” They know who they are, and they cannot deny what naturally flows from their perversion, even if they do not themselves indulge in every form of it.
Ugly truth, I think.
The problem is bad ideas. Bad ideas that willing accomplices in the media promoted for decades through gross exaggerations and lies, and bad ideas that resulted when five Supreme Court Justices opened the Pandoro’s Box of same sex “marriage.” They substituted their own sense of righteousness in place of the wisdom of the ages thereby empowering themselves. God is not mocked.
Yes. Bad ideas have always been with us, but we are more gullible now. More stupid, I think.
This must really have the M.S. Media on pins and needles over this whole thing their skeletons are being found in their closets
“T*RDS Of A Feather”??????????????????
“Hi Buddy… I’m Bubba..” “Hiiiiii Bubba. You’re my cellmate? Wow… I think I’m going to like it here.”
“Hi Buddy… I’m Big Bubba.” “Hi Big Bubba.”