Dan Quinn’s public addresses probably won’t ever air on the Disney Channel. There were plenty of illuminating and interesting things learned about the Washington Commanders’ new coach during his introductory news conference Monday afternoon, such as that he wants his defense here to resemble his top-five unit with Dallas. That he calls Stacey, his wife of almost 30 years, his “ride or die.” And that he really likes to swear.
Washington
Perspective | For Dan Quinn’s Commanders, ‘rebuild’ is a four-letter word
Quinn telegraphed his first PG-13 word soon into his nearly 50-minute question-and-answer session with reporters. The next several just flowed through his responses, like “kick a–” and “competitive a–” and “work our a–es off.”
But there’s one curse word that Quinn won’t say: rebuild.
Or, for the purposes of keeping this family friendly: “r—–.”
You want to make NFL coaches blush in embarrassment, start dropping that seven-letter word. They might make you throw money into the swear jar and then wash your mouth out with soap. It’s the most censored word in NFL circles, at least publicly.
“R—–” is so dirty and so dishonorable that only mature audiences can handle it. Coaches, wanting to protect the innocent ears of their fan bases and especially their locker rooms, will use any word but that one. Even when the truth is, the Commanders under Quinn will be rebuilding. Oops. Pardon my French. I mean, they will be recalibrating.
This revelation came up innocently enough when an apparently foul-mouthed reporter asked Quinn for his timeline in turning around the Commanders and used the “R” word. To his credit, Quinn didn’t instinctively raise both hands to the sides of his head and scream, “Earmuffs, kids!” He did, however, politely correct the counterfeit cuss word into something a bit more palatable.
“Your words, not mine,” Quinn said. “I’m really, honestly glad you brought it up. I know it’s a big topic. I would say this is a recalibrate. Finding our north again. And that starts with our identity of our club. So, [you] will not hear me say the word ‘rebuild’ at all. This is about accessing what we have, how do we add to that and how quickly we can accelerate this process together.”
Washington’s new general manager, Adam Peters, has to draft a quarterback, someone who can potentially become the franchise guy. The offense will look different for the third time in three seasons because Quinn hired Kliff Kingsbury as the offensive coordinator. The defense will be overhauled under Joe Whitt Jr.
So much new is happening all at once. For the change to take effect, it will need time. And at the risk of sounding crude, the franchise appears to be entering a complete teardown, with a willingness to start everything over. A classic redo. In a word, a rebuild.
However, in the NFL, you can’t say that word. Veterans cringe at the prospect. While seven-year pro Jonathan Allen has since expressed excitement over the arrival of Quinn and Peters, as he played in the final weeks of the Ron Rivera era, he rejected the thought of starting over.
“I do want to win,” Allen told the Junkies on 106.7 the Fan in December. “ … I’m not in the business of going through another rebuild.”
While players in their prime have little time to waste, fan bases can be just as impatient when waiting on their teams to show improvement. Why stay calm watching your team flail through a rebuild when other teams have revved up the standings in warp speed? In every season but two over the past 21 years, at least one franchise has gone from worst to first in its division. The Houston Texans — recently a doormat in the weak AFC South — became the latest team to do so. Houston won three games a year ago, but after hiring DeMeco Ryans as coach and drafting a franchise-shifting quarterback in C.J. Stroud, the team leapfrogged its division rivals and even won a playoff game.
The woebegone Cincinnati Bengals can rise up as Super Bowl contenders in Zac Taylor’s third season as coach (when Joe Burrow’s healthy, at least), and the Detroit Lions can go from being a perpetual punchline to playing in the NFC championship game in Dan Campbell’s third year. That’s fun for football fans. Rebuilding is not. And Quinn gets it.
Reality strikes, however, when reading through the Commanders’ long to-do list. Quinn has a vision of creating a physical and explosive team on defense, offense and special teams — “I hope teams that will have to play against us are like: ‘Damn! This is going to be hard today,’” he said — but developing that standard could take time.
As fired up as Quinn seems to be over his inherited defense, he’s still getting a unit that collapsed near the end, surrendering 30 points or more five times over the final seven games of the season. Allen and Daron Payne anchor the interior, but every position group from the front four all the way to that leaky secondary could use a — what’s the word again? — recalibration.
And it’s not just the defense. Quinn will have his hands full. But these are the hefty responsibilities Quinn has wanted since being fired by the Atlanta Falcons five games into the 2020 season. While building back the Cowboys’ defense, the 53-year-old hoped for another shot.
“I so wanted this moment,” he said.
Though Quinn might have waited patiently, he didn’t express that same sentiment for the Commanders’ reload, reconstruction, reshuffle, recarpeting, whatever they want to call it here.
“There is no timeline on that, but we will push it hard to see how good we can get and how fast we can get it [there]. But I see it much more as a recalibration. Okay, let’s find our north, form our identity and how we’re going to get it on and then push hard to reach that,” Quinn said. “And like all things, it takes trust between teammates, staff, personnel, ownership, but the more connection we have, the faster we’ll get there.”
This all sounds very good and encouraging for the players in the locker room and loyal fans in the region. And it also sounds like — earmuffs, kids — a rebuild.
Washington
19-Year-Old Transgender University of Washington Student Fatally Stabbed
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This story contains descriptions of fatal violence against a transgender person.
The Seattle Police Department are searching for a suspect after a 19-year-old University of Washington student was stabbed to death in an off-campus student apartment complex on May 10.
Seattle Police Department Detective Eric Muñoz told NBC News that the victim is “believed to be a 19-year-old transgender female” who was enrolled at the university. The victim has not yet been publicly identified by name. She was found in the housing complex laundry room shortly after 10 p.m. on Sunday night.
The housing complex, Nordheim Court, is privately managed but affiliated with the university, located near an upscale shopping center in Seattle’s U-Village neighborhood. According to NBC News, residents received an official alert from UW to stay inside their homes and lock all windows and doors — an alert that was lifted around 1 a.m. with the acknowledgment that “a death investigation remains ongoing.”
According to SPD detective Eric Muñoz, police and the fire department attempted lifesaving measures but ultimately “pronounced the victim deceased at the scene.”
“Officers are actively searching for the suspect, believed to be a black male with a beard, 5’6-8” tall, wearing a vest with button up shirt, and blue jeans,” Muñoz wrote in a blotter report.
Muñoz noted that the victim would be identified by the medical examiner’s office in “the coming days.” The SPD did not immediately respond to Them’s request for comment.
This is the seventh known trans person to be violently killed in 2026. In mid-April, 39-year-old transmasculine farmer Luca RedBeard was fatally shot in rural New Mexico. Last week, police in Marion County, Florida opened a homicide investigation into the shooting death of a 29-year-old who went by multiple names and referred to “transitioning” on social media. In Kentucky, an investigation into the disappearance of 22-year-old trans college student Murry Foust remains ongoing.
Police are asking anyone with information about the University of Washington case to call the Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000, emphasizing that anonymous tips are accepted.
This is a developing story.
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Washington
How the Sea Mar Museum Is Preserving Latino History in Washington
On a quiet stretch of Des Moines Memorial Drive in South Seattle, the Sea Mar Museum of Chicano/a/Latino/a Culture rises like a long‑overdue acknowledgment. Its brick exterior doesn’t shout; it invites. Inside, the rooms hum with the stories of families who crossed borders, harvested fields, organized classrooms, and built communities across Washington state—often without seeing their histories reflected anywhere on a museum wall.
For Rogelio Riojas, founder and CEO of Sea Mar Community Health Centers, the museum is a promise kept. “We wanted to make sure the contributions of Latinos in Washington state are recognized and preserved for future generations,” he told The Seattle Times when the museum opened in 2019. It was a simple statement, but one that captured decades of work—both visible and invisible—by the region’s Latino communities.
Walking through the galleries feels like stepping into a living archive. One of the most arresting sights is a pair of original farmworker cabins, transported from Eastern Washington. Their narrow wooden frames and sparse interiors speak volumes about the migrant families who once slept inside after long days in the fields. The cabins are not replicas or artistic interpretations; they are the real thing, weathered by sun, dust, and time. They anchor the museum’s narrative in the physical realities of labor that shaped the state’s agricultural economy.
Sea Mar describes the museum as “dedicated to sharing the history, struggles, and successes of the Latino community in Washington state,” a mission that plays out in photographs, letters, student newspapers, and oral histories contributed by community members themselves. These aren’t artifacts chosen from afar—they’re family treasures, personal archives, and memories entrusted to the museum so they can live beyond the kitchen tables and shoeboxes where they were once kept.
The story extends beyond the museum walls. Just steps away is the Sea Mar Community Center, a sweeping, light‑filled gathering space designed for celebrations, performances, workshops, and community events. With room for nearly 500 people, a full stage, a movie‑theater‑sized screen, and a catering kitchen, the center was built with one purpose: to give the community a place to see itself, gather, and grow. Sea Mar describes it as “a welcoming space for families, organizations, and community groups to gather, celebrate, and learn,” and on any given weekend, it lives up to that promise.
Together, the museum and community center form a cultural campus—part historical archive, part living room for the region’s Latino communities. Students come to learn about the Chicano activists who reshaped the University of Washington in the late 1960s. Families come to see their own histories reflected in the exhibits. Visitors come to understand a story that has long been present in Washington, even if it wasn’t always visible.
The Sea Mar Museum is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., offering free admission to anyone who walks through its doors. For many, it’s more than a museum—it’s a recognition, a gathering place, and a testament to the people who helped shape the Pacific Northwest.
Preserving Latino History and Community Life in Washington was first published on Washington Latino News (WALN) and republished with permission.
Washington
Mother’s Day Bunch at Lady Madison | Washington DC
Celebrate Mothers Day with à la carte brunch at Lady Madison featuring seafood, entrées, desserts, and premium beverage options.
Celebrate Mothers Day in sophisticated style at Lady Madison, located inside Le Méridien Washington, DC, The Madison. Join us on Sunday, May 10, 2026, from 12:003:00 PM for an elevated à la carte brunch experience in downtown Washington, DC.
Enjoy a refined selection of chef-driven brunch classics, fresh seafood, seasonal salads, and elegant entrées. Highlights include a Build Your Own Omelette, Crab Benedict with lime hollandaise, Chilled Seafood Trio, and signature mains such as Roasted Rack of Lamb, Cedar Plank Sea Bass, and Marinated New York Strip Loin.
End on a sweet note with classic desserts including Crème Brûlée Cheesecake, Fruit Tart, Strawberry Shortcake, and Passion Fruit Cake.
Enhance your experience with beverage offerings, including bottomless Mimosas and Bloody Marys for $30 with house selections. Piper-Heidsieck Champagne is also available by the glass for $16 or by the bottle for $49.
Reserve on OpenTable:
https://www.opentable.com/booking/experiences-availability?rid=1426987&restref=1426987&experienceId=695240&utm_source=external&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=shared
À La Carte Menu
Les ufs & Brunch
Egg White Frittata $24
spinach, tomato, mushrooms, green onion
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Build Your Own Omelette $24
ham, smoked salmon, vegetables, cheeses (choose up to 3)
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Crab Benedict $24
lime hollandaise, salsa cruda
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Brioche French Toast $17
berry compote, whipped butter, maple syrup
Les Froids & Salades
Chilled Seafood Trio $28
Jonah crab claws, shrimp, cocktail sauce
Spring Berry Salad $17
brie, berries, champagne vinaigrette
Golden & Crimson Beet Salad $18
red wine vinaigrette
Add protein: shrimp, salmon, skirt steak +18 | chicken +16
Les Plats Principaux
Roasted Rack of Lamb $42
mint sauce, huckleberry reduction, sweet potato purée, asparagus
Cedar Plank Sea Bass $49
saffron rice, spring vegetables
New York Strip Loin $42
mushroom sauce, truffle croquette potatoes, haricots verts
Les Desserts $14
Crème Brûlée Cheesecake
Fruit Tart
Strawberry Shortcake
Passion Fruit Cake
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