Let’s stop masking bigotry as “sincerely-held religious beliefs.”
U.S. District Judge David Bunning freed Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis from jail Tuesday afternoon, five days after he sent her there for failing to issue marriage licenses.
Her deputies issued marriage licenses while she was in jail. The district judge said he was satisfied with that arrangement, so he released her.
Davis refused to issue marriage licenses because she claimed religious objections to same-sex marriage. Because she wasn’t following the law, Bunning sent her to jail, holding her in contempt of court.
The special treatment we give religious groups, Christians in particular, is appalling. Do you think the public would support Davis if she was a muslim woman? Exactly.
Davis didn’t learn anything from her punishment. She never issued marriage licenses to a same-sex couple. Her deputies did. She doesn’t need to be rewarded for something she didn’t do.
If the judge wanted the deputies to issue marriage licenses on her behalf, he should have ordered them to do so instead of jailing her. She’s not going to suddenly change her mind and support equality.
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear won’t intervene either. Davis asked his office to release her from jail and to accommodate her sincerely-held religious beliefs.
He didn’t endorse her, but he didn’t condemn her either. Beshear said this was “a matter between her and the courts.”
Well, the courts spoke, and they decided a woman who broke the law can go free because someone else did her job for her.
And he still won’t intervene. He’s doing what every Democrat does in a red state. He’s uncomfortable, and obviously not taking a stance.
Kentucky is effectively allowing religious beliefs to trump human rights.
I’m tired of people’s religious rights taking precedent over human or civil rights. Where’s my right to live free of persecution? Gay people can still be fired based on who they love in 27 states,
including Louisiana and Kentucky. Someone’s religion or sexual insecurities shouldn’t dictate where I work.
We live in a secular country. Our First Amendment guarantees Congress won’t pass any laws prohibiting or enforcing a religion. The government isn’t prohibiting Davis from practicing her religion. She can discriminate against the LGBT community at any point she likes during her private time.
When she steps into her office, however, she becomes a public figure. She’s issuing marriage licenses on behalf of Kentucky, and therefore cannot impose her beliefs onto others. The Supreme Court settled this issue in June. Everyone needs to comply with the law if we’re ever going to move forward with addressing other LGBT issues in America.
It’s time for Davis to stop acting like a child. She can either do the job for which the people elected her, or she should resign.
Cody Sibley is a 19-year-old mass communication sophomore from Opelousas, Louisiana. You can reach him on Twitter @CodySibley.