by Maya Arigala
From Caitlyn Jenner’s recent vocal disapproval of gay marriage to the recent addition of Rainbow Doritos to store shelves everywhere, there are a lot of hot button issues in the LGBT community right now. One that has gained a little more traction is Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis’ refusal to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples despite the fact that, since the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, she is required to by law.
Since her continual denial of these requests is illegal, Davis was charged with contempt of court and sent to Carter County Detention Center, where she remained for five days.
Upon her release, she walked onto a stage to the song “Eye of the Tiger” in front of all of her supporters, including Republican presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Ted Cruz. In the moments that followed she gave a brief speech, in which she told the crowd, with tears in her eyes, “I just want to give God all the glory. His people have rallied, and they are a strong people”.
She proceeded to thank and extend her love to the people who came to support her and told them to “just keep on pressing, don’t let down, because He is here.”
Kim Davis | photo courtesy of http://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/fashion/daily/2015/09/09/09-kim-davis.w529.h352.jpg
Davis’s situation raised many interesting debates about the place of religion in the workplace, but by far the most circulated comment on social media was from Frankie Sullivan, frontman of Survivor, the band who produced “Eye of the Tiger,” who stated he “would not give [Kim Davis] the rights to a roll of Charmin.”
President of the Gay Straight Alliance club, Dominique Ward, said : “I’d love to say that what Kim Davis did is terribly wrong and she can’t be allowed to do it … but on the other hand, we do have to recognize that religious people have very deeply held beliefs … we do need to acknowledge that.”
Ward then went on to say, “On the other hand, you can’t just stop issuing marriage licenses. People want to get married and should be allowed to get married. You can’t just hold them off indefinitely. If I were the judge I would have had somebody who was okay with gay marriage issue all the gay marriage licenses, and then other people wouldn’t have had to question their beliefs. But ultimately it is her job to issue marriage licenses, and she can’t be allowed to not do that simply because of her beliefs. She is working for the government and the government is impartial.”
If you wish to discuss Kim Davis and related LGBT issues further, join Dominique and the rest of GSA in the red room during Friday tutorials.