By: Sharon Aron Baron
The denial of marriage licenses to gay couples by Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis have left many people angry, and Mitch Ceasar, member of the Democratic National Party executive board was no exception. He spoke out on Wednesday night about her actions and the ensuing media circus upon her release.
Davis gained notoriety because she stopped issuing all marriage certificates in Rowan County when gay and lesbian couples were legally allowed to marry because she said it would violate her conscious and go against her religion.
“This was after the Supreme Court said we recognize equal protection, we recognize the sanctity of marriage, we recognize that caring for another person and wanting to marry them is the most basic human right,” said Ceasar to the members of the Dolphin Democrats at the Pride Center in Wilton Manors.
He said that if the U.S. were to be a beacon, as we say we are, to the free world in democracy and human rights, the only way we can do that with a straight face is to recognize all human rights, at the very least uphold the laws of the land.
Davis was arrested and held in contempt of court by Judge David L. Bunning where she spent nearly a week in jail. Soon after she was released, Governor Mike Huckabee and a throng of supporters cheered for her.
Ceasar voiced his anger at the media circus that rewarded the behavior of the elected official who had defied the law.
“We can not allow this movement, we cannot allow human rights, we cannot allow the constitution of the United States to be thrown aside and 200 years of legal rule and precedent.”
Davis is expected to be back at work on Monday and her Deputy Clerk will be issuing licenses with or without her authority. If she interferes, the judge has made it clear he will send her back to jail.