FRANKFORT, KY - On Saturday, thousands rallied at the Kentucky Capitol in support of Kim Davis and other Kentucky clerks who are standing on their deeply held religious beliefs and refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses. While the Lexington Herald-Leader reported the crowd at 2,500, others in attendance said the crowd was at least 7,000 based on a conservative estimate. One even estimated the crowd at 10,000.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Matt Bevin spoke at the event, saying that "equal protection under the law" is for everyone. Bevin urged Governor Beshear to protect religious liberty: "When the Supreme Court changed Kentucky's definition of marriage, it also changed the job description of our county clerks and other officials currently involved in the state sanctioning of marriage."
"There are alternative ways to accommodate the religious conviction of Kim Davis and that is what we are asking the Court of Appeals to consider," said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. "Davis did not abandon her constitutional rights of conscience and free exercise of religion when she took office. The laws of the United States and Kentucky she swore to uphold include the laws that protect those very rights of conscience for all individuals, including clerks. The U.S. and Kentucky Constitutions, and particularly Kentucky's Religious Freedom Restoration Act, require the accommodation of public officials' sincerely held religious beliefs."
Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics.
