Tags: LGBTQ equality
ACLU Bill of Rights Dinner
Keynote Speaker: James Esseks, counsel in DOMA case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Tickets required.
Uphold the Veto of HB 279!
Responding to overwhelming public opposition, on Friday Gov. Steve Beshear vetoed House Bill 279.
The bill drew opposition from the state’s own Human Rights Commission, mayors of Covington, Louisville and Lexington, dozens of organizations including KFTC, and some religious leaders and faith communities.
Protect our civil rights laws
A bill that allows any individual to “act or refuse to act on religious grounds” has passed the House and Senate and was vetoed by Gov. Steve Beshear. House Bill 279 is written so broadly that it could be used to subvert existing civil rights laws in Kentucky that protect individuals from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations.
Organizing for Fairness at Georgetown College
The Scott County Chapter recently has acted in support of a new group at Georgetown College that seeks to persuade the College to expand non-discrimination protections to include such things as sexual orientation.
Georgetown College is a historically Baptist institution that traces its roots back to 1787, claiming as one its forebears Elijah Craig, the Kentucky Baptist preacher and Bourbon maker. Long a stronghold moderate Baptist thinking, the College adopted a formal policy prohibiting discrimination against gay students in 2008, College officials shy away from public acknowledgment of these policies. The College refused to formally sponsor a gay/student group until 2011, when gay students on campus boldly came out in the College newspaper and made the campus aware of the bullying and harassment to which they were at times subjected. Even then, the College insisted that the name of the group (Campus Spectrum) should not directly suggest anything about its mission, which is to welcome and support all students, regardless of sexual orientation.
Fairness, new energy, membership and fundraising keep Shelby members busy
On new energy, fairness, and fundraising and membership, KFTC Shelby County members are taking actions to move the chapter's goals forward.
- New Energy: Carlen Pippen is working closely with the Public Service Commission on pushing Shelby Energy toward transparency. He also met with local Rep. Brad Montell regarding Shelby Energy's proxy voting policy, which Rep. Montell – a member of Shelby Energy himself – deplored as undemocratic and promised to help work to overturn.
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