The LGBTQ community foisted their perspective on a number of cities in Kentucky . . . but not in Somerset.
On Feb. 11, the Somerset City Council defeated a proposed Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Ordinance by a 10-1 vote.
The decision appeared to be influenced by concerns brought forward by Christians in the community. The proposed ordinance did not contain any protections to ensure that religious liberty was protected.
Pastor Jeff Griffith, of Denham Baptist Church, urged the Council to consider whether the so-called “Fairness Ordinance” was truly fair towards all citizens, including Christians. While clearly expressing that he and his church loved and welcomed all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, he presented a report from the National Center for Life and Liberty which analyzed the proposed ordinance. It listed changes needed to ensure that U.S. Constitutional rights were not violated and that the law would truly be fair.
Though 10 Kentucky cities have adopted such ordinances, most states, Kentucky’s General Assembly, and the overwhelming number of Kentucky localities have not deemed it necessary.
So-called “Fairness Ordinances” have been pushed by LGBT activists throughout the country and state. Despite their name, the language has been used across the nation and in Kentucky to force business owners to speak a message they disagree with and support a message contrary to their sincerely held religious beliefs.
Additional concerns include the fact that it goes beyond what is required by Federal or State law; privacy and safety concerns arise from forcing restrooms to be open for members of the opposite biological sex; and the language is often orchestrated by outside groups to cause division that didn’t exist beforehand.
As a constitutional law expert who supports “Fairness Ordinances” recognized, it “sort of reduces religious liberty to ‘freedom of the church,’ and its internal operations.”
Strategy of LGBT Activists
Like the majority of states, Kentucky has not seen the need for a statewide “fair-ness” law. However, the Fairness Coalition has implemented a strategy of targeting small cities throughout the Commonwealth with local ordinances during the past sixteen years.
In October 2014, Silas House wrote a New York Times op-ed titled “Small Towns, Small Hearts.” Writing on Berea’s decision not to pass a so-called “fairness” ordinance, he said “the real front in the battle for equality remains the small towns that dot America’s landscape.”
Their strategy for conquering the state legislature has turned the small towns of Kentucky into the front lines of battle. They often fly under the radar and limit community opposition by working through college campuses, local human rights commissions, and other groups.
