Out of State Anti-Equality National Leader to be Keynote Speaker at Bluegrass Freedom Rally 2011

In 2007, a UCLA report reflected the attitudes of college freshmen nationwide. The acceptance of same-sex marriage grew even as far back as 2005 and 2006, when the national poll was conducted. The study found that 61% of incoming freshmen in 2006 agreed that same-sex couples should have the right to marriage, up 3.3 percentage points from 2005.

Last week, a Gallup poll showed that a majority of Americans support gay marriage. It was the third such survey this spring, and if you add in the number of Americans who support civil unions, public support for same-sex relationships has become the dominant opinion on the matter in the United States.

"These polls reflect the overall opinion of people actually polled," said Kentucky Equality Federation President Jordan Palmer. "The people polled typically change with each random poll, and not all polls agree. However, on a national level Kentucky Equality Federation and Marriage Equality Kentucky see the changing minds of the American people. Americans are showing their receptive nature, and, while the growth is slower than we would like, we are gratified to see that positive attitudes toward equality are trending positively."

"Unfortunately, the state which passed the first Civil Rights Act in 1966, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, does not seem to be leading in this trend; if they did, we would see changes in our elected lawmakers in Frankfort. We have only a handful of Representatives in the Kentucky House of Representatives who bravely support marriage equality. This shows that our concept of marriage must mature. Marriage is a contract between the State and two loving people, nothing more, nothing less."

"Once the contract is signed, couples are arbitrarily entitled to over 100 benefits offered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and over 1000 offered by the United States Government. The government is using these benefits to artificially determine what does or does not constitute a marriage. Oddly enough, when considered in this light, many so-called 'social conservatives' are actually arguing for bigger government and fewer rights for citizens."

Yesterday Jim Daly, the president of the massive religious-right organization Focus on the Family, conceded that his group had basically lost the argument on gay marriage in an interview with a Christian magazine. Daly, a significantly less odious character than his predecessor, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, also says that Christians should perhaps work on their own marriages instead of trying to prevent others from having families to focus on. His new plan: Let the state go to the perverts and polygamists and have the church set much higher standards for marriage and divorce.

Palmer worries that some Republican operatives who are seeking to gain power within the Kentucky Tea Party culture are actively fighting equal rights, using the label of "liberty" as a cover for their anti-freedom and anti-equality rhetoric.

"What alarms us at Kentucky Equality Federation is that Matthew D. Staver, the Founder and Chairman of anti-equality Liberty Counsel will be visiting the Commonwealth on May 26, 2011 for an event titled 'Bluegrass Freedom Rally 2011,'" Palmer said. "Unfortunately for Liberty Counsel, which supported California's Prop 8, hundreds of tickets remain available because citizens in Lexington are not interested in hate speeches; we have all grown tired of it. Liberty Counsel, the Family Foundation of Kentucky, and the American Family Association of Kentucky should join Focus on the Family and focus on building stronger existing families instead of trying to use cheap mob rule tactics to create intrusive laws which destroy the loving families of tomorrow."

"We will repeal the Commonwealth's 2004 Constitutional Amendment banning same-sex marriage, domestic partnerships, and civil unions. It is only a question of when; just as gender-neural marriage is illegal in Kentucky, so was gender-neutral voting.  As with voting, marriage equality will be made gender neutral. This has been the sole goal of Marriage Equality Kentucky, a group funded by Kentucky Equality Federation since 2008. This will happen, whether radical reactionaries accept it or not. We, as Kentuckians, have a choice: Will we lead on this issue, as we did with the 1966 Civil Rights Act, or will we cede our tradition of leadership to other states? As citizens of this Commonwealth we must all rise up and challenge carpetbagging 'conservative' or 'traditional value' operatives from stopping our progress as a Commonwealth and as a nation toward equal rights."

In 2007, a UCLA report reflected the attitudes of college freshmen nationwide. The acceptance of same-sex marriage grew even as far back as 2005 and 2006, when the poll national poll was conducted.

The study found that 61% of incoming freshmen in 2006 agreed that same-sex couples should have the right to marriage, up 3.3 percentage points from 2005.

Last week, a Gallup poll showed that a majority of Americans support gay marriage. It was the third such survey this spring, and if you add in the number of Americans who support civil unions, public support for same-sex relationships has become the dominant position.

"These polls reflect the overall opinion of people actually polled," said Kentucky Equality Federation President Jordan Palmer. "The problem is that the people polled typically change with each random poll, and not all polls agree. However, on a national level Kentucky Equality Federation and Marriage Equality Kentucky see the changing minds of the American people."

Palmer continued: "Unfortunately, the state which passed the first Civil Rights Act in 1966, the Commonwealth of Kentucky does not seem to share the overall poll results; if they did, we would see changes in our elected lawmakers in Frankfort. We have a handful of Representatives in the Kentucky House of Representatives who support marriage equality. Marriage is a contract between the State and two loving people, nothing more, nothing less and once the contract is signed couples are entitled to over 100 benefits offered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and over 1000 offered by the United States Government."

Yesterday Jim Daly, the president of the massive religious-right organization Focus on the Family, conceded that his group had basically lost the argument on gay marriage in an interview with a Christian magazine.

Daly, a significantly less odious character than his predecessor, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, also says that Christians should perhaps work on their own marriages instead of trying to prevent others from having families to focus on. His new plan: Let the state go to the perverts and polygamists and have the church set much higher standards for marriage and divorce.

Palmer continued: "What alarms us at Kentucky Equality Federation is that Matthew D. Staver, the Founder and Chairman of anti-equality Liberty Counsel will be visiting the Commonwealth on May 26, 2011 for an event titled 'Bluegrass Freedom Rally 2011.' Unfortunately for Liberty Counsel, who was in favor of California's Prop 8 hundreds of tickets remain available. Citizens in Lexington are not interested in hate speeches; it is an old argument and we have all grown tired of it. Liberty Counsel, the Family Foundation of Kentucky, and the American Family Association of Kentucky should join Focus on the Family and accept defeat. We will be repealing the Commonwealth's 2004 Constitutional Amendment banning same-sex marriage, domestic partnerships, and civil unions, it is only a question of when. This has been the sole goal of Marriage Equality Kentucky, a group funded by Kentucky Equality Federation since 2008."

Kentucky Equality Federation terminates alliance with the Libertarian Party of Kentucky

Lexington, KY -- Kentucky Equality Federation today officially terminated a strategic alliance with the Libertarian Party of Kentucky today that began on April 10, 2008. (previous press release) This announcement is being released by Kentucky Equality Federation President Jordan Palmer.

"Until recently we had open dialogue with the Libertarian Party of Kentucky and they rallied with us in favor of amending the Kentucky Civil Rights Act of 1966 to include sexual orientation and gender identity," said Palmer. "Since the leadership changed, we have had extensive communication gaps with the new leaders of the party. This distance has caused us great concern as we have watched the Libertarian Party of Kentucky become increasingly under the influence of the amorphous Tea Party elements whose anti-equality rhetoric is alarming."

Speaking for the Board of Directors, Chairman Richard T. Jones agreed with the decision which came directly from the Office of the President on the advice of several Regional Directors and confidential political advisers. (Board Resolution - Role of the Chairman and the Office of the President)

"Until recently, the Libertarian Party of Kentucky condemned anti-equality and homophobic comments made by politicians who the media associated as being part of the Libertarian Party of Kentucky," Jones said. "We sincerely hope that they will renew their commitment to the cause of equality by being an influence on their allies, rather than distancing themselves from beliefs they once held dear by standing united with us to bring equality to Kentucky."

Palmer continued: “Kentucky Equality Federation Regional Directors, Assistant Regional Directors, Outreach Directors, and stand-by volunteers requested the Office of the President reevaluate our alliance with the Libertarian Party of Kentucky. In doing so we realized there are far too many Tea Parties factions in the Commonwealth who oppose equality and associate themselves as being part of the Libertarian Party of Kentucky; it is the responsibility of the Libertarian Party of Kentucky to confirm or deny their affiliations, which they have failed to do. We however will not have a standing alliance with any organization which opposes social and political equality or have not made their positions clear."