During the undercard GOP debate on Wednesday night, candidate Bobby Jindal stated that while he doesn't see it as fair that 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed was arrested for bringing a clock to school, his unjust arrest (and the blatant Islamophobia that drove it) is not the biggest issue. Instead, he turned the direction of the question to Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, saying that her jailing for not issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples is worse, and that "the biggest discrimination going on is against Christian business owners and individuals who believe in traditional forms of marriage.” The question, originally about the balance between vigilance and discrimination in America, was skirted. Instead of using this question to discuss prevalent issues such as racism, the debate was pushed to talk about Kim Davis and whether or not it was right to jail her for denying marriage licenses.
Before the debate even happened, Kim Davis dominated the news. Clashes occurred between groups who felt that she was a hero for standing up for her faith and protecting her religious beliefs (concerning marriage), versus groups that feel she should issue the licenses or resign. There were posts comparing her (unrightfully so) to Rosa Parks, and saying her time in jail is similar to that of the Jews in Nazi Germany. It seems like the conversation about her is never-ending and that we'll be hearing about her in every political debate and news headline from now until the election is over. But at this point, we need to stop talking about Kim Davis
Kim Davis is an elected official, meaning that it is her duty and job to uphold the law. She has the right to believe whatever she chooses to believe, but when she took her oath of office she pledged to follow the law. She is not allowed to bend the law to support what she thinks is right, but is supposed to endorse the law even when she thinks it's wrong. The more we talk about her, (whether it's in debates or other news platforms), the more we give legitimacy to her actions. We're feeding the underlying movement trying to essentially legalize discrimination against same-sex couples by continuing to bring her more and more into the spotlight. At this point, what's done is done; the clerk's office is allowed to issue same-sex marriage licenses, and that's what matters. Her name, mugshot, and closeness to Mike Huckabee do not need to be plastered on every website, TV screen, and newspaper across America anymore.
I know this article is probably a little hypocritical, since it's talking about the very person I'm saying we need to stop talking about. But after this, the conversation needs to be stopped.
