I know you are as tired of the whole Kim Davis thing as I am but it looks like it isn't going to go away anytime soon. I only have one more thing to say about it that no one really seems to be mentioning.
This whole thing isn't only about equality. Not really. It's about privilege.
Before this situation came up, there was a lot of chatter from people who denied there is any privilege to be had. Funny enough, they are the very ones who get the most from this privilege. These people are straight, white and usually fundamentalist.
Don't get me wrong. I don't care what religion a person practices or even if they practice. The problem is when asshats like Kim Davis starts defying law and common sense by forcing her views on the public at large, then she and Mike Huckabee start yelling 'We're being oppressed!! Christianity is under attack!!" because Davis is rightfully jailed for not following a judge's orders.
If you want to argue what privilege has to do with this, ask yourself this: what would have happened if it wasn't Davis pushing her beliefs on everyone? What if it were a black woman? A black
man? What if the person refusing to give out licenses were of a faith other than Christianity? That person would have been in jail by the end of the week, if not sooner and they'd still be there. They would also be out of a job faster than you can say "nut" and the same people claiming oppression would be saying good riddance.
So yes, despite of her grandstanding and attempts to prolong her 15 minutes, Davis has received the benefits of privilege. First of all, there is the fact that she was allowed to do all that grandstanding and prolonging. She was - and is - allowed to stay in the office long after lawsuits were filed and as far as I know, no actions to impeach her have even been entertained. The Governor has refused to step in. She was given multiple chances to act differently. She was even given the soft shoe treatment when she was let out of jail: you can go back to work but don't interfere.
We can see how this is going to go. Wash, rinse, repeat.
As for their argument, there is no oppression of believers, nor is Christianity under attack. It isn't going anywhere either. The problem stems from the fact that times have changed. This isn't the 1950s anymore, nor is this a Christian country.
Despite what people like Kim Davis say, there is no template for what an American should be, other than that pesky edict to follow the laws of the land. White, black, red, brown. Gay, straight, pan- or asexual. Christian, Pagan, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheist. It doesn't matter. This country is more of a melting pot than ever and we're all Americans. Our very diversity should be one of our greatest assets, not a reason to act like asshats.
