Don’t Be Dumb at Brunch: Kim Davis Won’t Go Away, but Marriage Might in Six States

Happy Sunday! We have an eclectic selection of stories for you this week. It seems we can’t ever move on from the Supreme Court’s marriage equality decision in 2015. Kim Davis is back in the news and she wants you to know more about her. Another company is using their voice, errr, their clothes, to create change. We also have our favorite gay Olympian and, of course, the whack job of the week. See who it is below. You might just be surprised! (But probably not.)

Here are the week’s 5 news stories that’ll keep you looking well-informed at brunch:

 

1. Married to the Fight

Our community has struggled for decades as a marginalized minority. It’s been a fight for recognition, railing against the misinformation that demonized us for so long. So we fight for marriage equality — and it became the law of the land in 2015. The expectation is that those that disagree for whatever reason (especially those elected officials and legislators and justices) must accept the law and live by it.

Well. It doesn’t always work that way. Since they haven’t yet been exhausted by all the tired tries to reverse marriage equality, six states are trying to change marriage licenses to marriage “contracts”. Why? Exactly. No one knows, and it’s not based in anything real besides the continued resistance of fairness and equality.

 

2. Go Away, Kim Davis

Kim Davis just won’t go away. The anti-gay Rowan, Kentucky county clerk has now published a memoir. We wonder how many pages she dedicates to the sanctity of marriage considering she has been married four times. Her new book is called Under God’s Authority, named after the reason she gave for not issuing marriage licenses to gay couples after the US Supreme Court ruling in 2015.

After spending a few days in jail, spreading hate in other countries and also sticking Kentucky taxpayers with legal fees in excess of $222K, she’s trying to make a buck assuming people actually want to read about her life. Her hate inspired David Ermold, who, along with his fiancé, was denied a marriage license by Davis, to challenge her in her re-election bid. Hate never wins, Kim, but David certainly can. You can donate to his campaign by going to davidermold.com.

 

3. Not Just an Alligator any more

The Lacoste green alligator is one of the most iconic logos in fashion. Now, Lacoste is trying to make a difference by removing the logo and, for a limited time, replacing it with animals on the world’s endangered species list. Dubbed “Save Our Species,” you will soon find a variety of different animals like the Javan Rhino, the Burmese Roofed Turtle, the California Condor and the Sumatran Tiger.

Cooler yet, Lacoste is only making a limited number of shirts. The numbers made for sale correspond with the number of that species left in the world. So that means, for the 10 animals, only 1,775 shirts exist. Similar to what we see during pride seasons, we love when companies use their product to drive awareness and help create a better world. Sadly, they’re all sold out — but hopefully you can find one on eBay.

 

4. Hate Is Alive and Well

There’s a lot to celebrate when you see positive images of LGBTQ athletes represented as equals. But even if you rise to the top of your game, you’re still subject to haters and death threats. Gus Kenworthy has been a household name from the recent Winter Olympics not only because of his athleticism but also because he is openly and unapologetically gay. He’s been heralded as an LGBTQ hero because of his openness, willingness to be political (mainly via tweets and interviews) and a famous televised kiss between he and his boyfriend at the Olympics.

It might seem difficult to overshadow all that amazingness but when keyboard cowards post and tweet such ugliness as “But you are not a ‘champion,’ you are a faggot. With any luck you will die a horribly painful and drawn out death mangled in a car wreck.” It’s hard for all of us not to feel the affect. We’ve come a long way and apathy comes easy as we continue to find more representation and acceptance but we must stay vigilant against the attacks. We have to stay together, much like an Olympic team, to eradicate the hate.

 

5. Our Whack Job of the Week: Mike Huckabee

Famously anti-gay former Arkansas Governor, Mike Huckabee resigned from the board of the Country Music Association Foundation after only one day on the job due to significant backlash from the industry’s leading voices. Huckabee, who is notoriously anti-LGBT and has even compared homosexuality to incest, said the CMA was bullied into the decision to accept his resignation and that they allowed hate to win.

Huckabee has also called the act of companies who are ending their relationship with the NRA after the Parkland, FL shooting, “cowardly.” Huckabee always seems to involve himself in contentious issues either for publicity or for his own personal gain. Let’s not forget his embrace of Kim Davis or the fact that he gave us Trump’s perpetually grumpy press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

 

Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo were one of two plaintiff couples in California’s 2013 challenge of Proposition 8, which brought marriage equality back to the state after being ruled on by the U.S. Supreme Court. These activists also host the weekly podcast The Husbands. Catch them there or follow them on Instagram @JeffZandPaulK.