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U.S. public servant becomes face of anti-gay marriage fight

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By refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Kim Davis -- taken into federal custody Thursday -- has gone from being a simple US public servant to a heroine for millions of Americans opposed to the new law of the land.

Until recently, few outside Kentucky's rural Rowan County had heard of Davis. She has worked for more than 25 years in the office as a deputy to her county clerk mother before being elected in November -- without making any waves.

But on Thursday, the Apostolic Christian found herself ordered to jail for contempt of court, after she told a judge it was against her religious beliefs to grant licenses to same-sex couples.

"My conscience will not allow me," she was quoted as saying by ABC News.

Davis was removed from the courtroom by federal marshals, the report said. US District Judge David Bunning said she could be released if she complies with the order to issue marriage licenses, according to ABC.

The 49-year-old clerk had stopped issuing all marriage certificates in mid-August following the high court's landmark June 26 ruling legalizing gay marriage.

To her, God lies above all else -- including Washington and the laws put in place by the highest court in the land.

The public servant with long hair and a preference for skirts down to her ankles isn't the only one to have taken such a position.

But Davis has become the symbol for the perennial fight in the United States between modernity and conservatism, and how First Amendment rights to freedom of religion can clash with other laws.

- 'No animosity' -

Davis says she is not prejudiced, but simply that her faith trumps all.

"I love my Lord and must be obedient to Him and to the Word of God," she said.

A man waves a gay pride flag during a protest in front of the federal courthouse on September 3  201...
A man waves a gay pride flag during a protest in front of the federal courthouse on September 3, 2015 in Ashland, Kentucky
Ty Wright, Getty/AFP

"I have no animosity toward anyone and harbor no ill will. To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue. It is about marriage and God's Word," she said.

"It is a matter of religious liberty, which is protected under the First Amendment, the Kentucky Constitution, and in the Kentucky Religious Freedom Restoration Act."

At the heart of the media storm over the matter are also two men, David Moore and David Ermold, who came to Davis's office over the summer to get married -- but were turned away.

The two recorded their attempt in a video that went viral.

Other gay couples -- surrounded by a swarm of journalists -- also tried their luck with Davis but got the same rejection.

"We are not issuing marriage licenses today," Davis says in one of the videos posted online.

When asked under whose authority, Davis responds calmly: "Under God's authority."

Moore and Ermold, together with another homosexual pair and two heterosexual couples, filed suit.

Federal district and appeals courts ruled against Davis, who subsequently turned to the Supreme Court, which also rejected her stance.

Despite the risk of prison or a heavy fine, Davis refused to back down.

Supporters and detractors of Davis gathered Thursday in front of the federal court where she had been summoned and subsequently taken into custody, with some telling her to "stay strong" while others cried, "Do your job!"

Critics of Davis have also accused her of bigotry and hypocrisy, saying she has been divorced three times, and is married for a fourth time.

All that, she says, was before she became a "born again Christian" four years ago.

By refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Kim Davis — taken into federal custody Thursday — has gone from being a simple US public servant to a heroine for millions of Americans opposed to the new law of the land.

Until recently, few outside Kentucky’s rural Rowan County had heard of Davis. She has worked for more than 25 years in the office as a deputy to her county clerk mother before being elected in November — without making any waves.

But on Thursday, the Apostolic Christian found herself ordered to jail for contempt of court, after she told a judge it was against her religious beliefs to grant licenses to same-sex couples.

“My conscience will not allow me,” she was quoted as saying by ABC News.

Davis was removed from the courtroom by federal marshals, the report said. US District Judge David Bunning said she could be released if she complies with the order to issue marriage licenses, according to ABC.

The 49-year-old clerk had stopped issuing all marriage certificates in mid-August following the high court’s landmark June 26 ruling legalizing gay marriage.

To her, God lies above all else — including Washington and the laws put in place by the highest court in the land.

The public servant with long hair and a preference for skirts down to her ankles isn’t the only one to have taken such a position.

But Davis has become the symbol for the perennial fight in the United States between modernity and conservatism, and how First Amendment rights to freedom of religion can clash with other laws.

– ‘No animosity’ –

Davis says she is not prejudiced, but simply that her faith trumps all.

“I love my Lord and must be obedient to Him and to the Word of God,” she said.

A man waves a gay pride flag during a protest in front of the federal courthouse on September 3  201...

A man waves a gay pride flag during a protest in front of the federal courthouse on September 3, 2015 in Ashland, Kentucky
Ty Wright, Getty/AFP

“I have no animosity toward anyone and harbor no ill will. To me this has never been a gay or lesbian issue. It is about marriage and God’s Word,” she said.

“It is a matter of religious liberty, which is protected under the First Amendment, the Kentucky Constitution, and in the Kentucky Religious Freedom Restoration Act.”

At the heart of the media storm over the matter are also two men, David Moore and David Ermold, who came to Davis’s office over the summer to get married — but were turned away.

The two recorded their attempt in a video that went viral.

Other gay couples — surrounded by a swarm of journalists — also tried their luck with Davis but got the same rejection.

“We are not issuing marriage licenses today,” Davis says in one of the videos posted online.

When asked under whose authority, Davis responds calmly: “Under God’s authority.”

Moore and Ermold, together with another homosexual pair and two heterosexual couples, filed suit.

Federal district and appeals courts ruled against Davis, who subsequently turned to the Supreme Court, which also rejected her stance.

Despite the risk of prison or a heavy fine, Davis refused to back down.

Supporters and detractors of Davis gathered Thursday in front of the federal court where she had been summoned and subsequently taken into custody, with some telling her to “stay strong” while others cried, “Do your job!”

Critics of Davis have also accused her of bigotry and hypocrisy, saying she has been divorced three times, and is married for a fourth time.

All that, she says, was before she became a “born again Christian” four years ago.

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

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