Written by David Starr   

Once upon a time it was illegal for inter-racial couples to get married. That form of bigotry has practically ended; but not without a struggle. Now, it still is a struggle to end bigotry based on discrimination of same-sex couples, even when same-sex marriage has been legalized.

Enter Kim Davis, now the poster child for religious bigotry. She was honored at a conservative summit called the Values Voter Summit, organized by Tony Perkins' Family Research Council, receiving a leadership award. Of Davis' "martyrdom," Perkins said, "What the militant secularists are almost certainly afraid of is what's coming to pass: courage is breeding courage." More like bigortry breeding bigotry. Courage is when a same-sex couple dare defy dominant religious fundamentalism. And courage is still needed to stand up to a Kim Davis.

At a rally for the summit, there was sign that read,"Supreme Court = the New ISIS of America." This is another example of ignorance among the Christian right. It would never occur to the author of the sign that ISIS is also homophobic? Christian fanatics wallow in both Islamophobia and homophobia.

Davis' "meeting" with Pope Francis was big news, she saying that the Pope was "kind, genuinely caring, and very personable." But the meeting was made to look like the Pope talked with her privately; it was a group of people. There was also the impression given that the Pope defended Davis for her "convictions." The Pope said that "conscientious objection is a right that is part of every human right," although he didn't name Davis per se as a conscientious objector. He was speaking to the whole group.

Mat Staver, Davis' defense lawyer, is part of the firm called the Liberty Counsel based in Florida. It has been accused of being a hate group against the LGBT community. The Southern Poverty Law Center says that it spreads false and misleading information. One example was Staver publicizing that Davis met with the Pope alone. Then there was the example of a photo from Peru showing 100,000 people "supporting" Kim Davis. This was shown at the Values Voter Summit. But all it was was a photo showing a religious gathering of Peruvians with no connection to the Davis controversy.

In justifying her position, Davis says that God's law is the "highest." One can pull any god out of the air and say that it's Zeus' law or Lono's law or Krishna's law. Whatever god is invoked, it is still a claim that hasn't been proven. Reveling in her righteousness, Davis has talked the talk, but she hasn't walked the walk. Divorced four times, Davis nevertheless thinks that because God "forgave" her, she can stand on the "moral highground" while practicing discrimination. Davis asked for tolerance for her beliefs, in the face of her own intolerance. The hypocrisy is amazing.

Spending six days in jail hasn't made Davis "repent," i.e., to properly do her job. If it takes suspending her or even firing her, then so be it. Or, Davis could look for another job. Whatever the case, Davis does not have the right to violate the rights of same-sex couples.

Davis has yet to face a reality. Like inter-racial couples, same-sex couples aren't going away. The latter will still apply for marriage licenses, despite her bigotry.

David Starr writes on various issues, both national and international