Yesterday, the Oklahoma House Judiciary Committee advanced legislation that would prohibit judges and clerks in the state from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, despite federal court decisions striking down the state’s ban.
Along with “prohibiting public funds for any activity licensing or supporting same-sex marriage; prohibiting public employees from recognizing same-sex marriage licenses; prohibiting spending public funds to enforce certain court orders,” the constitutionally dubious bill [PDF] also states that “[n]o employee of this state and no employee of any local governmental entity shall violate or interfere with the implementation of this act and continue to receive a salary, pension or other employee benefit at the expense of taxpayers of this state. If a judge violates this act, the judge shall be removed from office.”
The chief sponsor of the legislation just so happens to be Sally Kern, the Republican lawmaker who has repeatedly declared that homosexuality is a “bigger threat” and “more dangerous” than terrorism. As Kern explains it, homosexuality is more dangerous than terrorist attacks because homosexuality will “destroy the future of America.”
“So which one’s the biggest threat? And you know, every day our young people, adults too, but especially our young people, are bombarded at school, in movies, in music, on TV, in the mall, in magazines, they’re bombarded with ‘homosexuality is normal and natural.’ It’s something they have to deal with every day. Fortunately we don’t have to deal with a terrorist attack every day, and that’s what I mean,” Kern said back in 2011.
Kern also wants to make it law that any business can legally discriminate against “any lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender person, group or association.”
She has also expressed several unusual opinions on education, suggesting that African Americans are less likely to study in school than white students since they believe “the government would take care of them,” demanding teachers criticize evolution in the classroom and embarking on a crusade against AP U.S. History courses.
