ACLU of Kentucky

This Op-Ed was originally published in the February 15th edition of the Courier-Journal.

In January of 1966, with Governor Edward T. Breathitt’s signing of a law Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. called “the strongest and most comprehensive civil rights bill passed by a Southern state,” the Commonwealth of Kentucky became the first state in the South to adopt a Civil Rights Act with enforceable repercussions for acts of discrimination. Two years later, Kentucky was again first in the South, this time in the passage of a statewide fair housing law, which cemented our commonwealth’s legacy as the nation’s Southern civil rights leader.

At its core, the purpose of the Civil Rights Act is to ensure equality for everyone. It ensures all Kentuckians have the same opportunities to earn a living, be safe in their communities, serve their country, and care for the ones they love. When there has been a history of a particular groups’ lack of access to these fundamentals of the American dream, the just and appropriate response has been to add that particular group to existing antidiscrimination laws.

Today our state has the opportunity to once again stand as the pioneer of fairness and equality among its Southern peers, and we challenge each and every Kentuckian to add their voice to the call for comprehensive civil rights legislation in the commonwealth.

On January 5, Louisville Representative Mary Lou Marzian and three other Kentucky legislators (Reps. Flood, Jenkins and Palumbo) filed House Bill 117—a statewide Fairness law—that seeks to amend our state’s Civil Rights Act to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” as protected classifications, prohibiting discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Kentuckians in employment, housing, and public accommodations. Even today, any person suspected of being gay or transgender outside Lexington, Louisville, or Covington may be legally fired from their job, denied housing, or withheld access to any public accommodation—such as a bus ride or service in a restaurant.

On November 25 the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the Commonwealth’s execution protocols were not legal.  As a result, the Department of Corrections is rewriting the process by which we execute people and is currently accepting comments on the proposed process.  

The ACLU works to reform the capital punishment process. In general, our Capital Punishment Project focuses on improving the fairness of capital trials and appeals, improving the quality of legal representation, and reducing the number of defendants who face the death penalty.

Capital punishment is the ultimate denial of civil liberties, and Kentucky’s proposed protocols only compound that denial by violating many of the most fundamental constitutional rights guaranteed to every American.

The Department of Corrections is required to review and respond to all submitted comments, so please consider writing a letter or attending the hearing. All written comments must be submitted my mail by February 1^st to Amy V. Barker and if you can testify in person at the one-day hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. EST January 29 you must submit written notification of your intent to do so to Ms. Barker by mail or fax by January 22.