County Clerk Protests Calif. Gay Marriage Law
Gives Gay Couples ''Certificate Of Inequality"
(CBS) DAVIS, Calif. A county clerk in Yolo County, Calif., is firing back at the system that forces her to deny gay couples the right to marry.
This Valentine's Day a lot of couples will be getting married, but once again, California's gay couples will be denied that opportunity.
The woman in charge of denying those licenses decided that she's going to give them her own certificate.
Freddie Oakley is in charge of civil marriages in Yolo County. She is not looking forward to Valentine's Day.
"It is a very unpleasant task and it gets harder every time I have to do it," said Freddie.
In protest of California law, Freddie is giving out her own certificate, it's called a Certificate of Inequality, a sarcastic slap in the face on California's ban on gay marriage.
"What it essentially says -- the law says you can't get married. But I, Freddie Oakley, say 'that's too bad'," said Freddie.
Only Freddie is not gay. She's been married for 37 years to the same man, has two kids and is an Evangelical Christian.
"I don't think that religion belongs at the office. I think it's wrong. I don't go down and tell my pastor how to preach and I don't want him to stand behind my counter," said Freddie.
Word of her intentions has spread and she's getting several nasty responses, but whether you agree with her or not, the controversy is quite clear.
When asked if she thought taking a stand is the place of a public official she had this to say: "I think it absolutely is. In fact, I think it's our duty. We don't just enforce laws, we're policy makers," said Freddie.
And while she is an elected official, she's not concerned about re-election, she's just standing up for what she believes in.
"If I'm comfortable in my morale heart that I'm doing the right thing, then let the chips fall where they may," said Freddie.
She insists that no tax money goes towards these certificates. She prints them at home from her computer. And the few that ask her to mail them one, she says she will pay for postage herself.
Her colleagues aren't saying anything so far about the certificates; that could just be because she's their boss.
Found here: http://wfrv.com/topstories/topstories_story_034010755.html
(CBS) DAVIS, Calif. A county clerk in Yolo County, Calif., is firing back at the system that forces her to deny gay couples the right to marry.
This Valentine's Day a lot of couples will be getting married, but once again, California's gay couples will be denied that opportunity.
The woman in charge of denying those licenses decided that she's going to give them her own certificate.
Freddie Oakley is in charge of civil marriages in Yolo County. She is not looking forward to Valentine's Day.
"It is a very unpleasant task and it gets harder every time I have to do it," said Freddie.
In protest of California law, Freddie is giving out her own certificate, it's called a Certificate of Inequality, a sarcastic slap in the face on California's ban on gay marriage.
"What it essentially says -- the law says you can't get married. But I, Freddie Oakley, say 'that's too bad'," said Freddie.
Only Freddie is not gay. She's been married for 37 years to the same man, has two kids and is an Evangelical Christian.
"I don't think that religion belongs at the office. I think it's wrong. I don't go down and tell my pastor how to preach and I don't want him to stand behind my counter," said Freddie.
Word of her intentions has spread and she's getting several nasty responses, but whether you agree with her or not, the controversy is quite clear.
When asked if she thought taking a stand is the place of a public official she had this to say: "I think it absolutely is. In fact, I think it's our duty. We don't just enforce laws, we're policy makers," said Freddie.
And while she is an elected official, she's not concerned about re-election, she's just standing up for what she believes in.
"If I'm comfortable in my morale heart that I'm doing the right thing, then let the chips fall where they may," said Freddie.
She insists that no tax money goes towards these certificates. She prints them at home from her computer. And the few that ask her to mail them one, she says she will pay for postage herself.
Her colleagues aren't saying anything so far about the certificates; that could just be because she's their boss.
Found here: http://wfrv.com/topstories/topstories_story_034010755.html