FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Little Rock, Ark. – On Wednesday, November 19, at 11:00 AM Arkansans will gather on the steps of the Arkansas Capitol Building in Little Rock to rally in support of traditional marriage. The rally comes on the eve of oral arguments at the Arkansas Supreme Court concerning the fate of the state’s Defense of Marriage Act and the 2004 Arkansas Marriage Amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
Speakers at the rally will include Josh Duggar of Family Research Council Action; Jerry Cox of Family Council; State Senator Bart Hester; State Representative Bob Ballinger; Pastor Happy Caldwell of Victory Television Network; and Pastor Derick Easter of New St. Hurricane Missionary Baptist Church in Pine Bluff.
In May Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza struck down the state’s marriage laws. Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement ahead of the rally, saying, “We are gathering to ask the Arkansas Supreme Court to honor our vote. Arkansans voted overwhelmingly to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. The question before the court is who gets to make the laws in Arkansas: The voters or one judge in Little Rock?”
Cox said he believes Americans are tired of judges overriding voters. “Our government is supposed to be of the people by the people for the people. That applies to every branch of government, including the judicial branch. A few folks have begun calling for a new law allowing voters to recall a judge in the middle of a term if they don’t like how that judge has ruled. If the Arkansas Supreme Court chooses to ignore all the voters who believe marriage ought to be between a man and a woman, I would expect those calls for judicial reform to intensify.”
Cox said he hopes the Arkansas Supreme Court will respect the will of the people by upholding the state’s marriage laws. “Nearly one in ten voters signed the petition to put the Arkansas Marriage Amendment on the ballot in 2004. Seventy-five percent of voters voted for it. Ten years later, most Arkansans still believe marriage ought to be between one man and one woman. I hope the state Supreme Court respects voters enough to uphold the amendment Arkansans worked so hard to pass.”
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