Frankfort, Ky.–At what started as a Second Amendment rally on the Kentucky Statehouse grounds Sunday ended with Governor Andy Beshear being hung in effigy to protest COVID-19 restrictions.
Kentucky House Democratic leaders are calling on all of the state’s elected officials to condemn the action.
The effigy of Gov. Beshear was hung with the words “Sic Semper Tyrannis”, the Latin phrase meaning “Thus always to tyrants” which John Wilkes Booth allegedly shouted after assassinating President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theater in 1865.
According to the Louisville Courier, the Second Amendment rally began in the afternoon and was sponsored by Take Back Kentucky and was meant to inspire people “about what it really means to be FREE.”
The rally reportedly evolved into an armed protest of the COVID-19 restrictions in Kentucky.
The following statement is from House Democratic Leaders Joni Jenkins, Derrick Graham, and Angie Hatton and is in response to actions that took place Sunday at the Capitol.
“Hanging Governor Beshear in effigy is beyond reprehensible, and yet it is also the logical conclusion of the hateful rhetoric we saw touted on the Capitol grounds earlier this month that was implicitly condoned by elected representatives from the legislature’s majority party. Doing this in front of our Capitol, just a short walk from where the Governor, First Lady, and their two young children live, is an act that reeks of hate and intimidation and does nothing but undermine our leading work to battle this deadly disease and restore our economy safely. We call on all elected officials to condemn these actions and pledge to work to eliminate dangerous hateful speech.”
Photo from State Rep. Chris Harris.