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news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091015/ap_on_re_us/us_interracial_rebuff NEW ORLEANS – A Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have. Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long. "I'm not a racist. I just don't believe in mixing the races that way," Bardwell told the Associated Press on Thursday. "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else." Bardwell said he asks everyone who calls about marriage if they are a mixed race couple. If they are, he does not marry them, he said. Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said. "There is a problem with both groups accepting a child from such a marriage," Bardwell said. "I think those children suffer and I won't help put them through it." If he did an interracial marriage for one couple, he must do the same for all, he said. "I try to treat everyone equally," he said. Bardwell estimates that he has refused to marry about four couples during his career, all in the past 2 1/2 years. Beth Humphrey, 30, and 32-year-old Terence McKay, both of Hammond, say they will consult the U.S. Justice Department about filing a discrimination complaint. Humphrey, an account manager for a marketing firm, said she and McKay, a welder, just returned to Louisiana. She is white and he is black. She plans to enroll in the University of New Orleans to pursue a masters degree in minority politics. "That was one thing that made this so unbelievable," she said. "It's not something you expect in this day and age." Humphrey said she called Bardwell on Oct. 6 to inquire about getting a marriage license signed. She says Bardwell's wife told her that Bardwell will not sign marriage licenses for interracial couples. Bardwell suggested the couple go to another justice of the peace in the parish who agreed to marry them. "We are looking forward to having children," Humphrey said. "And all our friends and co-workers have been very supportive. Except for this, we're typical happy newlyweds." "It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzmann. She said the Supreme Court ruled in 1967 "that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry." The ACLU sent a letter to the Louisiana Judiciary Committee, which oversees the state justices of the peace, asking them to investigate Bardwell and recommending "the most severe sanctions available, because such blatant bigotry poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the administration of justice." "He knew he was breaking the law, but continued to do it," Schwartzmann said. According to the clerk of court's office, application for a marriage license must be made three days before the ceremony because there is a 72-hour waiting period. The applicants are asked if they have previously been married. If so, they must show how the marriage ended, such as divorce. Other than that, all they need is a birth certificate and Social Security card. The license fee is $35, and the license must be signed by a Louisiana minister, justice of the peace or judge. The original is returned to the clerk's office. "I've been a justice of the peace for 34 years and I don't think I've mistreated anybody," Bardwell said. "I've made some mistakes, but you have too. I didn't tell this couple they couldn't get married. I just told them I wouldn't do it."
What pisses me off the most is he think's interracial offspring "doesn't fit in" with any other race. I'm interracial and this is obviously a load of bullshit. I can't believe their are still bigots like this guy in this day and age. The marriage itself I don't care about, they'll just find someone else im sure. |
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Pretty sad that it's 2009 and this is still an issue. I'm curious to see how this will be defended around here (and yes, someone defending it is inevitable). I suppose someone could refer to the same "conscience clauses" that protect, say, doctors who refuse to perform abortions or pharmacists who refuse to fill prescriptions for the morning-after pill, but I highly doubt such protections extend to justices of the peace, since a justice of the peace is a public servant. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Guy does what he believes in. Told them to go somewhere else, isn't being racist (and you can't claim that he is because all you can go on is the text in the article) looks at his life experiences and you get all pissed off. Well boo f'ing hoo. Grow a pair and realize that people think differently than you do. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth You're missing the point. He is not in a position to do this. He is a public servant making his living from taxpayer dollars, and it his PUBLIC DUTY to issue marriage licenses to those who legally qualify. His thinking differently than we do has NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. "Conscience clauses" do not extend to public employees. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by kobie173 You're missing the point. He is not in a position to do this. He is a public servant making his living from taxpayer dollars, and it his PUBLIC DUTY to issue marriage licenses to those who legally qualify. His thinking differently than we do has NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. "Conscience clauses" do not extend to public employees.
Your right, lets check all thought at the door when it comes to law. Let's leave all human interaction out of it. I'm sure that there will be justice done on that glorious day. I mean, OJ did it, but the law's the law, and we should follow the law....... |
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Originally posted by kobie173 You're missing the point. He is not in a position to do this. He is a public servant making his living from taxpayer dollars, and it his PUBLIC DUTY to issue marriage licenses to those who legally qualify. His thinking differently than we do has NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. "Conscience clauses" do not extend to public employees.
This. If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude; greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen. |
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Originally posted by Ekibiogami
This.
What? |
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I mean, what's the story here? A couple calls in, the guy says nope, shouldn't they at this point just move on? The guy clearly points out, Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said. "There is a problem with both groups accepting a child from such a marriage," Bardwell said. "I think those children suffer and I won't help put them through it."
I suppose we should have a 10 million dollar, 10 year study, with a focus group and congressional hearings before we make any decision. Or we can grow up and realize that there is bigotry in the world, that there are people that are racists, and we can realize that this guy, who doesn't hate on anyone, wants to keep a child from all the shit in this world. He doesn't want his name on it. The simplest thing is to find another JP to do the ceremony and just go do it like animals do on the Discovery Channel.
The way I see it, the JP has the compassion, it's the couple thats all hate. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
Your right, lets check all thought at the door when it comes to law. Let's leave all human interaction out of it. I'm sure that there will be justice done on that glorious day. I mean, OJ did it, but the law's the law, and we should follow the law.......
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. A justice of the peace should be allowed to interpret the law to his own ends -- actually, not even interpret the law, but simply say "meh, I don't like how mixed-race kids look" -- to justify abdicating his duties as a public employee because of his personal biases. And the justification for this should be a 15-year-old murder case where the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, was acquitted due to extremely sloppy procedural work by the Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecutors. Makes perfect sense to me. Face it, dude -- you don't have a leg to stand on. You're wrong. And so is this justice of the peace. Period, discussion over. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
Are you out of your mind? It's not his job to make that decision for anyone, and it's not his job to pass the buck to someone else. He's a public employee. It's his job, whether he likes it or not, to sign the form and shut the fuck up. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
What kind of fucked up logic is that? This guy first off has no right being a public servant to prevent the couple from getting married, as stated above. And you think he's being compassionate by basically putting interracial couples and children down as freak breeds? |
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Originally posted by kobie173
Your right, lets check all thought at the door when it comes to law. Let's leave all human interaction out of it. I'm sure that there will be justice done on that glorious day. I mean, OJ did it, but the law's the law, and we should follow the law.......
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. A justice of the peace should be allowed to interpret the law to his own ends -- actually, not even interpret the law, but simply say "meh, I don't like how mixed-race kids look" -- to justify abdicating his duties as a public employee because of his personal biases. And the justification for this should be a 15-year-old murder case where the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, was acquitted due to extremely sloppy procedural work by the Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecutors. Makes perfect sense to me. Face it, dude -- you don't have a leg to stand on. You're wrong. And so is this justice of the peace. Period, discussion over. Lol, you don't even bother to read do you? The JP said that mixed race children are not accepted as well in the black community nor the white. It's not a bias, the JP is not racist. He says that mixed race children suffer because neither race accepts them fully. Are you too clueless to realize what that means in todays world? I guess we could play make believe and think that this child will be the next Obama, but chances are, he won't. He will be a regular kid that's an outcast from day one. |
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Originally posted by Wolfenpride
What kind of fucked up logic is that? This guy first off has no right being a public servant to prevent the couple from getting married, as stated above. And you think he's being compassionate by basically putting interracial couples and children down as freak breeds? He's not preventing. They can get married somewhere else. He didn't stop them, they still can. Holy crap. I guess you think it's all rose petals and peach blossoms out there don't you? |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. A justice of the peace should be allowed to interpret the law to his own ends -- actually, not even interpret the law, but simply say "meh, I don't like how mixed-race kids look" -- to justify abdicating his duties as a public employee because of his personal biases. And the justification for this should be a 15-year-old murder case where the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, was acquitted due to extremely sloppy procedural work by the Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecutors. Makes perfect sense to me. Face it, dude -- you don't have a leg to stand on. You're wrong. And so is this justice of the peace. Period, discussion over. Lol, you don't even bother to read do you? The JP said that mixed race children are not accepted as well in the black community nor the white. It's not a bias, the JP is not racist. He says that mixed race children suffer because neither race accepts them fully. Are you too clueless to realize what that means in todays world? I guess we could play make believe and think that this child will be the next Obama, but chances are, he won't. He will be a regular kid that's an outcast from day one.
You honestly believe this!? I'm interracial and if anything, i get along even more so with both races, heck even hispanics/middle easterns. where this guy came up with the idea that we are some sort of outcast race is beyond me. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. A justice of the peace should be allowed to interpret the law to his own ends -- actually, not even interpret the law, but simply say "meh, I don't like how mixed-race kids look" -- to justify abdicating his duties as a public employee because of his personal biases. And the justification for this should be a 15-year-old murder case where the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, was acquitted due to extremely sloppy procedural work by the Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecutors. Makes perfect sense to me. Face it, dude -- you don't have a leg to stand on. You're wrong. And so is this justice of the peace. Period, discussion over. Lol, you don't even bother to read do you? The JP said that mixed race children are not accepted as well in the black community nor the white. It's not a bias, the JP is not racist. He says that mixed race children suffer because neither race accepts them fully. Are you too clueless to realize what that means in todays world? I guess we could play make believe and think that this child will be the next Obama, but chances are, he won't. He will be a regular kid that's an outcast from day one. Just because it's not racist doesn't mean it's not a bias. A bias just means " a particular tendency or inclination, esp. one that prevents unprejudiced consideration of a question." In this case, his belief that mixed-race children are not socially accepted prevented him from fulfilling his job. I didn't say he was racist. I said he attempted to use some half-assed justification for not fulfilling his job. The idea that the mixed-race kids that would result from this union is 100 percent irrelevant. When are you going to get that through your head? He is not allowed to decide which couples he can legally issue marriage licenses to get one based on his conscience. THAT is the problem here.
So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth He's not preventing. They can get married somewhere else. He didn't stop them, they still can. Holy crap. I guess you think it's all rose petals and peach blossoms out there don't you?
I don't think you could miss the fucking point more if you tried. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by Wolfenpride
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. A justice of the peace should be allowed to interpret the law to his own ends -- actually, not even interpret the law, but simply say "meh, I don't like how mixed-race kids look" -- to justify abdicating his duties as a public employee because of his personal biases. And the justification for this should be a 15-year-old murder case where the defendant, despite overwhelming evidence against him, was acquitted due to extremely sloppy procedural work by the Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecutors. Makes perfect sense to me. Face it, dude -- you don't have a leg to stand on. You're wrong. And so is this justice of the peace. Period, discussion over. Lol, you don't even bother to read do you? The JP said that mixed race children are not accepted as well in the black community nor the white. It's not a bias, the JP is not racist. He says that mixed race children suffer because neither race accepts them fully. Are you too clueless to realize what that means in todays world? I guess we could play make believe and think that this child will be the next Obama, but chances are, he won't. He will be a regular kid that's an outcast from day one.
You honestly believe this!? I'm interracial and if anything, i get along even more so with both races, heck even hispanics/middle easterns. where this guy came up with the idea that we are some sort of outcast race is beyond me. Well gee billy, I did write it. He came up with it from his experience in New Orleans, been there? Been there a long time? Served as a judge there? Talked to people there about it? No? Then get of your high horse. Guy is doing what he thinks is right by simply saying, find someone else to do the ceremony, and your all self-righteous. |
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Good lord, Sargoth. Could you possibly be more off base? If interracial marriage is legal in Louisiana, and he is presented with a legal application for a marriage license from an interracial couple, he is LEGALLY OBLIGATED TO ISSUE IT, YOU OBSTINATE FOOL. He is not allowed to deny it based on his conscience LEGALLY. Period, end of fucking story. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by kobie173
You mean that's the story? I thought this was about race. What's the story then? Is it racial or not? Because when you read the story, it's race, and when I read your comments it's race. But when you wanna get all "I win" it's the law. So which is it you waffle wannabes.
What pisses me off the most is he think's interracial offspring "doesn't fit in" with any other race. I'm interracial and this is obviously a load of bullshit. I can't believe their are still bigots like this guy in this day and age. Pretty sad that it's 2009 and this is still an issue |
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Originally posted by Sargoth Lol, you don't even bother to read do you? The JP said that mixed race children are not accepted as well in the black community nor the white. It's not a bias, the JP is not racist. He says that mixed race children suffer because neither race accepts them fully. Are you too clueless to realize what that means in todays world? I guess we could play make believe and think that this child will be the next Obama, but chances are, he won't. He will be a regular kid that's an outcast from day one.
You honestly believe this!? I'm interracial and if anything, i get along even more so with both races, heck even hispanics/middle easterns. where this guy came up with the idea that we are some sort of outcast race is beyond me. Well gee billy, I did write it. He came up with it from his experience in New Orleans, been there? Been there a long time? Served as a judge there? Talked to people there about it? No? Then get of your high horse. Guy is doing what he thinks is right by simply saying, find someone else to do the ceremony, and your all self-righteous. No, have you? Why the hell would it matter if an interracial couple/kid lived in New Orleans or not? The only one being prejudice is him, their is no proof or reason beyond his made up excuse that interracial kids are somehow outcasts, which is an absurd assumption and insult. |
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Originally posted by Sargoth
You mean that's the story? I thought this was about race. What's the story then? Is it racial or not? Because when you read the story, it's race, and when I read your comments it's race. But when you wanna get all "I win" it's the law. So which is it you waffle wannabes.
What pisses me off the most is he think's interracial offspring "doesn't fit in" with any other race. I'm interracial and this is obviously a load of bullshit. I can't believe their are still bigots like this guy in this day and age. Pretty sad that it's 2009 and this is still an issue
Oh, I definitely think it's about race. I was directing the legal aspects of things at you, who thinks it's perfectly fine for a public servant to deny a marriage license to someone based on his conscience. However, I certainly agree that the underlying problem behind his whole viewpoint is that mixed-race people are somehow inferior. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by zzvicezz 1. He is not a judge. He is a justice of the peace. These are two completely separate things. 2. ... I don't even know where to begin with this, you racist, pig-ignorant jackass. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by zzvicezz
I highlighted the double zs in your name because I know what they mean skin. You only have five posts here which tells me that you are either somebody's sock puppet or one of your nazi friends called you in as backup. I suggest you cease and desist RIGHT FUCKING NOW!!! For those of you that don't know, the double zz is code for the SS symbols. The vice part is meant to forground this. It's not as obvious as having the number 88 in their name (88=HH which stands for "heil Hitler") but it's still a dead give away if you know what to look for. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2if5GYXOGyo |
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Originally posted by zzvicezz Read between the lines, genius. " I just don't believe in mixing the races that way." Using a position of authority to mandate racial purity -- nothing racist about that. So I started to walk into the water. I won't lie to you boys...I was terrified. But I pressed on, and as I made my way past the breakers, a strange calm came over me. I don't know if it was divine intervention or the kinship of all living things, but I tell you, Jerry, at that moment ... I was a marine biologist. |
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Originally posted by zzvicezz Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said. "I'm not a racist. I just don't believe in mixing the races that way," Bardwell told the Associated Press on Thursday. "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else."
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