Senator Mitch McConnell, the current Senate Minority Leader, was this year's Convocation speaker at the University of Louisville's Brandeis School of Law graduation ceremony.
Many graduating students, their families and friends attending the graduation sported buttons that read "Sen. McConnell Does Not Speak for Me." Outside the graduation, about 20 activists protested McConnell's support of the Defense of Marriage Act. The Senator supported and voted himself to pass D.o.M.A. in 1996. Although the City of Louisville didn't anticipate any problems from the protest, even noting "No off-duty police provided" on the permit, there were several Louisville Police Department Officers on the scene for the duration of the 3 hour protest.
As the Graduation began letting out, one of the Off-Duty Police Officers moved a vehicle from a 30-Minute parking spot directly in front of the building to make way for a full-size cargo van from the University of Louisville's Physical Plant, which blocked the protesters from view of passing traffic on Broadway. The driver of the cargo van told Curtis Morrison, one of the protest organizers, that he had been instructed to park the van in that location.
Despite that this protest was directed at the most powerful Republican in the country, the sitting Senate Minority Leader, the event was not covered by WAVE, WHAS, WLKY, WFPL, FOX41, Leo Weekly, Courier-Journal, or the Lexington Herald Leader.
Nor was it Covered by Page One Kentucky.
It was only covered by the Hillbilly Report.
Links with additional information:
Senate Roll call indicating McConnell's vote
Facebook Group: Yarmuth/McConnell: Repeal DoMA!!
(447 Members as of 5/4/09)
Facebook Event Page
(84 Confirmed RSVP's, with 172 Maybe's as of 5/4/09)
U of L Brandeis School of Law Graduation Information
Post-Event Video Blog Coverage by the Hillbilly Report
