Look at the name, second from the bottom. That is the signature of Mike Duke, the new President and Chief Executive Officer of Wal-Mart. The petition that Mr. Duke had signed his name to is the odious Arkansas Act One, prohibiting foster parenting and adoption of children by unmarried couples. For those unfamiliar with Act One, it was a thinly veiled attack on Arkansas gays and lesbians by Jerry Cox, executive director of the Arkansas Family Council.
On April 28, 2009, the Massachusetts gay rights group KnowThyNeighbor.org, in conjunction with the Arkansas Center for Artistic Revolution, compiled and posted a list on their website of all the names and addresses who those who signed the petitions to place Act 1 on the ballot in 2008. Unsurprisingly, many locally prominent Arkansans signed their names to the petition, which you may view here. Even more unsurprisingly, Jerry Cox, the bigoted director of the Arkansas Family Council, squawked loudly about the release of the list:
"We do not yet know what Arkansas laws may have already been broken by KnowThyNeighbor.org in publishing the full identities of voters who signed the petition to get Initiated Act 1 on the ballot. We are currently in the process of asking lawmakers to get an opinion from the state’s Attorney General, Dustin McDaniel. If Arkansas doesn’t have a law prohibiting the release of petition-signers’ personal information, we will ask the Arkansas Legislature to pass such a law next session. This would provide equal protection to any voters who sign a ballot measure petition, regardless of the cause.
It’s especially important to note that many voters will sign any petition based upon one simple principle: that the people, whenever possible, have the right to vote on issues that could directly impact their lives. And yet, KnowThyNeighbor.org acts as though signing petitions is such a horrible thing – as if everyone who signs a petition should be marked as an ardent supporter of a particular cause. The truth is, since gay activists can’t win at the ballot box, they are trying to win by creating a ‘chilling effect’ that will intimidate voters from signing petitions. Stifling a form of free speech is ultimately their last line of defense."
In Arkansas, petitions are a matter of public record, and can be freely viewed at the Secretary of State's office in Little Rock. So, Mr. Cox's allegation that KnowThyNeighbor broke Arkansas law(s) by releasing the names and addresses of the petition's signers is not only absurd, but libelous. Granted, Mr. Cox has a record of crying like a bitch whenever someone dares to block his hateful anti-gay agenda, but I digress. The real issue is his threat to ask the Arkansas legislature to pass a bill "prohibiting the release of petition-signers’ personal information". He claims that releasing public records is "stifling a form of free speech".
Okay, that is so absurd, I'm going to stop for a second so you can read that again. Jerry Cox claims that releasing these petitions, which you, I, or anyone else can look at Monday through Friday by going to the Arkansas Secretary of State's office in Little Rock is "stifling a form of free speech". As a native Arkie, I can assure you that Arkansas conservatives are not most decidedly not known for their brilliant logic.
Given the fact that so many names on the petition are local business and political leaders in Arkansas, it's likely that Mr. Cox's concerns about the privacy of the people who signed the petition are because there are so many prominent Arkansans who would be embarrassed that they have been exposed as bigots. Which leads us to the most prominent person who has allegedly signed the petition (so far?):
Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke.
In a follow-up on their blog, KnowThyNeighbor posted convincing evidence that Wal-Mart CEO Mike Duke signed his name to the petition to put Act 1 on the ballot.
Mike Duke of the same address, 16 Pinnacle Drive, Rogers, AR and listed as "Wal-Mart Management" made a $ 2300 campaign contribution to Mike Huckabee in 2008. The name, Susan Duke also at 16 Pinnacle Drive appears on this anti-gay petition. Susan Duke is the wife of Mike Duke and sits on the Board of the Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter.
Honestly, what else can I add to that? I can show you Wal-Mart's policy banning discrimination against gays and lesbians, which apparently only applies to the rank and file, not to the upper levels of management. But hey, I guess Mr. Duke listened to this guy:
"Your decision is a very bad one and will ultimately cost you much more in lost business than you will gain. Dollar General and others will get my business," said M. Donald Duncan of Oklahoma City in a complaint to ConsumerAffairs.com. The new policy is "an offense to God Almighty," he added.
Indeed.
Credit due and a hat tip to KnowThyNeighbor.org and the Center of Artistic Revolution. Y'all do good work. And props to the Arkansas Times. Max, if you happen to see this, you, your staff, and your newspaper keep me sane by actually doing.. what's that word I'm looking for? Oh yeah, journalism.
