US county clerk Kim Davis is currently on a nine-day tour of Romania to promote religious freedom and speak out against same-sex marriage.
The Kentucky-based Davis first rose to fame when she to issue same-sex couples in Rowan County with marriage licences following the historic Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court .
Davis is travelling with Harry Mihet, the vice-president of the Liberty Counsel—a US organisation that has stated queer people are “confused” and that “an individual can successfully reduce or eliminate unwanted same-sex attractions behaviour or identity.”
Romania is currently preparing to hold a referendum on same-sex marriage—with conservative campaigners seeking to change the constitution to change the current definition of marriage being between ‘spouses’ to the less ambiguous ‘man and a woman’.
“I am so glad for this amazing opportunity to finally introduce Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis personally to my Romanian people,” said Mihet in a released by the Liberty Counsel.
“Her story resonates loudly with them, and they are receiving her tearfully and very warmly, because they can still remember the not-so-long-ago days when they were themselves persecuted and imprisoned for their conscience.
“The freedom of conscience transcends national, cultural, religious and denominational lines, and Romanians are determined to prevent such injustice from ever happening again in their country,” said Mihet.
Kim Davis has met with members of Romania's Orthodox Church on her religious freedom tour of the country. Source: Facebook/Liberty Counsel
Romania’s ruling Social Democratic Party is hoping to hold the referendum as soon as November with leader Liviu Dragnea dismissing concerns from the European Union.
“Even if some of my colleagues in Brussels are unhappy with what is happening in Romania, we will make it happen,” .
The push for a referendum to tighten the constitutional definition of marriage came from the ‘Coalition for Family’, a group that collected over in support of the change (Romania has a population of just 20 million).
“We have the constitutional right and moral obligation to defend the family from those tendencies of modern society which diminish its importance and accelerate its degradation,” says the .
