Another Capitol rally planned in KY less than a week after Beshear hanged in effigy
Another conservative activist is planning a rally on the steps of the Capitol, less than a week after Gov. Andy Beshear was hanged in effigy near the Governor’s Mansion at the conclusion of a Second Amendment rally.
Louisville conservative activist Frank G. Simon is planning a “prayer rally” Saturday at the Capitol to criticize Beshear’s policies during the coronavirus pandemic.
Simon, a medical doctor who specializes in allergies and immunology, posted on his Facebook page Thursday an invitation to “join us Saturday May 30 from 2-4pm for a Truth Heals Prayer Rally in Frankfort, KY.”
Simon, who has been active for decades in speaking out for conservative causes and has contributed to campaigns of several Republicans, said the rally, which he started planning earlier this week, will be peaceful. “The people who will show up will all be Christian, church-going people.”
He said he invited “a lot” by robo-calls this week but “not any military or 2nd Amendment people.”
Asked what he thought about the hanging of Beshear in effigy, Simon said “it was harsh but they have been doing this to Trump for a long time. I wouldn’t have done it but effigies are historical.”
In a May 25 Facebook post, Simon said the effigy was “perhaps” in poor taste but criticized detractors of the Sunday rally.
“The people who have tainted this rally have no idea what happened,” he said. “There was no violence of any kind.”
There were, however, heavily armed men and woman who ignored posted warnings and gathered on the governor’s front porch, where they yelled for him to come outside before hanging him in effigy.
Beshear called the incident evil and hateful. “Let’s start by calling it what it was, and what it is — actions aimed at creating fear and terror,” he said Tuesday. He vowed not to be bullied or intimidated.
Beshear spokeswoman Crystal Staley said Thursday of Simon’s rally, “This is another attempt to create fear and terror.” She added, “Holding another event just six days after shows his true intentions. Gov. Beshear will not back down or be bullied. All elected officials should condemn this rally and its organizer.”
Simon said in his Facebook post that the hanging of effigies was a common form of protest in the 18th and 19th centuries and is making a comeback as political protest.
“Now in light of all this ... where was the outcry by Republican leaders and Kentuckians over the hideous actions of teachers and their chants against Gov. (Matt) Bevin and family when he was in office? Where has the outcry been (for almost 50 years) for all the precious innocent babies who are torn, limb by limb apart or burned alive by saline in their mothers’ womb? Where are all the outcries against Real Violence of Murder against an innocent baby?”
Simon’s Facebook page says he is a director of the American Family Association of Kentucky. Its Facebook page says the association is pro-life, pro-limited government, pro-Second Amendment and pro-traditional marriage.
One Republican who received an automated phone call Wednesday night from Simon inviting him to the rally said the timing of the event appears to be an attempt “to help anti-Beshear people with public relations after the tragic incident with the hanging.”
Steve Ray of Madisonville said he will not be going to the rally. He is a former funeral home director and political director of Kentucky Boys State, an honorary program for high school senior boys sponsored by the American Legion.
Ray said the phone call criticized the Democratic governor for closing churches during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic while keeping abortion clinics open.
Following a court order, churches have been allowed to gather in Kentucky at reduced capacity since May 9.
Ray said he has conservative values “but I am so sorry we Kentuckians have taken a very serious pandemic that has killed many and made it political.”
“I am tired of the radical right and the radical left,” he said. “How about we all work together to stop this COVID-19 and then we can talk about the politics of it later?”
Ray also said he was “sorry about what happened to the Beshear family. That never should have happened.”
Last Sunday, the leader of a group called Kentucky 3Percenters hoisted an effigy of Beshear from a tree at the end of a 2nd Amendment rally on the Capitol grounds in Frankfort. It garnered national publicity and opposition from many, including several Republicans, such as U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Secretary of State Michael Adams.
Kentucky State Police have declined to comment on whether there is an investigation of the incident or whether any security changes will be made for future rallies at the Capitol.
Last month, state Health Commissioner Steven Stack said he asked State Police to provide an alternative option to help people demonstrate safely on the Capitol grounds.
He said it would give protesters the option to drive-in or drive-thru on the top floor of the Capitol parking garage, stay in their cars and follow federal guidelines to curb COVID-19.
Those practices have not been followed in recent rallies at the Capitol, including the one last Sunday.
This story was originally published May 28, 2020 at 4:03 PM.
