Vote No Rally

A “Vote No” rally to oppose the proposed amendment known as “Value Them Both” was held along North Main Street at North Main Park in El Dorado, on Sunday, June 26th following the recent Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

Protestors, with signs and chanting “This is what democracy looks like” and “Vote No,” stood on both sides of North Main Street at North Main Park to protest the recent Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The rally was organized by Suzanne Scribner and was attended by both men and women, and counted registered Democrats, Republicans and Independents in their number.  They all stood together in bipartisan unison to have their voices heard and called for a “NO” vote against the “Value Them Both” proposition that will be on Kansas ballots on August 2nd.

The proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution will be decided by Kansas voters during the primary election held on that date.

“We need to show that there are people in Butler County, Kansas, who are upset and we’re not going to be quiet,” said Scribner. 

Women’s healthcare and access to health care in the state of Kansas is top of mind for a group of young women who attended the rally.

“We’re here supporting women’s reproductive rights,” said one person who asked to remain anonymous.  “My boss is avidly “vote yes” and I don’t want to risk losing my job.”

“I’m here to protect the right and fight for the right for myself, my daughter, for every woman,” said Hali Stevenson. She attended the rally with her husband and their new born son. 

“It’s unbelievable that it’s 2022 and we haven’t progressed to a state of equality,” said Stevenson. “For me it’s about removing beliefs from the equation. “

“Not everyone in the United States in Christian.  Not everyone believes the propaganda that is being pushed,” she said.  “It’s important to raise my voice for choice and make it about the beliefs of everyone and not a select few.”

“Pro-choice is an important thing to keep as a human right,” said Linda Swan.  She was joined at the rally by her husband Mike Swan. 

“I think the repercussions of this are dangerous,” said Mike Swan. “It was a hard-fought for right. The makeup of the court now was convoluted and it’s dangerous going forward with some other issues.  I’m very upset about that,” he said. 

Rally attendee, Debbie Hill shared her own personal story. “I had a miscarriage once and it was the most extreme pain I’ve ever been through,” she said. 

“I almost had to force the doctor to perform the D&C,” said Hill.  “Without a “No” vote, we will not have access to that procedure. We have to vote no.”  

Protesters Object to Art Exhibit

A new exhibit has opened at the Coutts Museum of Art, “Chromatic Hallucinations” however, not everyone wants to talk about the art but rather the artist himself. 

Chromatic Hallucinations is on display at Coutts Museum of Art in El Dorado.

Lana Malone and her friends are protesting the museum’s decision to show the artworks of Sean Christopher Ward.

Malone said, “My biggest issue is that they are supporting a sex offender.”

Her request was for transparency regarding the artist. Ward is a registered sex offender who was convicted 10 years ago, served his court imposed sentence and has under gone rehabilitation.  

Lana Malone, left, with friends stood outside Coutts to protest the art exhibit.

While Ward will not be present at the museum, where his art will be on display through September 30th, he did issue a statement addressing the protest, “I have no fear of talking about my past or how people will use it against me, like some individuals have been doing over this last month on social media.” 

Ward said, “It’s been 10 years now and I don’t even have a speeding ticket on my record. I have been able to host 500+ artists from around the world in my community and my gallery, on my own dime. I have been able to host 70+ musicians from around the Midwest for my community, on my own dime. I have provided a safe space for everyone, no matter their gender/classification/skin color, to do what they love and I’ve done everything I can to help make their careers moving forward better than before.”

Ward said his sole mission in life is to redeem himself from his past actions and help make his community a better place.

“I am not here to promote anything negative, nor to create spaces in which people cannot feel safe,” said Ward. 

“That’s why people trust me now. I have earned that trust from the years of constant hate and disgust towards my actions and I have not let it affect my progress forward to become an upstanding citizen and help my community to the best of my ability and in a safe manner.” 

Ward said, “I cannot change my past, as much as I wish I could, but my actions 10 years ago do not define me indefinitely, they define that old version of me.  I am a firm believer that people who want to change, can change, and that’s why I have never judged anyone and provided any artist with a space to express themselves in my galleries. The judiciary system and law enforcement are doing their rightful jobs of monitoring me for the rest of my life and I have yet to let them, or society, down again. It is not social media’s keyboard warriors job, nor is it the right way to go about things when they haven’t even met the person before.”

With respect to the protesters, Ward said, “These individuals have yet to reach out to me, even once, to talk about my history or anything of the sort. They just took it upon themselves to paint a picture of me to the public of the “worst case scenarios” they could think of,” Ward said. “Though, I am ashamed of my action from ten years ago, I am proud of the person I have become today.”

In a statement, Tim Howard, Executive Director of the Coutts Museum of Art said, “The Board and staff of the Coutts recognize what an honor it is to live in a country where creating, exhibiting, and experiencing art is a constitutional right under the 1st Amendment. Consistent with our fundamental commitment to freedom of speech we will not censor exhibitions in response to political or ideological pressure.

Tim Howard, Executive Director, standing in front of one of the pieces of art on display.

“Just as we believe that the works of art on display are worthy of an exhibit, we also understand that the group protesting today have a right to their freedom of speech and will in no way interfere with their right to peacefully protest. They are not protesting the art, they are protesting the artist’s past.

“The Coutts Museum of Art in no way supports crimes of any nature. This crime was processed through the judicial system ten years ago, and this artist has served his punishment for that crime accordingly. The safety of our guests and staff is always our foremost priority; this exhibit is no exception. 

“The Family Life Center – Safehouse is proud to accept all donations received from the public for the exhibit. This organization provides comprehensive services to the victims of the crimes of domestic violence, child abuse and sexual assault/abuse.”

BLM Peaceful Protests Continue

“I want people to treat my black friends the way they treat my white friends,” said Melodee Rutliff.  Rutliff is an El Dorado resident and organizer of the peaceful protest. 

For the second week in a row, protesters have gathered to support the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. On Saturday June 13th, Rutliff was joined by Dr. Willie Scott, Jr. from Wichita United and approximately 20 fellow protesters.

They stood at the corner of W. Central and Hillside, in front of the QuikTrip, holding signs that said “we are in this together” and “spread love not violence.”

“We’re not trying to shove it down anybody’s throat or anything,” said Rutliff.  “But we’ll keep coming out until stuff changes. We’re not just going to be out here at week and then be quiet.  That’s what they need, they need us to stay behind them,” Rutliff said.

Rutliff, along with other protesters, held signs, waved at cars passing by and shared messages of unity.

Protesters observed safety measures and wore masks while sharing messages of peace, love and unity, with passersby. 

Their message is simple.

“We’re all about bridging the gap,” said Dr. Scott. “We’re all preaching the same message and together we become stronger.”  

Dr. Scott’s organization, Wichita United, is based in Wichita, Kansas. 

Dr. Willie Scott, Jr. with Wichita United joined peaceful protesters in El Dorado to help spread his message of unity.

“We’ve brought together every ethnicity, color, creed and background to fight for the same, common goal of unifying our city for the peace of our children,” Dr. Scott said.  “We’re spreading  the love with our peaceful protests; we’re doing voter registration; we’re going to City Council meetings, fighting policies and legislation to get things changed for our children to have a better future.”

Dr. Scott brought his own children along to be a part of that change. His son, Zy’hon and daughter, Au’marie joined him in the peaceful protest.

Zy’hon Scott marches with a sign while his sister Au’Marie stands with their father along W. Central in El Dorado.