By Will Wright

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Frankfort resident Patty Brooks chanted and cheered in the rotunda of the state Capitol on Wednesday in hopes of helping her son find equality.

Brooks was among a crowd chanting, “What do we want? Fairness! When do we want it? Now!” just a flight of steps below the Kentucky Senate and House of Representatives.

Brooks and the others were pushing for House Bill 171 and Senate Bill 140, which would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation in the state.

The rally came to the capital a week after a federal judge ruled that Kentucky must recognize same-sex marriages performed outside the state.

There is no state law in Kentucky banning discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, but Lexington, Morehead, Louisville, Vicco, Frankfort and Covington have passed local non-discrimination ordinances.

Students from Eastern Kentucky University, Morehead State University and various Kentucky high schools mixed with other people from the accross Commonwealth, including Brooks, to push their cause.

Fairness Campaign Director Chris Hartman said the Lexington fairness ordinance may have contributed to a small UK student turnout at the rally.

Some students going to school in Lexington, where there is a fairness ordinance don’t know there’s more work to be done, Hartman said. “They may not know that their siblings across the state who are LGBT can still be vulnerable to legal discrimination.”

The presence of college students comes and goes with the leadership of the university’s LGBT organizations, Hartman said.

“We’d certainly love to see more UK students involved in the rallies,” he said. “I think that all Kentuckians who support fairness have a responsibility to do all they can.”

Despite few UK students, the rally was one of the largest in Hartman’s recent memory.

“It sends a strong message that the support for fairness is there,” he said.

“I think (banning discrimination) would show that we, Kentucky, are open to new ideas and all people,” Brooks said.

Being gay in Kentucky was difficult for her son, she said, but she does believe that change can come.

“We’ve seen it in race relations,” Brooks said. “But I think hearts and minds take a long time to change.”

Coming to the capitol is a vital part of creating that change, said Greg Capillo, a Lexington resident who comes to Frankfort multiple times a week to rally for various causes.

“Normally, these halls are quiet,” Capillo said. “I go to Frankfort because if I’m not here I’m worried who is going to show up.”