“I'm here before you today to fight for my grandchild because her future depends on my proactive ability to say what I think is right for my family and for my people.”

---

---

KET video

Transcript of Audio

My name is Kimberly Turner. Thank you for having me, Mr. Chairman and other committee members.

I, unlike many of the other speakers, do not have an actual form to read from.

I'm coming today to talk to you from the heart and for the will of those people that I call my people-- in my community-- in my church, and in my area that I live in.

I have a disability and this mandate-- this face covering mandate-- has cost me my job. I'm sitting 57 days without a paycheck.

Where will I go to get another job when I still can't wear a face covering at the other employment?

I've been ridiculed in a store. Screamed at by other customers in the store.

I've been asked to leave the store, even though I've stated I have a disability that I feel should be protected.

I've been refused lodging in a hotel while traveling eight hours on the road with a reservation made in advance, and I was refused lodging even though I stated I have a disability and am unable to wear the face covering.

Again, I just come to you to ask-- When does it end? When does this governor who is creating all these executive orders and mandates that are absolutely overriding everything that as an American with the same rights as all other Americans are being overridden-- and we don't have a say.

And I do thank you Senator West for giving me a few minutes to have a say, because we are the people.

We, the people of the Constitution, should be heard and in no situation, pandemic, emergency or otherwise, should the people be denied a voice to say, and to express our feelings about what's going on-- what's affecting us so adversely.

I’ve sat in restaurants. I've watched my fellow patrons, myself a patron, and business owners, and I just-- my heart breaks for business owners.

I walk into a business, and they look at me like-- they have fear on their face.

I had a business owner tell me there was a car staked out in front of his restaurant looking for non-compliers, so that they could be reported and fined.

They're afraid --we’re afraid.

Why should we -as Kentucky- be this fearful?

Why should these small businesses that can't make their livings without our patronizing their business be this fearful of one another?

I do blame this on a lot of things, but the final note that I'll say is that way back in March, I think we as a society were prepped for this, when on a major-- and I will say it –I don’t mind saying it, but WDRB, had Dale Woods on there, speaking ‘point of view.’

In this particular one, we were told to treat each other as an enemy if we were not in proper uniform, which was a face covering.

You can go back to that one and look at-- its April 29th, I believe and he, his whole point of view, was to let the American people in Kentucky treat those you see, not in uniform, not in a face covering, as if they were the enemy.

Disgraceful-- it's just disgraceful.

And I don't have kids at home, I don't have small kids, but I do have a grandchild.

And I'm here before you today to fight for my grandchild because her future depends on my proactive ability to say what I think is right for my family and for my people.

Thank you for listening.