SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
For Immediate Release
May, 19 2011, 02:56pm EDT
Contact:
Joe Conn, Rob Boston or Sandhya Bathija
202.466.3234 telephone
202.466.2587 fax
www.au.org
Americans United Criticizes Kentucky Officials for Offering Tax Aid to Fundamentalist Theme Park
Church-State Watchdog Group Says So-Called ‘Ark Park’ Promotes Fundamentalist Religion and Bad Science
WASHINGTON
Americans United for Separation of Church and State today blasted officials in Kentucky for their decision to award more than $50 million in tax incentives to a theme park centered around Noah's Ark.
A fundamentalist Christian group sought the aid to erect a so-called "Ark Park" in Williamstown. Gov. Steve Beshear backed the scheme, saying it would bring jobs to the state.
Americans United says that's not a good enough reason for the state to promote a religious enterprise like the Ark Park, which is being constructed in conjunction with evangelist Ken Hamm's Answers in Genesis ministry.
"The state of Kentucky should not be promoting the spread of fundamentalist Christianity or any other religious viewpoint," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. "Let these folks build their fundamentalist Disneyland without government help."
The controversial park will include a full-scale replica of Noah's Ark and models of dinosaurs, which Hamm insists were carried on the famous biblical boat. Answers in Genesis, a prominent creationist ministry with an annual budget of $20 million, believes that the Earth is only 6,000 years old, that dinosaurs and humans lived at the same time and that unicorns once existed - ideas utterly rejected by mainstream science. (Answers in Genesis already operates a Creationism Museum in Kentucky.)
The state aid to the new park is coming mainly in the form of tax incentives under the Kentucky Tourism Development Act. The Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority met this afternoon and approved the aid.
Lynn said AU will investigate whether the tax package violates the constitutional separation of church and state. But the funding is bad policy, he said, regardless of the legal questions.
"Beshear wants to launch this ark on a sea of tax breaks - money that will ultimately have to be made up by Kentucky taxpayers," Lynn said. "This misguided project deserves to sink."
Lynn added, "I feel sorry for the children of Kentucky. At a time when they should be learning modern science, their public officials are subsidizing fundamentalist religion."
Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.
LATEST NEWS
House Progressives Unveil 'Defund the Oligarchs, Fund the People' Resolution
"Trump promised to lower costs for families on day one, but a year since he took office, grocery, housing, and healthcare costs are out of control," said Rep. Rashida Tlaib. "It's time to tax the rich."
Jan 30, 2026
As President Donald Trump continues to serve billionaires over working people and degrade the US economy, a trio of progressive congresswomen on Friday introduced the Defund the Oligarchs, Fund the People Resolution.
"Trump promised to lower costs for families on day one, but a year since he took office, grocery, housing, and healthcare costs are out of control," said Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), who is leading the measure with Congresswomen Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.). Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) is an original co-sponsor.
Tlaib took aim at Trump and Republicans who control both chambers of Congress for forcing through their so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year: "He signed into law the largest cuts to healthcare and food assistance in the history of our country, all to give trillions of dollars in tax breaks to his rich donors and their massive corporations."
"Meanwhile, 60% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, and CEOs are making 281 times more than their average worker," she stressed. "It's time to tax the rich, defund the oligarchy, and invest those funds in the needs of working families."
"Every dollar that gets plundered by billionaires through tax breaks, corporate giveaways, and political favoritism is a dollar that is taken away from healthcare, housing, education, and good jobs."
The resolution declares that "the United States was created to be a democracy, founded on the principle that all people are created equal, governed not by kings or corporate masters but by themselves as free citizens," and "the gravest threat to democracy and individual freedoms is the alliance of private wealth and authoritarian government."
At various moments over the past 250 years, Americans have "sounded the alarm" over oligarchy and the federal government "has vigorously combated excessive concentrations of power and wealth," the measure notes. However, in recent decades, the government "has forfeited its role safeguarding democracy."
The resolution highlights that the combined wealth of the country's 900 billionaires exceeds that of the 67,000,000 households in the poorest 50%, as working people contend with stagnant wages and struggle to afford everything from healthcare to housing. Trump notably said during a Thursday Cabinet meeting that "I don't want to drive housing prices down, I want to drive housing prices up for people that own their homes. And they can be assured that's what's going to happen."
While many measures introduced by progressives don't even receive votes in the GOP-controlled Congress, this one is especially unlikely to go anywhere, given that it explicitly calls out not only the superrich donors who use their money to control the US political system but also the president, whom many lawmakers in his party are afraid to criticize.
Blasting "the quid pro quo" between Trump and the ultrawealthy oligarchs and corporations, the resolution emphasizes that they "are corrupting United States politics through billions in open and hidden campaign contributions and by exploiting their monopoly control in key sectors of the economy, and especially over media, information, and emerging digital technologies."
"Trump has permitted pay-to-play schemes to become endemic, as oligarchs leverage political contributions to win hundreds of billions in taxpayer-funded federal subsidies, tax breaks, regulatory rollbacks, and government contracts despite exploiting workers and polluting communities," it continues, specifically pointing to spending by the fossil fuel, tech, and cryptocurrency industries.
"Public funds belong to the people of the United States and should be invested in education, healthcare, housing, clean energy, and infrastructure, not used to enrich the wealthiest individuals and most powerful corporations," the resolution argues. It also expresses concern about a decline in union membership that "has diminished the ability of the labor movement" to continue its "significant historical role in counteracting corporate power, reducing inequality, and ensuring the political system is responsive to the interests of ordinary Americans, not just wealthy elites."
The resolution includes various demands for the president and Congress. It says that Trump "must not reward oligarchs and billionaire-controlled corporations with lucrative, publicly funded contracts, loans, and grants" when they engage in corrupt scheming, fail to fairly compete in open markets, and break federal laws.
It also says that the president and Congress must:
- Act with all deliberate speed to protect election integrity;
- Break up all concentrations of economic and political power;
- Drastically reduce levels of economic inequality and concentrations of inherited wealth;
- Reform the Supreme Court;
- Support the dramatic expansion of unions;
- Explore ways to promote alternative, noncorporate forms of ownership; and
- Use public money to fund programs that raise the standard of living.
"While working families have to choose between paying rent, buying groceries, or keeping the heat on, billionaires are just getting richer," said Jayapal. "We must rein in corporate power by breaking up monopolies and reforming campaign finance laws."
"It's time to make billionaires pay their fair share of taxes and reinvest those funds to provide for our communities—housing, healthcare, and education," she continued. "Our resolution calls for a political and economic system that benefits working families, not one that enriches the ultrawealthy."
The resolution comes just months before the midterm elections and amid pressure on Democrats to prove they can offer a true alternative to Trump's government full of loyalists, weak labor market, persistently high inflation, and tax giveaways to the rich—including Elon Musk, a former presidential adviser and the richest person on the planet.
Some of that pressure has come from the grassroots group Our Revolution, which is backing the resolution alongside organizations including Americans for Tax Fairness, Climate and Community Institute, MoveOn, National Nurses United, Patriotic Millionaires, People's Action, Public Citizen, RootsAction, and Social Security Works.
"Every dollar that gets plundered by billionaires through tax breaks, corporate giveaways, and political favoritism is a dollar that is taken away from healthcare, housing, education, and good jobs. That is not just corruption, it is a betrayal of who government is supposed to serve, and it is why so many people feel that democracy is not working for them," said Our Revolution executive director Joseph Geevarghese.
"The truth is, none of the policies working families are fighting for can ever fully materialize as long as corporate money and billionaire influence are writing the rules," he added. "Lawmakers cannot keep pretending to serve both the corporate class and working families at the same time. If we want real progress on wages, healthcare, housing, and climate, cutting off corporate corruption and reinvesting in our communities has to be part of how we govern, not just something we talk about during elections."
Keep ReadingShow Less
ICE Expected to Flood Ohio Next Week and Round Up Haitians Stripped of Legal Status By Trump
Holocaust historian Timothy Snyder said it sounds like ICE is "gearing up for a pogrom in Springfield, Ohio."
Jan 30, 2026
The Trump administration is expected to flood Ohio with immigration agents next week to target thousands of Haitian migrants after they are stripped of their legal status.
One of the main targets will be the town of Springfield, where President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance infamously concocted the tale that Haitian immigrants were eating the pets of white residents to stoke xenophobia during the 2024 election, which unleashed an onslaught of racist threats and intimidation upon the community.
Earlier this week, the Springfield News-Sun received a message sent to staff at the Springfield City School District saying that school officials were expecting a federal immigration enforcement operation to begin in the town sometime after February 3, when Haitian residents' temporary protected status (TPS) expires, and last at least 30 days.
Given that history and the escalating brutality with which US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has carried out its recent surges in Minnesota and Maine, Holocaust historian Timothy Snyder said he was "getting the impression that ICE is gearing up for a pogrom in Springfield, Ohio."
"Any day now, a swarm of armed state police dressed for war could descend" on the town, wrote columnist Marilou Johanek in the Ohio Capital Journal. "The small town of Springfield in Clark County is awaiting an invasion of unaccountable thugs who conceal their faces and identities, drive in unmarked vehicles with blackened windows, stomp on the Bill of Rights, and viciously brutalize human beings based on race and accent."
The 15,000 Haitians living in Springfield are among around 30,000 in Ohio and more than 500,000 across the US who are expected to lose TPS on Tuesday after it was abruptly revoked by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) last year. The expiration could be halted by US District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes, who is expected to issue a decision on February 2.
If not, "they could potentially be arrested, detained, or put in removal proceedings unless they have already applied for some other form of relief they have in addition to TPS, or that they are applying for in addition to TPS,” explained Emily Brown, Ohio State University Moritz College of Law’s Immigration Clinic Director to the Journal.
While the Trump administration has often emphasized its supposed targeting of those in the US unlawfully, editor-in-chief David DeWitt at the Journal emphasizes that "Haitians are currently in the United States legally," under TPS, which grants temporary legal status to those in danger from armed conflict, environmental disasters, or other extraordinary conditions in their home countries.
The Haitians living in the US are at risk of being deported back to what has been described as "the most dangerous country in the world," in the midst of a gang war that killed over 8,100 people between January and November 2025, according to the United Nations.
"They are not here illegally," DeWitt wrote on social media. "Trump is revoking their legal status on February 3, and then, according to reports, immediately sending ICE in to Springfield and Columbus, Ohio, to target them."
As part of a crusade to end migration from impoverished "Third World" countries, Trump has ramped up his use of racist invective against Haiti in recent months, proudly referring to it as a "shithole country" at a rally in December after denying having described it that way back in 2018.
Viles Dorsainvil, executive director of the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, told the Journal that rumors of the coming surge have struck terror into the hearts of many in the community.
"The folks are fearful,” Dorsainvil, who came to the United States from Haiti in 2020, said. “They came here just to work and send their kids to school and be here peacefully. All of a sudden, they find themselves in another scenario where they’re not accepted… They are panicked, and the worst thing is that they can’t even plan their lives for three months down the road.”
One TPS holder, 41-year-old Pushon Jacques, told the News-Sun that the potential loss of his status "has a big impact." He said: “I won’t be able to work, I will not be able to provide for my family. It’s a bad situation to be in.”
While the administration has emphasized "self-deportation" as a way to avoid being on the business end of an ICE jackboot, Jacques said: “The situation in Haiti—especially the political situation—has made Haiti unlivable... There is no place in Haiti that is safe right now."
Local reports say residents are already preparing for their town to come under siege, and despite the White House's portrayal of Haitians as loathed outsiders, many others in the community have come out to support them.
Churches are running immersive role-playing sessions to train community members on what to do if ICE agents attempt to storm their doors, and residents have constructed phone chains to alert vulnerable community members when agents are spotted.
The Springfield City Council, meanwhile, has passed a resolution urging federal agents to comply with city policies that prohibit police from wearing masks and require them to carry identification, though the city has no authority to enforce them.
“Springfield is a good place,” Jacques said. “I like the environment and the people, because Springfield has a lot of good people... I have never felt any racism, and I feel appreciated.”
Despite attacks from the leaders of his party, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, has defended his state's Haitian community, telling the statehouse bureau, "I don't think it’s in our interest in this country for all the Haitians who are working, who are sometimes working two jobs, supporting their family, supporting the economy, I think it’s a mistake to tell these individuals you can no longer work and have to leave the country."
According to a spokesperson for DeWine, there has been no formal communication between federal authorities and the governor about ICE's plans for the state. However, DeWine said, "If ICE does in fact come in, comes in with a big operation, obviously we have to work this thing through and make sure people don't get hurt."
The ACLU of Ohio said it will be monitoring the situation in Springfield closely for unconstitutional actions.
"This despicable surge in lawless ICE officers descending upon Springfield will ignite swells of fear within the Haitian community, terrorize our Black and Brown neighbors, and cause considerable damage to citizens and non-citizens alike," said ACLU Ohio executive director J. Bennett Guess.
"Following the government’s senseless, brutal killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, it is clear that ICE poses a grave threat to all who call Ohio home," he continued. "The ACLU of Ohio urges state and local elected officials to do everything in their power to protect the 30,000 Haitians living in Central Ohio. We call on the US Congress to reject a DHS budget that allows these lawless agencies to continue putting our communities in danger.”
Keep ReadingShow Less
‘Most Dangerous Attack on Voting Rights Ever’? New GOP Election Bill Sparks Dire Warnings
"Make no mistake," said one critic of the MEGA Act, "this egregious power grab is about suppressing turnout, silencing voters, and ensuring minority rule."
Jan 30, 2026
The Republican chairman of the House committee that oversees federal elections introduced legislation on Thursday that one analyst characterized as possibly "the most dangerous attack on voting rights ever" put forth in the US Congress.
Led by Rep. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.), chair of the House Administration Committee, the Make Elections Great Again (MEGA) Act would ban ranked-choice voting and universal mail-in ballots in federal elections, prohibit states from accepting mailed ballots that arrive after Election Day, enable large-scale voter purges, and institute photo ID requirements.
The bill was endorsed by right-wing organizations including the Election Integrity Network, an organization that—in the words of the New York Times—"has done more than any other group to take [President Donald Trump's] falsehoods about corruption in the democratic system and turn them into action." The Election Integrity Network has received funding from Citizens for Renewing America, a group founded by White House budget director and Project 2025 architect Russell Vought.
Tiffany Muller, president of the End Citizens United Action Fund, said in a statement Thursday that the MEGA Act "is a dangerous anti-voter bill and the latest escalation of the same conspiracy-driven agenda that has nothing to do with protecting our elections and everything to do with clinging to power."
"There is not a shred of evidence of widespread voter fraud in the United States. Courts, audits, and election officials from both parties have repeatedly proved that," said Muller. "Yet House Republicans, in their never-ending quest to stay in power, have once again chosen lies over facts to justify making it harder for eligible Americans to vote."
“When you steal from the working class, impose policies that strictly benefit billionaire donors, and know voters are about to hold you accountable in the midterms, you try to change the rules of the game," Muller added. "That’s the Republican playbook, and this bill is the proof. Make no mistake, this egregious power grab is about suppressing turnout, silencing voters, and ensuring minority rule."
While the bill is unlikely to get through the Senate due to Democratic opposition, it represents an ominous look at the GOP's vision for election administration ahead of the pivotal November midterms.
Yunior Rivas of Democracy Docket noted Thursday that the legislation would go further than the SAVE Act, a bill House Republicans passed last year that one historian characterized as “the most extraordinary attack on voting rights in American history.” One advocate described the SAVE Act, which some Republicans are looking to revive, as a "modern-day poll tax."
"Taken together, the MEGA Act is a catastrophic proposal for democracy in the United States," Rivas wrote. "Voting would move from a fundamental right to a permission-based system—one where voters must repeatedly prove their eligibility, navigate bureaucratic obstacles, and hope they are not wrongly flagged by a single database."
In a statement, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) warned that the MEGA Act shows Republicans are "desperately trying to rig the rules for future elections because they know they cannot win on their unpopular agenda, which is raising costs for working families."
Rep. Joe Morelle (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Administration Committee, said the MEGA Act is further evidence that "Trump and House Republicans are terrified of the American people."
"They are desperate to rig the system so they can choose their voters," said Morelle. "This bill is their latest attempt to block millions of Americans from exercising their right to vote. I will fight this bill at every turn."
The MEGA Act was introduced amid growing fears that Trump is laying the groundwork to subvert the 2026 midterms. On Thursday, a group of Senate Democrats led by Padilla raised alarm over Justice Department efforts to seize sensitive data and purge voter rolls in states across the country.
"While most states are resisting this illegal voter roll grab, we are gravely concerned by the amount of sensitive data the department has already amassed on millions of American voters," the senators wrote. "The department has failed to provide Congress, or the public, any information on how it is maintaining this vast amount of data, the guardrails in place to protect state voter information, how the data is to be used, or who in the federal government has access to this sensitive data."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular