C.J.: Minnesota ‘Makeover Guy’ offers an olive branch to jailed Kentucky clerk

Minnesota “Makeover Guy” Christopher Hopkins is meeting the hatred of Kentucky clerk Kim Davis with the benevolent offer of a new look.

A Facebook photo of Davis, captioned with these words “When you are so anti-gay no one will do your hair,” caught the eye of the co-owner of reVamp! salonspa in Minneapolis, who amazingly sympathizes with the county clerk’s plight.

In case you’ve been in seclusion, Davis is the county official finally put in jail last week after violating court orders to issue same-sex marriage licenses because the law of the land conflicts with her religious beliefs.

I wrote finally because I’d have jailed her on Day One, not being as charitable as Hopkins.

“The Makeover Guy” — that’s a registered trademark, he said — told me Monday that his first reaction to the Facebook post was laughter.

“I thought it was funny, of course. I reposted it on my Facebook page,” he said. “Then I felt for her. People were making fun of her. Still it’s satire, a good joke. [Then] I thought, I WILL! I’d love to offer a makeover. I sent her an e-mail.”

Part of Hopkins’ magnanimous e-mail reads: “Holding onto your convictions in the face of adversity is very difficult and takes great courage. I too have been in your position, though not to this degree. I’ve also been thrown into the media spotlight for my convictions (on more than one occasion) for expressing my beliefs. I was raised in a nondenominational fundamentalist Christian church. And though I had spent my entire youth worshiping God in song nearly every Sunday, one year when I was asked to sing for the Christmas Eve service the offer was rescinded when the elders decided I was no longer welcome … because I was ‘an admitted homosexual.’ People can be terribly mean. With that, I too am quite familiar. When this passes, and it will, I would like to offer you a makeover at revamp! salonspa in Minneapolis. I can tell from the few photos I’ve seen of you that you care about your appearance, so I’m reaching out to offer you a moment to reboot. Though we may differ in some of our beliefs, we must agree that feeling good about how you present yourself in public is important.”

Hopkins asked his publicist to send Davis a book, but if the makeover guy is interpreting his publicist’s e-mail correctly, You’re crazy, but lovable, no need for Davis to stand by the mailbox.

Some Facebook followers are also appalled by Hopkins’ offer. He’s ignoring them. “I really haven’t followed the story that much,” he said, “but I would love for her to come up for a complimentary makeover.”

So, Hopkins wouldn’t go to Davis?

“No. I don’t want to go to Kentucky,” Hopkins said, laughing uproariously. “I’m not going to go that far!”

He added: “She’s very pretty, actually.”

Davis may be stuck wearing incarceration jump suits if she doesn’t stop confusing her place of employment with her church.

Besides, there’s something seriously rankling about a professional bride — which is what I’d call someone who has walked that aisle four times; never as a widow as far as I can tell — getting to block others from wedded bliss.

And don’t even get me started on the separation of church and state or these ridiculous Web musing comparing Davis to Martin Luther King.

C.J. can be reached at cj@startribune.com and seen on Fox 9’s “Jason Show.” E-mailers, please state a subject; “Hello” does not count. Attachments are not opened.