The Supreme Court rules in FAVOR of Christian Colorado graphic designer who refused to set up a page celebrating same-sex marriage
- The court ruled 6-3 reflecting its split between conservative and liberal justices
- It overruled a lower court which said Lori Smith was not exempt from state law
- She said she simply objected to messages that contradict her Christian beliefs
The Supreme Court on Friday ruled in favor of a Christian web design business who refused to design a website for a same-sex wedding, the latest in a series of decisions that expands the reach of religion in daily life.
The vote was 6-3, reflected the conservative-liberal divide among justices.
The ruling overturned a lower court’s decision that Denver-area business owner Lorie Smith was not allowed an exemption from a Colorado law that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation.
‘The First Amendment’s protections belong to all, not just to speakers whose motives the government finds worthy,’ wrote Justice Neil Gorsuch for the majority.
‘In this case, Colorado seeks to force an individual to speak in ways that align with its views but defy her conscience about a matter of major significance.’
Lorie Smith is a Christian graphic designer who said her religious beliefs would make her decline requests to design wedding websites for same sex couples
A person protests outside the Supreme Court, Friday, June 30, 2023, as decisions are expected in Washington
Smith, the owner of 303 Creative, is an evangelical Christian who said she believes marriage can only exist between a man and a woman.
She sued Colorado’s civil rights commission and officials in 2016 because she said she feared being punished for refusing to serve gay weddings.
She insisted she did not want to discriminate against anyone but simply objects to not being able to express her Christian beliefs.
And she argued that her websites counted as art and were protected by her constitutional right to free speech.
In his majority opinion, Gorsuch agreed. He said that the First Amendment prohibited Colorado from ‘forcing a website designer to create expressive designs speaking messages with which the designer disagrees.’
But during oral arguments, the court’s liberal justices said a ruling in her favor would encourage other businesses to discriminate against certain customers.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the minority dissent. She said the ruling was ‘profoundly wrong.’
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in the case, reflecting its conservative-liberal split
‘Today, the Court, for the first time in its history, grants a business open to the public a constitutional right to refuse to serve members of a protected class,’ she said, reading from the bench in a display of the depth of the minority’s feeling.
‘Today is a sad day in American constitutional law and in the lives of LGBT people.’
Smith’s case was argued by the Alliance Defending Freedom, a rightwing Christian group which has frequently pursued cases targeted gay and transgender people’s rights.
