On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that threatens to open the door widely to businesses being allowed to violate anti-discrimination laws. If the court rules that the First Amendment protects the right of business owners to discriminate — based on claims of freedom of speech or free exercise of religion — civil rights laws banning discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion or sexual orientation will be severely weakened everywhere in this country.
The case before the court, 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, involves Lorie Smith, a graphic artist and a web designer. She wants to design websites for weddings, but she refuses to do so for same-sex weddings because of her religious beliefs.
Colorado law prohibits businesses that sell or offer services to the public from discriminating based on “disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, or ancestry.” The law also prohibits businesses from displaying a “notice” that “indicates that the full and equal enjoyment of the goods (or) services ... will be refused” based on a protected characteristic.
