Wow. Looks like the Supreme Court has a big year ahead of them.
In addition to taking on Trump’s Muslim ban, SCOTUS announced that they will also take up the case of the wedding cake baker who refused to make a cake for a gay couple.
If you remember, back in 2012 Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop was charged with violating Colorado’s anti-discrimination law which prohibits any business from refusing to serve costumers based on race, religion, sex or sexual orientation. Philips has admitted that he did not bake a cake for Charles Craig and David Mullins because of their sexual orientation stating he will “not create cakes celebrating any marriage that is contrary to his understanding of biblical teaching.”
Seems pretty clear-cut, no?
Apparently not. The couple took up a complaint with the state civil rights commission and won. But Mr. Phillips appealed.
And now, here we are at the Supreme Court. The justices are set to hear the case in the fall and will impact discrimination based on sexual orientation cases (of which there are many!) across the country.
This is the first time SCOTUS will take up a case of this kind as they previously refused to hear a similar case which involved a wedding photography from new Mexico two years ago.
Currently, 21 states have laws prohibiting discrimination against LGBTQ customers, including California, Illinois, Maryland, and Maine.
The ACLU previously urged the Supreme Court to refuse the Masterpiece Cakeshop’s appeal because they were afraid it would open “a gaping hole” in civil rights laws if Philips were to win and businesses were allowed to deny services citing their religious beliefs as a basis for discrimination.
