RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN)–Colorado website designer Lorie Smith says she will work with most people. That is as long as their message doesn’t conflict with her religious belief that marriage should only be between a man and a woman. That puts her at odds with Colorado’s anti-discrimination law which Smith claims violates the free speech clause of the First Amendment.
“She’s claiming that the fact that she would create a website using words, symbols, photos, that’s the speech that she’s objecting to. That website that would express a message celebrating a same sex union. So, for her it’s not sufficient just to have a disclaimer on her website that she opposes same sex weddings. She doesn’t want to have anything to do with same sex weddings” said Mary-Rose Papandrea, UNC Samuel Ashe Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Law.
Smith spoke after oral arguments and told reporters “for every artist like me who wants the right to decide without government threats or intimidation. Free speech is worthy of protecting.”
Defending Colorado law, the state’s attorney general Phil Weiser said it’s about equal treatment. “They can say on the website ‘we believe in marriage as celebrated in the Bible.’ They can’t decide that because of your sexual orientation or your religion. You can’t purchase the product. That’s what this case is about,” said Weiser.
Based on the Justices’ statements and questions the conservative majority did appear to lean one way: “[i]t did seem, reading the tea leaves at the oral argument, it did seem a majority of the justices will say that this website designer is engaged in speech when she creates websites for weddings. That forcing her to create websites for same sex marriage would violate the First Amendment and compel her speak against her viewpoint,” said Papandrea.
Professor Papandrea also believes it’s important for people to understand that whatever the court decides its implications won’t affect most businesses.
“The case is not about whether any and all merchants can avoid dealing with the LGBT community as a whole, even whether merchants can avoid providing services for a same sex wedding. It is limited to merchants who are engaged in speech as part of the services they provide” she said.
A decision from the US Supreme Court could come as late as June 2023.