Supreme Court To Rule On Whether Web Designer Has Right To Reject Same-Sex Couples

The Supreme Court of the United States has agreed to rule on whether a web designer has the right to refuse to work with same-sex couples.

A civil rights law in Colorado requires businesses to be fully open to all customers no matter their sexual orientation, but lawyers told the court that Smith 'cannot create websites that promote messages contrary to her faith, such as messages that condone violence or promote sexual immorality, abortion, or same-sex marriage'.

Today, February 22, the Supreme Court agreed to rule on the case if the issue is limited solely to freedom of speech.

The decision comes after the 10th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver denied Smith’s attempt to overturn a lower court ruling which threw out her legal challenge. 

In her appeal, she claimed the appeals court 'took the extreme position that the government may compel an artist — any artist — to create expressive content, even if that content violates her faith.... If left in place, the 10th Circuit’s decision will allow officials to compel Democratic speechwriters to plug Republican candidates and Muslim artists to create cartoon parodies of Allah.'

The state's lawyers argued the state law was a ban on discrimination by businesses engaged in commerce rather than a restriction on free speech, saying: 'Requiring the company to produce the same services for same-sex couples that it produces for opposite-sex couples does not require it to speak in favor of same-sex marriage.'

Now that the supreme court has agreed to rule on the case, it will be scheduled for arguments in autumn.

If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 10am–6pm Monday to Friday, or email [email protected]