A First Amendment Supreme Court case could open the door for businesses to discriminate against LGBTQ+ customers and potentially others. It would be like hanging a sign in a business door window saying, “Heterosexuals (Straights) Only.”
303 Creative vs. Elanus
The case is 303 Creative vs. Elanus. It could have a devastating impact not only on LGBTQ+ communities but all types of marginalized groups.
The case is brought by an evangelical Christian website designer in Colorado and is backed by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). They’re the same right-wing group that was behind the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the monstrous anti-gay laws in Uganda, a Tennessee case that would allow adoption agencies to reject Jewish parents and more. They’ve been designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
We’ve Been Here Before, Right?
If you’re asking, but haven’t we already been here? The answer is yes and no. You probably remember Supreme Court cases in the past where a baker or florist refused services for same-sex marriages. Those cases were also backed by the ADF.
But this current 303 case is different for two main reasons:
- In this case, the plaintiff is the bigot, not the people being discriminated against. This has been referred to as pre-emptive litigation. It makes the person doing the discrimination come off as the victim.
- This case differs because the court has a 6-3 conservative supermajority.
When this hyper-conservative court heard the oral arguments for the case in 2022, they seemed to be very sympathetic to the plaintiff’s argument, and many legal experts and analysts agreed that the court will most likely rule in favor of the plaintiff.
What Could Happen
This ruling can make it legal for businesses to deny services to LGBTQ+ customers. But it also opens the possibility that it wouldn’t stop there.
Experts say that this could empower businesses to refuse services to Black, Jewish, Muslim, and Latinx customers or even people in interracial and interfaith relationships.
And while we still don’t have the answers, and I hope it doesn’t play out FOR discrimination, one thing is for sure, it shows why it’s important now more than ever to support LGBTQ+ businesses and why corporations need to stand firm in their allyship for the LGBTQ+ community.