GAY BIAS CLAIM AGAINST WEDDING CAKE MAKER ADDRESSED

Another long-awaited Supreme Court ruling dealt with whether a baker who wouldn’t make a wedding cake to celebrate a same-sex wedding violated the civil rights of the gay couple.  Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, No. 16-111 (U.S., 6/4/18).  The baker told the couple he didn’t make cakes for same-sex weddings, and contended his religious views did not allow such activity.  The Supreme Court eventually resolved the case in the baker’s favor, but did not address the baker’s principal defense.  Instead, Justice Kennedy said the Colorado civil rights tribunal that virtually decided the case made certain statements that disparage religion and "cast doubt on the fairness and impartiality of the Commission’s adjudication."

Justice Kennedy indicated the Court wasn’t deciding whether other business owners have a right not to take part in gay weddings, stating those issues "must await further elaboration in the courts."  The Justice recognized that both sides in the case raised legitimate concerns.  "Our society has come to the recognition that gay persons and gay couples cannot be treated as social outcasts or as inferior in dignity and worth," he wrote.  "For that reason, the laws  in the Constitution can, and in some instances must, protect them in the exercise of their civil rights."  But he added that:  "At the same time, the religious and philosophical objections to gay marriage are protected views and in some instances protected forms of expression." 

Thus, the issue of whether certain anti-discrimination laws prevail over religious beliefs still remains.