When the Supreme Court convenes for oral arguments Monday, it will be confronted with an issue it has been asked to resolve before in court fights involving bakers, a florist, and now, a web designer.
And with the latest case before it, brought by graphic designer Lorie Smith, Colorado is once again the battleground in a dispute pitting the First Amendment right to free speech against LGBTQ rights.
Smith, like bakers Jack Phillips and Aaron and Melissa Klein, and florist Barronelle Stutzman before her, is a Christian business owner who says her religious beliefs prevent her from creating custom websites for a same-sex wedding. But her refusal could violate Colorado’s public accommodation law, which prohibits businesses open to the public from refusing service because of sexual orientation and announcing their intent to do so.
