The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments in a case pitting a Colorado civil rights panel against a baker who declined to provide services for a wedding ceremony in violation of his religious beliefs. Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission raises a significant religious liberty issue. Cornerstone Action has joined 32 other family policy agencies to submit an amicus curiae brief to the Court, urging the Justices to rule in favor of Jack Phillips, the baker who owns Masterpiece Cakeshop.
Phillips serves all customers, but he declines to express messages or celebrate events that violate his deeply held religious beliefs regarding the nature of marriage. The state of Colorado has sought to punish him for his views on marriage, in violation of the First Amendment’s religious liberty protections.
From the amicus brief, available in full at this link:
The 33 family policy councils and policy alliances listed below each work within their respective states to preserve religious liberty and rights of conscience from state overreach and government intrusion. They are nonprofits who advocate for the nation’s first liberty – religious freedom – in courts, legislatures, governor’s mansions, and in the court of public opinion. They are vitally concerned that the decision of the court below undermines a constitutional firewall against compelled speech and will drive from the marketplace creative professionals who dissent from state-mandated orthodoxy on matters of ‘politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion.'”
