Once again, the ultra-conservative members of the Supreme Court will have an opportunity to permit so-called religious liberty to override a state law prohibiting gender discrimination. A web designer in Colorado intends to announce that she will not provide her otherwise publicly available service to same sex marriages because of her religious convictions. A state law prohibits such discriminatory messaging by businesses open to the general public.
Although the court has limited the issue to one involving free speech, it seems likely that the justices who have made clear they want to overturn existing precedent, will seize the opportunity to exalt religious beliefs over the right to be protected from discrimination.
None other than the late Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the opinion upholding a neutral state law of general applicability against a First Amendment challenge which alleged a violation of the right of free exercise of religion. Justices Alito, Thomas and Gorsuch believe that case was wrongly decided and should be reversed. What these justices seem unable to grasp is that the free exercise of religion should not be permitted to invade the statutory and constitutional rights of others. A secular society can not conform its laws to the dictates of a particular religion. That would be tantamount to living under Sharia law.
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