Web designer’s victory at Supreme Court is free speech win for all

The Supreme Court’s ruling in 303 Creative v. Ellenis is a decisive victory for all Americans, regardless of their religious, political, or ideological views. In this case, the Supreme Court reaffirmed one of the most basic civil liberties: governments must not tell people what to think or say.

This decision upholds the great constitutional tradition of valuing and protecting speech, because freedom of thought and spirit, not the content of speech, is our most fundamental freedom. As the Supreme Court said, “The opportunity to think for ourselves and express our thoughts freely is one of our most precious freedoms and part of what keeps our Republic strong.”

The Supreme Court has long ruled that the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits governments from forcing people to speak contrary to their deepest beliefs. In fact, if 303 Creative had been announced differently, we’d be living in America, where the government has the power to tell its citizens what to say and what not to say. . It would be an America with far less freedom and more authoritarian government.

Supreme Court rules in favor of Colorado graphic designer who refused to create same-sex marriage website

Critics of the ruling seek to distort the facts of the case because of the undisputed doctrine of speech at issue. Let’s get the facts straight. Her website for her 303 Creative in Colorado that her designer, Lorie Smith, is happy to serve people of all walks of life and currently has clients who identify as LGBT. is undisputed. She chooses her website to build based on the message requested, not the person who requested it.

There are some messages that Laurie cannot compose. Be it messages that slander others, glorify adultery, criticize members of the military, or express her most sincere belief that marriage is between one man and one woman. A message that violates deeply held religious beliefs.

The same goes for artists from all kinds of backgrounds who only want their art to convey a message they agree with.

303 Creative’s decision denies a dark period in our nation’s history when people were denied service because of their skin color or religious affiliation. Federal and state utility laws continue to apply to millions of transactions every day, ensuring that no one is denied goods or services. In short, the non-discrimination doctrine is firmly upheld under Supreme Court decisions.

It is the narrow view of the First Amendment of the state of Colorado and its anti-speech allies that destroys liberty and makes America fundamentally worse. During oral argument, Colorado conceded that asserting powers to compel Lowry to compose or create messages the government prefers would overturn free speech laws.

The state states that, under the First Amendment theory, the government could not only force Mr. Lowry to create a website celebrating same-sex marriage, but would also allow LGBT designers to create wedding websites celebrating same-sex marriage. He frankly argued that it might be possible to force This means that black sculptors who have created crosses for the Catholic Church may be forced to design crosses for the Aryan Church as well. This would be a wonderful new world indeed.

The Supreme Court once cheated on empowering governments to force individuals to speak, with disastrous consequences. In the infamous Minersville School District v. Gobitis, the Supreme Court upheld the expulsion from school of toddlers who failed to pledge allegiance to the flag. The Supreme Court’s war-influenced opinion held that government interests in national unity allowed young children to make statements that violated both their deeply held beliefs and parental guidance. there is

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Justice Harlan Stone wrote a strong dissenting opinion. The “essence” of freedom, he explained, “is that individuals are free from coercion as to what they think and say.” “Civil liberty guarantees are nothing more than guarantees of human freedom of mind and spirit, and reasonable freedom and opportunity to express them,” he wrote.

Thus, the First Amendment presupposes the right of all Americans to have opinions and to express them—the right to try to persuade others by communicating their ideas. Stone warned that if these civil liberties are to be meaningful, governments must be banned from coercing people to express their beliefs.

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Gobitis has sparked an unprecedented wave of discrimination and violence against Jehovah’s Witnesses. And just three years after him, the Supreme Court reversed course in West Virginia v. Barnett. Courts are not permitted, in constitutional principles, to “prescribe what is to be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or any other matter of opinion,” whether high or low. held that there was no essential principle in

These principles are still the foundation of our civil liberties. If governments have power over the very words of individuals, our constitutional rights become meaningless.

Whatever our thoughts on marriage, we can all agree that the freedom to think and speak to our core is a fundamental element of our civil liberties. . It prevents governments from encroaching on the most sacred space of the mind and spirit.

Words have power and can change history. A Supreme Court decision that affirms that each of us is free to seek the truth and say what we believe is a victory for all of us.

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Erin Hawley is a Senior Advisor to the Alliance to Defend Liberty.