Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission
The Court Says State’s Punishment of a Baker Who Refused to Make a Cake for a Gay Couple Was Unconstitutional
Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission was featured in Same-Sex Wedding Cakes, Supreme Court Debates (Jan. 2018). The following is excerpted from the 7-to-2 majority opinion written by Justice Kennedy, as prepared by the Court Reporter of Decisions. The Commission’s actions in this case violated the Free Exercise Clause [of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution]. The laws and the Constitution can, and in some instances must, protect gay persons and gay couples in the exercise of their civil rights, but religious and philosophical objections to gay marriage are protected views and, in some instances, protected forms of…
