(Facebook Photo/Brush & Nib Studio) The Arizona Supreme Court issued an eagerly anticipated ruling in Brush & Nib et al. v. City of Phoenix on Monday. It decided that a person’s deeply held religious belief overrides the need to treat all people equally, including those in same-sex marriages, at least in some cases. The relevant facts are as follows. Plaintiffs own an art studio that sells various products, including custom wedding invitations. The owners of Brush & Nib “hold traditional Christian beliefs about marriage. They believe that ‘God created two distinct genders in His image,’ and that only a man and a woman can be joined in marriage.” They sell many products; some are manufactured elsewhere, and others are custom-made and designed by them. Due to their beliefs, they realized they would refuse to create custom-made wedding invitations for a same-sex wedding and that would put them in violation of Phoenix’s public accommodations law. As such, they decided to sue the city of Phoenix and ask the Court to rule that they had the right to refuse. The Phoenix law is officially referred to as the Human Relations Ordinance. It basically requires businesses treat all customers equally and makes […]
