Joanna Duka (left) and Breanna Koski (right), owners of Brush & Nib Studio Last week, the Supreme Court of Arizona issued an important decision in Brush & Nib v. City of Phoenix , another case located squarely at the intersection of religious freedom and the new sexual orthodoxy. The case dates back to 2013, when the city of Phoenix, in the name of public accommodation, enacted an ordinance prohibiting any discrimination against persons based on “sexual orientation,” among other things. The ordinance also clearly prohibited “directly or indirectly [displaying, circulating, publicizing or mailing] any … communication which states or implies that any facility or service shall be refused … because of a ‘person’s status.’” In 2016 the Alliance Defending Freedom filed a pre-enforcement challenge on behalf of Brush & Nib Studio, a Christian-owned business that creates custom wedding invitations. What that means is though the studio had not yet been asked to prepare invitations for a same-sex wedding, it was only a matter of time before they would be forced to make the same kind of choice that people like Jack Philips have had to. That choice, ADF argued, would violate Arizona’s Free Exercise of Religion Act (FERA). ADF […]
