Major LGBT rights case could weaken anti-discrimination laws nationwide Protesters in December jockey for position before cameras in front of the Supreme Court during oral arguments in a case about a Colorado anti-discrimination law and same-sex wedding websites. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo) The Supreme Court sided Friday with the owner of a company who refuses to build websites for same-sex weddings because of her religious beliefs, in a major LGBT rights case that could weaken anti-discrimination laws nationwide. In a 6-3 opinion along ideological lines, the conservative justices in the majority found that a Colorado law forces the company owner to face sanctions for expressing her own beliefs, something that abridges free speech protections under the First Amendment. The case centers on 303 Creative owner Lorie Smith , who says her religious belief is that marriage is between one man and one woman. Smith argues the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act blocks her from posting an explanation for the reasons she wouldn’t provide wedding websites to same-sex couples. Justice Neil M. Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, which reversed an opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit that found the anti-discrimination law was not unconstitutionally vague […]
