The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday is the First Amendment freedom of speech. It is a fundamental right in America to say whatever we like or to refrain from saying something that we do not choose to say.
A
freedom of speech case is currently at the Supreme Court where the justices
recently heard the oral arguments in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis case. This case
is Lorie Smith, a graphic designer in Colorado, who refused to create websites
with messages that conflict with her Christian faith beliefs – such as gay
wedding celebrations.
David Harsanyi at The Daily Signal recently published an article about this case. He wrote that the case “gives the Supreme Court the opportunity to strengthen the right to free expression” and “fix its useless decision in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.” According to Harsanyi, the Court ruled in that case that “the government can level debilitating fines against Christian businesses” IF “bureaucrats didn’t openly convey any animus toward their victims.” His article continued:
David Cole, national legal director of the
American Civil Liberties Union, which has come a long way since defending the
Nazis of Skokie on neutral principle grounds, wrote an op-ed published Monday
in The New York Times. Its headline before being edited post-publication: “The
First Amendment Is Not a License to discriminate.”
Why? Because otherwise, “interior
decorators, landscape architects, tattoo parlors, sign painters and beauty
salons, among countless other businesses whose services contain some expressive
element, would all be free to hang out signs refusing to serve Muslims, women,
the disabled, African Americans or any other group.”
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