A Supreme Win For First Freedoms

It was a good day at the Supreme Court today for free speech, religious liberty and the rule of law. The justices handed down their last major decisions for this term and the conservative majority held firm.

The first case involved Lorie Smith, a Christian web designer in Colorado who specializes in creating websites for wedding announcements. But as a devout Christian, Smith did not want to be forced to create websites for same-sex weddings that violated her faith. 

Smith wanted to post a notice making it clear that she would gladly refer homosexual couples to other web designers. But the state of Colorado was threatening to fine Smith for merely posting such a notice.

If this sounds familiar, it should. It’s similar to the case brought by Christian baker Jack Phillips several years ago. But the Supreme Court punted in Phillips’s case and largely avoided the fundamental issues at stake.

Today, however, the justices ruled 6-to-3 that Smith could not be compelled to violate her conscience. Writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch declared:

“The First Amendment’s protections belong to all, not just to speakers whose motives the government finds worthy. In this case, Colorado seeks to force an individual to speak in ways that align with its views but defy her conscience about a matter of major significance. . .

“The First Amendment envisions the United States as a rich and complex place where all persons are free to think and speak as they wish, not as the government demands. Colorado cannot deny that promise consistent with the First Amendment.”

This case could be critical in the fight against the left’s transgender insanity. Progressive politicians in Michigan just voted to make “misgendering” someone a felony punishable by five years in jail and a $10,000 fine. 

In other words, you MUST lie and call a man a “woman” or the state will jail you and bankrupt you.

To appreciate just how crucial this victory is, read this column by constitutional law Professor Jonathan Turley. He notes that the majority decision against Smith by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals declared that Colorado’s Anti-Discrimination Act was all about “eliminating ideas.”

As we’ve warned for years now, that’s the whole point behind the left’s invention of “hate speech.” The left doesn’t want a debate. It wants to shut down debate. It wants to make normal conservative ideas unspeakable. It wants to eliminate ideas, especially conservative ones!