'Gay ke' row se led admissible by European Court of Human Rights after years-long battle

Contents:

• ‘GAY KE’ ROW: MAN LOS SEVEN-YEAR BATTLE AGAST BELFAST BAKERY
• ASHERS 'GAY KE' SE: EUROPEAN URT L SE ADMISSIBLE
• EUROPEAN URT CL TO TAKE NORTHERN IRELAND ‘GAY KE’ DISCRIMATN SE
• ECHR L BELFAST BAKERY 'GAY KE' SE APPLITN ADMISSIBLE
• EUROPEAN COURT L NORTHERN IRELAND GAY KE SE ADMISSIBLE
• ‘GAY KE’ PLAT LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN URT
• 'GAY KE' SHOULD NEVER HAVE REACHED URT AND EQUALY COMMISSN 'QUTNS TO ANSWER': GIVAN
• CHALLENGE TO 'GAY KE' LG THROWN OUT BY ECTHR JUDG
• EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS FALLY PUTS ‘GAY KE’ DISCRIMATN SE TO BED
• ‘GAY KE’ ROW SE LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS AFTER YEARS-LONG BATTLE
• ‘GAY KE’ LEGAL CHALLENGE THROWN OUT BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
• ‘GAY KE’ BELFAST BAKERY PLAT LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
• ‘GAY KE’ LG SETS DANGERO PRECENT
• CHRISTIAN BAKERS WHO REFED TO MAKE ‘GAY KE’ LOSE DISCRIMATN APPEAL
• 'GAY KE' DISCRIMATN PLAT LED 'ADMISSIBLE' AFTER CHRISTIAN-N BAKERY REFED ORR
• EUROPEAN COURT REJECTS ‘GAY CAKE’ CASE AS INADMISSIBLE; RULG FAVOR OF CHRISTIAN BAKERY STANDS

‘GAY KE’ ROW: MAN LOS SEVEN-YEAR BATTLE AGAST BELFAST BAKERY

A man has lost a seven-year legal battle agast a Belfast bakery that refed to make him a ke emblazoned wh the msage “support gay marriage” as the European urt of human rights led that his claim was admissible, promptg disappotment om gay rights Thursday the ECHR, by a majory cisn, said would not rensir the cisn of the UK supreme urt, which had overturned a £500 damag award imposed on Ashers bakery, which is n by evangelil refed to produce the ke, featurg the Same Street puppets Bert and Ernie, 2014 for Gareth Lee, who was a supporter of the mpaign to legalise same-sex marriage Northern Ireland. Same-sex marriage was legalised Northern Ireland last the supreme urt judgment 2018, after s first hearg Northern Ireland, a Belfast unty urt and a urt of appeal had led that the pany discrimated agast Lee, who is gay, on the grounds of sexual ECHR said the claim was admissible bee the applint had not exprsly voked his rights unr the European nventn on human rights at any pot the domtic proceedgs and had relied solely on domtic said: “The supreme urt found on the facts of the se that the applint was not treated differently on acunt of his real or perceived sexual orientatn, but rather that the refal to supply the ke was bee of the fendants’ relig objectn to gay marriage.

ASHERS 'GAY KE' SE: EUROPEAN URT L SE ADMISSIBLE

“What was prcipally at issue, therefore, was not the effect on the applint’s private life or his eedom to hold or exprs his opns or beliefs, but rather whether Ashers bakery was required to produce a ke exprsg the applint’s polil support for gay marriage. Its puty director, Daniel Holr, said the ECHR’S lg on admissibily left dividuals and anisatns mpaigng on gay rights “vulnerable to a mercial bs refg to provi servic like prtg posters, leaflets, settg up webs etc, through claimg an exemptn to non-discrimatn laws on the basis of ‘’s not you ’s your msage’.

”The ECHR said balancg the rights of Lee and those of the bakery owners, Daniel and Amy McArthur, was “a matter of great import and sensivy to both LGBTIQ muni and to fah muni”, particularly Northern Calvert, a spokperson for the Christian Instute, which backed the McArthurs, lled the cisn good news for ee speech, addg: “It protects gay bs owners om beg forced to promote views they don’t share, jt as much as protects Christian bs owners. Image ptn, Gareth Lee sued Christian-n Ashers bakery for refg to make a ke rated wh the slogan "Support Gay Marriage"A gay rights activist has lost a seven-year discrimatn dispute over a ke orr as the European Court of Human Rights led his se Lee started legal actn back 2014 after a Christian-n Belfast bakery refed to make him a ke wh the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" fay firm Ashers said the slogan ntravened their Christian European urt led Mr Lee's se admissible, sayg he had failed to exhst all optns the UK Belfast man has long argued that by refg to fulfil his orr, the bakery had discrimated agast him on grounds of his sexual orientatn and polil Lee then took his se to the European Court of Human Rights, where was examed by seven judg who cid, by majory, that should be long-nng dispute has raised qutns about relig eedom and discrimatn their lg on Thursday, the judg said the se was admissible bee Mr Lee had not voked his rights unr the European Conventn of Human Rights "at any pot the domtic proceedgs" the UK judg cid that orr for a plat to be admissible, "the Conventn arguments mt be raised explicly or substance before the domtic thori" ptn, BBC News NI looks at the key dat the "gay ke" se"By relyg solely on domtic law, the applint had prived the domtic urts of the opportuny to addrs any Conventn issu raised, stead askg the urt to urp the role of the domtic urts.

EUROPEAN URT CL TO TAKE NORTHERN IRELAND ‘GAY KE’ DISCRIMATN SE

The se began 2014, when Mr Lee vised a Belfast branch of Ashers Bakery, and asked them to bake a ke rated wh the gay marriage source, Getty Image/Charl McQuillanImage ptn, Gareth Lee said he was trated that the se had been dismissed on a "technily"At the time, same-sex marriage was still illegal Northern Ireland, but the law has sce changed and same-sex weddgs have been takg place sce Febary ke Mr Lee requted was to feature an image of Bert and Ernie, two characters om the children's TV programme Same Street, and the logo of the mpaign group, Lee paid £36. 50 for a ke and left the shop, but a few days later, bakery staff lled him to say they uld not plete the orr bee of the slogan and would refund his Bakg Company is n by the McArthurs, a Christian fay om County Lee said the cisn to refe his orr had ma him feel "unworthy" and a "lser person" plaed to the Equaly Commissn for Northern Ireland, who supported him takg a discrimatn se agast the fought the se, argug they had not turned Mr Lee's ctom away bee he was gay, but bee he had asked them to produce somethg that was ntrary to their relig is the European Court of Human Rights?

ECHR L BELFAST BAKERY 'GAY KE' SE APPLITN ADMISSIBLE

It was disappotg to see another attempt to unrme those rights, so is a relief that the attempt has failed, " Mr Calvert source, Getty Imag/Leon NealImage ptn, Amy and Daniel McArthur photographed after their UK Supreme Court victory 2018However, the Rabow Project, a Belfast-based gay rights mpaign group, said the UK Supreme urt cisn had created legal uncertaty for LGBT people when accsg goods and servic and Thursday's ECHR lg had not rolved that uncertaty. "If the judgement had gone the other way, a gay baker uld have been forced by law to acce to requts to rate k wh msag opposg LGBT+ equaly, " he ptn, Gay rights mpaigner Peter Tatchell said he had great sympathy for Gareth Lee but that he did not believe Ashers had discrimated agast him"I support protts agast Ashers over their hostily to LGBT+ equaly but I nnot endorse legal pulsn to require them to promote a msage wh which they profoundly disagree. Europe’s top human rights urt on Thursday led admissible a man’s discrimatn claim agast a Belfast bakery for clg his pro-same-sex marriage ke orr bee of s owners’ relig lg end a years-long legal battle that had raised qutns about civil rights, relig eedoms and sexual orientatn Northern Ireland, a regn of saga also mirrored siar, high-profile s the Uned Stat, where bakeri and other bs recent years have refed to ter same-sex European Court of Human Rights, or ECHR, said Thursday that the claim was admissible bee the plaant, gay rights activist Gareth Lee, had failed to voke his rights unr Europe’s human rights nventn as the se ma s way through the Brish urt system.

”The plat was first ma 2014 after Lee notified Northern Ireland’s Equaly Commissn that the Christian-n bakery, Ashers Bakg Co., had nceled his orr for a ke featurg Same Street characters Bert and Ernie and bearg the slogan “Support Gay Marriage.

EUROPEAN COURT L NORTHERN IRELAND GAY KE SE ADMISSIBLE

The European Court of Human Rights has dismissed a legal challenge a long-nng dispute known as the "gay ke" se, lg the actn admissible.The ECHR is the latt urt to have s say the long-nng ntroversy.It all started 2014, when a bakery Northern Ireland refed to make a ke wh a slogan supportg same-sex marriage.Here's a look at how the se reached Strasbourg:What about the bakery? He had wanted them to make a ke that clud a slogan that said "support gay marriage" along wh a picture of Bert and Ernie om Same Street, and the logo of the Queerspace anisatn.At the time, same-sex marriage was still illegal Northern Ireland, but the law has sce changed and same-sex weddgs have been takg place sce Febary 2020.The ke was beg missned for a civic event Bangor, County Down, to mark Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia and Transphobia.Staff at the bakery passed the orr to s head office, which nsired to be "at odds" wh their beliefs. Durg the heargs, a lawyer for the bakery argued the issue was "the ke, not the ctomer".One of the bakers, Karen McArthur, said she did not know Mr Lee was gay and would not have mattered as they would not have been prepared to make a ke wh a pro-same-sex marriage slogan for anyone.However, Mr Lee said he felt he was discrimated agast.

‘GAY KE’ PLAT LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN URT

Media ptn, Daniel McArthur, manager of Ashers Bakery, said they were "extremely disappoted wh the judgment"The judge found favour of Mr Lee, sayg that as a bs, Ashers was not exempt om discrimatn law.District Judge Isobel Brownlie said Ashers was "nductg a bs for prof" and was not a relig group.The firm was found to have discrimated agast Mr Lee on the grounds of sexual orientatn as well as his polil beliefs.The judge said she accepted Ashers had "genue and eply held" relig views, but said the bs was not above the law.Damag of £500 were agreed advance by legal teams on both sis of the dispute.Media ptn, Rob Allen QC said his client Gareth Lee was "very glad" the se was fishedDid the owners appeal?In October 2016, the owners of the bakery lost their appeal agast the lg that their refal to make a "gay ke" was discrimatory.Reactg to the lg, Daniel McArthur om Ashers said he was "extremely disappoted" addg that unrmed "mocratic eedom, relig eedom and ee speech".The firm then took the se to the Supreme Court and they won.The UK's hight urt led the bakery's refal to make a ke wh a slogan supportg same-sex marriage was not discrimatory.Then print of the Supreme Court, Lady Hale, led the bakers did not refe to fulfil the orr bee of the ctomer's sexual orientatn."They would have refed to make such a ke for any ctomer, irrpective of their sexual orientatn," she said."Their objectn was to the msage on the ke, not to the personal characteristics of Mr Lee."And om there, Mr Lee took his se to Europe, argug the UK Supreme Court "failed to give appropriate weight" to his se unr the European Conventn of Human Rights.More on this storyAround the BBC.

'GAY KE' SHOULD NEVER HAVE REACHED URT AND EQUALY COMMISSN 'QUTNS TO ANSWER': GIVAN

BELFAST, Jan 6 (Rters) - A plat of discrimatn prevly dismissed by Bra's hight urt agast a bakery that refed to make a ke wh a pro-gay msage was admissible, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) led on Bakg Belfast was found guilty of discrimatn 2015 for refg to make a ke for a ctomer iced wh the words "Support Gay Marriage" bee of the owners' Christian bakery failed an appeal to the lol urts 2016 but the Supreme Court, the UK's hight judicial body, overturned that cisn two years later, sayg the bakers' objectn was to the msage on the ke, not to any personal characteristics of the msenger, or anyone wh whom he was Lee, a gay rights activist who had orred the ke, argued that the Supreme Court failed to give appropriate weight to him unr the European Conventn of Human Rights. But the ECHR said uld not urp the role of the lol urts after Lee failed to exhst all domtic said this was particularly so Brish-n Northern Ireland, "where there is a large and strong fah muny and where the lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and tersex (LGBTIQ) muny has endured a history of nsirable discrimatn and timidatn. For ee real time breakg news alerts sent straight to your box sign up to our breakg news emailsSign up to our ee breakg news emailsA plat by a Northern Ireland gay rights activist that he had been discrimated agast when the Christian owners of a bakery refed to make him a ke iced wh the slogan “Support Gay Marriage” has been led admissible by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ECHR said Gareth Lee failed to “exhst domtic remedi” the long-nng so-lled “gay ke” Lee said he had hoped for a different oute, and his legal team signalled they will nsir whether to lnch a h challenge the domtic a Christian anisatn that supported the bakery said the ECHR lg was “good news for ee speech”.

None of should be expected to have to figure out the beliefs of a pany’s owners before gog to their shop or payg for their servicGareth LeeMr Lee said: “Everyone has eedom of exprsn and mt equally apply to lbian, gay, bisexual and trans people.

First Mister Pl Givan has weled a European Court of Human Rights (ECRH) lg rejectg a plat om a gay rights activist who claimed he was discrimated agast when orrg a ke a Belfast bakery. 50 ke May 2014 om Ashers Bakery featurg Same Street puppets Bert and Ernie for a private functn markg Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia om Ashers bakery orr was accepted and he paid full, but, two days later, the Christian. Director Daniel Holr said: “We believe this leav an ambiguy whereby dividuals and anisatns across Europe actively mpaigng on gay rights would be particularly vulnerable to a mercial bs refg to provi servic like prtg posters, leaflets, settg up webs, etc, through claimg an exemptn to non-discrimatn laws on the basis of ‘’s not you, ’s your msage’.

CHALLENGE TO 'GAY KE' LG THROWN OUT BY ECTHR JUDG

”Welg the cisn of the European Court of Human Rights, Peter Lynas, former barrister and UK director of the Evangelil Alliance mented: “After almost eight years, the saga of the not so gay ke se may fally now be over. Judg at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) have dismissed a challenge to a UK Supreme Court lg favour of Christian bakers who refed to bake a ke wh the slogan 'Support Gay Marriage'.

After four and half years the se reached the UK’s Supreme Court, which led that the "objectn was not to Mr Lee bee he, or anyone wh whom he associated, held a polil opn supportg gay marriage. Mr Lee was a gay man and an advote for same sex marriage – he volunteered wh an LGBT anisatn Belfast lled QueerSpace which supported a mpaign enablg same sex upl to get married Northern Ireland.

EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS FALLY PUTS ‘GAY KE’ DISCRIMATN SE TO BED

A COMPLAINT BY Northern Ireland gay rights activist Gareth Lee that he was discrimated agast when the Christian owners of a Belfast bakery refed to make him a ke iced wh the slogan “Support Gay Marriage” has been led admissible by the European Court of Human Rights. A plat by a gay rights activist that he had been discrimated agast when the Christian owners of a bakery Northern Ireland refed to make him a pro-gay marriage ke has been led admissible by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) story first h the headl July 2014, when Gareth Lee said he had requted a ke om Ashers Bakg Company which said “support gay marriage” along wh a picture of Same Street characters Bert and Ernie, and the logo of Queerspace.

The ke was beg missned for an event hosted by Northern Ireland’s first openly gay mayor Bangor, County Down, to mark the Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia and the time, same-sex marriage was still illegal Northern the bakery, which is Christian-owned, said that the makg the ke was “at odds wh our beliefs”.

Judg at the ECHR today led that Mr Lee had failed to “exhst domtic remedi” the se, which has been ed ‘the gay ke’ se had reached the ECHR when the UK’s Supreme Court overled prev judgements 2018 to ci that Mr Lee was not discrimated agast by beg nied the a wrten lg today, the ECHR said: “Conventn arguments mt be raised explicly or substance before the domtic thori. The First Sectn of the European Court of Human Rights has munited the se of Lee v the Uned se is brought by Mr Gareth Lee who, 2014, placed an orr for a ke om Ashers Bakg Company Limed wh the words “Support Gay Marriage” on and later received a telephone ll om Ashers ditg that the orr uld not be fulfilled.

‘GAY KE’ ROW SE LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS AFTER YEARS-LONG BATTLE

Get the ee Morng Headl email for news om our reporters across the worldSign up to our ee Morng Headl emailA man has lost a seven-year legal battle agast the Christian owners of a Belfast bakery who refed to make him a ke wh the slogan “support gay marriage” after his claim was led admissible by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ECHR said Gareth Lee had failed to “exhst domtic remedi” the long-nng so-lled “gay ke” 2018, the UK Supreme Court led Mr Lee was not discrimated agast when Ashers bakery refed to make him a ke wh the slogan supportg gay Lee then referred the se to the ECHR, claimg the Supreme Court failed to give appropriate weight to him unr the European Conventn of Human, a lg, the urt said: “Conventn arguments mt be raised explicly or substance before the domtic thori. (QueerSpace Belfast)His orr was accepted and he paid full, but two days later the Christian owners of the pany lled to say uld not proceed due to the msage Lee then lnched the legal se, supported by Northern Ireland's Equaly Commissn, allegg discrimatn on the grounds of his sexualy, and won heargs at the unty urt and the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal 2015 and the owners of Ashers, Daniel and Amy McArthur - backed by the Christian Instute - challenged those lgs at the Supreme Court, and 2018 five jtic unanimoly led they had not discrimated agast the Lee said he had “hoped for a different oute” his challenge to the said: “Everyone has eedom of exprsn and mt equally apply to lbian, gay, bisexual and trans people. A COMPLAINT by a Northern Ireland gay rights activist that he had been discrimated agast when the Christian owners of a bakery refed to make him a ke iced wh the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" has been led admissible by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

‘GAY KE’ LEGAL CHALLENGE THROWN OUT BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

In the light of the Belfast lg (Christian bakers lose ‘gay ke’ urt se, 20 May), ask which of the followg you would also be favour of: 1) A gay bakery beg penalised law for refg to ice Old Ttament or Qur’an vers agast homosexualy on to a ke tend for a nservative Christian/Jewish/Mlim event; 2) A Jewish bakery beg penalised law for refg to ice antisemic impretns on to a ke for a neonazi/radil tradnalist Catholic/Islamist event; 3) A Paltian bakery beg penalised law for refg to ice a celebratn of the anniversary of the state of Israel on to a ke for a Znist anisatn.

‘GAY KE’ BELFAST BAKERY PLAT LED ADMISSIBLE BY EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

A Colorado judge says a Christian baker who refed to make a weddg ke for a same-sex ceremony mt serve gay upl spe his relig beliefs, a lg that a civil rights group hailed as a victory for gay rights. "He's jt tryg to live wh a certa set of biblil prcipals bee he believ that he answers to God for everythg that he do, " Mart told Fox said this se is an example of gay rights tmpg relig rights.

"On the ntrary, to the extent that the law prohibs Rponnts' (Phillips) om discrimatg on the basis of sexual orientatn, pliance wh the law would likely crease their bs by not alienatg the gay muny, " he said was unclear if Phillips will appeal the judge's Starn is the host of Fox News & Commentary – heard daily on 250+ rad statns. A Northern Irish gay rights activist who claimed he was discrimated agast when a bakery refed to make him a ke iced wh the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" has said he 'very much hoped for a different oute' after the claim was led admissible urt. 50 ke May 2014 featurg Same Street puppets Bert and Ernie for a private functn markg Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia om Ashers bakery orr was accepted and he paid full, but, two days later, the Christian owners of the pany lled to say uld not proceed due to the msage Lee then lnched the legal se, supported by Northern Ireland's Equaly Commissn, allegg discrimatn on the grounds of his sexualy, and won heargs at the unty urt and the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal 2015 and the owners of Ashers, Daniel and Amy McArthur - backed by the Christian Instute, challenged those lgs at the Supreme Court, and  2018 five jtic unanimoly led that they had not discrimated agast the Lee said at the time that the refal to make the ke ma him feel like a "send-class cizen" Christian Instute weled the ECHR lg, sayg was the "right rult".

‘GAY KE’ LG SETS DANGERO PRECENT

"I'm surprised anyone would want to overturn a lg that protects gay bs owners om beg forced to promote views they don't share, jt as much as protects Christian bs owners.

CHRISTIAN BAKERS WHO REFED TO MAKE ‘GAY KE’ LOSE DISCRIMATN APPEAL

The European Court of Human Rights has rejected a se brought by a Northern Irish gay rights activist, who claims a bakery discrimated agast him by refg to create a ke wh a msage supportg gay marriage, as admissable. Wrg for the UK Supreme Court 2018, Lady Brenda Hale, the urt’s print, termed that support for gay marriage was a polil stance and as such was the subject of the bakery's objectn. The Supreme Court found that sce support for gay marriage was not limed to gay people, or necsarily termed by one's sexual orientatn, clg to bake a ke wh that msage uld not be seen as an act of discrimatn based on the sexual orientatn of the person orrg or those associated wh him.

'GAY KE' DISCRIMATN PLAT LED 'ADMISSIBLE' AFTER CHRISTIAN-N BAKERY REFED ORR

EUROPEAN COURT REJECTS ‘GAY CAKE’ CASE AS INADMISSIBLE; RULG FAVOR OF CHRISTIAN BAKERY STANDS