The Plot Thickens| Gay Cake Sndal | Courthoe News Service

Contents:

• 'GAY KE' ROW: WHAT IS THE DISPUTE ABOUT?
• ‘GAY KE’ ROW: MAN LOS SEVEN-YEAR BATTLE AGAST BELFAST BAKERY
• US SUPREME COURT BACKS COLORADO BAKER'S GAY WEDDG KE SNUB
• SUPREME COURT TOSS LG AGAST BAKERS WHO REFED KE FOR GAY UPLE
• SUPREME COURT CIS COLORADO GAY WEDDG KE SE: A TIMELE OF EVENTS
• BON APPéT EDOR UGHT ON TAPE G GAY SLUR FOLLOWG CONFERATE FLAG KE SNDAL
• IS IT CONSTUTNAL TO REFE TO SERVE CAKE TO GAYS? A PRIMER
• 'GAY KE' ROW: BORN-AGA CHRISTIAN BAKERS LOSE URT APPEAL
• THE PLOT THICKENS| GAY CAKE SNDAL
• UK SUPREME URT BACKS BAKERY THAT REFED TO MAKE GAY MARRIAGE KE
• SUPREME URT SIS WH BAKER WHO REFED TO MAKE GAY WEDDG KE
• OPNAMERI'S 'GAY WEDDG KE' URT CISN AND WHAT MEANS FOR ATRALIA
• RULG MA SE OF COLO. BAKER WHO REFED GAY WEDDG KE

'GAY KE' ROW: WHAT IS THE DISPUTE ABOUT?

The European Court of Human Rights has dismissed a legal challenge a long-nng dispute known as the "gay ke" se, lg the actn ECHR is the latt urt to have s say the long-nng all started 2014, when a bakery Northern Ireland refed to make a ke wh a slogan supportg same-sex 's a look at how the se reached Strasbourg:What about the bakery? The bakery me to wir promence July 2014 when emerged that had cled an orr s Belfast branch om gay rights activist Gareth Lee. 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 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 was beg missned for a civic event Bangor, County Down, to mark Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia and 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" 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.

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

In October 2016, the owners of the bakery lost their appeal agast the lg that their refal to make a "gay ke" was discrimatory. 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. “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 source, RtersImage ptn, Jack Phillips has temporarily stopped makg weddg kThe US Supreme Court has led favour of a baker Colorado who refed to make a weddg ke for a gay Colorado state urt had found that baker Jack Phillips' cisn to turn away David Mulls and Charlie Craig 2012 was unlawful the Supreme Court led on Monday a 7-2 vote that that cisn had vlated Mr Phillips' rights.

US SUPREME COURT BACKS COLORADO BAKER'S GAY WEDDG KE SNUB

The nservative Christian ced his relig beliefs refg rights groups feared a lg agast the uple uld set a precent for treatg gay marriag differently om heterosexual the Supreme Court's verdict stead foc specifilly on Mr Phillips' se. The cisn do not state that florists, photographers, or other servic n now refe to work wh gay lg three years after the Supreme Court ma same-sex marriage the law of the land s landmark Obergefell v Hodg source, Getty ImagImage ptn, David Mulls (left) and Charlie Craig wanted a weddg ke to celebrate their planned marriageWhat did Monday's lg say?

The Supreme Court Belfast has yet to release an opn on a lower urt lg that found the owners of a bakery discrimated agast a gay activist for refg to bake a ke wh the slogan "Support Gay Marriage" row began May 2014, when gay activist Gareth Lee placed an orr for a ke wh the gay marriage days later, the Christian-owned Ashers bakery ncelled the orr sayg "would ntradict their relig beliefs". The Supreme Court on Monday threw out a lg agast two Oregon bakers who refed to bake a weddg ke for a lbian uple, Melissa and Aaron Kle, ced relig beliefs as their reason for not providg servic for a gay weddg. WASHINGTON SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST FLORIST WHO REFUSED SERVICE FOR GAY COUPLE'S WEDDINGOn Monday, the Supreme Court sent the Kle se back down to a lower urt "for further nsiratn light of" their Colorado central disput the se -- which ps LGBT rights agast relig eedom nsiratns -- have yet to be addrsed by the Supreme Court.

Kle then said the bakery do not make k for gay weddgs, urt documents 's mother, who was wh her, said Kle quoted the Bible when explag his Kles had to pay a $135, 000 judgment to the uple for discrimatg agast them vlatn of a state public acmodatns statute. Cisn to take on the se reflected renewed energy among the urt's nservative jtic, whose ranks have recently been bolstered by the addn of Jtice Neil Gorsuch to the high Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakhop Lakewood, Colo., cled to make a ke for the weddg celebratn of two gay men 2012. COLORADO BAKER RECEIVES DEATH THREATS AND HATE FOR REFUSING TO MAKE GAY WEDDING CAKEPhillips was orred to change s pany polici as well as offer “prehensive staff trag” to employe.

SUPREME COURT TOSS LG AGAST BAKERS WHO REFED KE FOR GAY UPLE

"The laws and the Constutn n, and some stanc mt, protect gay persons and gay upl the exercise of their civil rights, but relig and philosophil objectns to gay marriage are protected views and some stanc protected forms of exprsn, " the Court said s cisn. "While is unexceptnal that Colorado law n protect gay persons acquirg products and servic on the same terms and ndns as are offered to other members of the public, the law mt be applied a manner that is ntral toward relign.

"In s cisn, the Supreme Court did not ci whether a bs has the right to refe to serve gay and lbian people Bar Gsburg and Sonia Sotomayor, two of the Court's more liberal jtic, Associated Prs ntributed to this report.

Supreme Court victory over his refal to make a weddg ke for a gay uple on Thursday lost his appeal of a lg a separate se that he vlated a state anti-discrimatn law by not makg a ke to celebrate a genr Colorado Court of Appeals agreed wh a trial judge that Masterpiece Cakhop and the bakery's owner, Jack Phillips, vlated Autumn Srda's rights by nyg her service bee of her inty as a transgenr woman.

SUPREME COURT CIS COLORADO GAY WEDDG KE SE: A TIMELE OF EVENTS

Supreme Court 2017 agreed to hear Phillips’ challenge to the Colorado Civil Rights Commissn's ncln he discrimated agast a gay uple for whom he had refed to make a weddg Supreme Court 2018 led Phillips' favor but on narrow grounds that stopped short of creatg a ee speech exemptn to anti-discrimatn laws, fdg the missn was hostile toward Phillips’ Christian 6-3 nservative majory urt December heard arguments a siar se volvg Alliance Defendg Freedom client Lorie Smh, a Christian web signer who argu she has a right to refe to provi servic for same-sex se is Srda v. Supreme Court leans toward web signer wh anti-gay marriage stanceColorado baker se of Supreme Court su state over 'persecutn'U. Supreme Court backs Christian baker who rebuffed gay upleOur Standards: The Thomson Rters Tst Raymond reports on the feral judiciary and ligatn.

- Chick-fil-A's print recently spoke out agast same-sex marriage, sparkg a huge uproar the gay muny, and now the issue is spillg over to a Colorado bakery, CBS Denver statn KCNC-TV reports. "If gays e and want to orr birthday k or any k for any ocsn, graduatns, or whatever, I have no prejudice agast that whatsoever, " Phillips said.

This week, Gay Cake Civil Rights ma the news aga when a judge led that was illegal for Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cake Shop Denver, CO, to refe service to a gay uple lookg for a weddg ke.

BON APPéT EDOR UGHT ON TAPE G GAY SLUR FOLLOWG CONFERATE FLAG KE SNDAL

When asked if he would be prepared to go to jail orr to prott the orr to make a ke for a gay uple, Phillips replied that he would, “if that’s what tak. This se, along wh other gay ke sndals throughout the untry, begs the qutn: is gay ke the segregated bg of our time?

We certaly n’t speak for the Supreme Court, should the Gay Cake Cas ever make their way up to that level the appeals procs (OH BOY WE HOPE IT DOES), but here’s how the judge who led this se terpreted Ameri’s Greatt Document: the Constutn is not ol wh people who refe to make gay weddg ke, on two levels.

Freedom of Speech: Phillips’s first argument claimed that beg “forced” — or, beg legally punished for refg to make a ke for a gay weddg — was a vlatn of his eedom of speech, bee makg a ke uld imply that he supported the ncept of gay marriage. In short, the baker would have been well wh his right to refe servg them if the gay uple had walked to the bakery and mand a ke vered rabows, S&M gear, Edh Wdsor photos, and a icg-piped msage that said “GAY MARRIAGE IS THE BEST AND JACK PHILLIPS SHOULD HAVE A DICK IN HIS MOUTH.

IS IT CONSTUTNAL TO REFE TO SERVE CAKE TO GAYS? A PRIMER

Freedom of Relign: It’s disputable that Phillips is ee to believe whatever the heck he wants, such as “gays should not marry” and “I thk my ke n talk”. By refg to make a ke for a gay weddg, Phillips may have thought that he was eely exercisg his relign, but he laws of the state of Colorado and the great Amerin land lls that “discrimatn, ” and that’s super duper not okay acrdg to the Constutn:. “Our society has e to the regnn that gay persons and gay upl nnot be treated as social outsts or as ferr digny and worth, ” he wrote Monday.

'GAY KE' ROW: BORN-AGA CHRISTIAN BAKERS LOSE URT APPEAL

“At the same time the relig and philosophil objectns to gay marriage are protected views and some stanc protected forms of exprsn, ” Kennedy wrote, addg that the “ntral nsiratn to which Phillips was entled was promised here. “The oute of s like this other circumstanc mt awa further elaboratn the urts, all the ntext of regnizg that the disput mt be rolved wh tolerance, whout undue disrpect to scere relig beliefs, and whout subjectg gay persons to digni when they seek goods and servic an open market, ” the opn stat.

A bakery Northern Ireland owned by evangelil Christians has lost an appeal to overturn a nvictn that found guilty of discrimatn for refg to bake a pro-gay-marriage themed urt of appeal Belfast on Monday upheld a prev judgment last year that Ashers Bakery had discrimated agast a ctomer on the grounds of sexual fay-owned firm the origal se was also orred to pay £500 pensatn to the lol gay rights activist Gareth Lee, whose legal actn was backed by the Equaly Commissn for Northern had tried to buy a ke pictg the Same Street characters Bert and Ernie below the motto ‘Support gay marriage’ for an event to mark Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia Ashers se has received ternatnal attentn, and highlighted the tensns between gay rights reformers and the polilly fluential and socially nservative born-aga Christian lobby wh Northern three appeal judg on Monday were Northern Ireland’s lord chief jtice, Sir Declan Man, and Lord Jtic Weathep and liverg their judgment, Man rejected the argument of lawyers for Daniel McArthur and his fay that the bakery would have been endorsg gay marriage equaly by bakg the ke. ”Lee placed his orr at the bakery shortly after the Democratic Unnist party ed s power of veto the Northern Ireland assembly to block mov to make gay marriage legal the provce.

The party has nsistently blocked proposals the assembly om other parti cludg their ma partners ernment, Sn Fé, to legalise gay a four-day hearg at the urt of appeal Belfast earlier this year, lawyers for the McArthur fay said they challenged the fdg bee their ey would have been sful for them to plete the their legal battle to overturn the lg, the McArthur fay won the support of Northern Ireland’s attorney general, John Lark the hearg May, the attorney general argued urt that the McArthur fay was entled to nstutnal protectn for turng down a ctomer’s orr based on their personal relig beliefs. Followg Monday’s lg one of the ma gay rights anisatns Northern Ireland weled the judg’ O’Doherty, the director of the Rabow Project, said: “Ashers Bakg Company entered to a ntractual agreement to make this ke and then changed their md. AUSTIN, Texas (CN) — Whole Foods untersued a gay pastor who acced of sellg him a ke wh "Love Ws Fag" wrten on icg stead of the "Love Ws" msage he orred.

THE PLOT THICKENS| GAY CAKE SNDAL

Brown is an openly gay Ain-Amerin and the founr and lead pastor of the Church of Open Doors, a non-nomatnal Christian church At. "The unter-fendant, Jordan Brown, tentnally, knowgly, and falsely acced Whole Foods and s employe of wrg the homosexual slur 'Fag' on a ctom ma ke that he orred om WFM's Lamar Store, At, TX, " the petn stat. In s separate statement Tuday, Whole Foods said that the bakery worker who allegedly wrote the gay slur on the ke "is part of the LGBTQ muny.

A Belfast bakery n by evangelil Christians was not obliged to make a ke emblazoned wh the msage “support gay marriage”, the supreme urt has led, overturng a £500 damag award imposed on unanimo cisn by the UK’s hight urt was greeted as a victory for ee speech but nmned by gay rights groups and the Equaly Commissn of Northern Ireland as a backward step batg had refed to produce the ke, featurg the Same Street puppets Bert and Ernie, 2014 for Gareth Lee, who supports the mpaign to legalise same-sex marriage Northern Ireland.

UK SUPREME URT BACKS BAKERY THAT REFED TO MAKE GAY MARRIAGE KE

He wanted to take to a private functn markg Internatnal Day Agast judgment, livered after the supreme urt’s first hearg Northern Ireland May, revers earlier cisns Belfast unty urt and a urt of appeal lg that the pany discrimated agast Lee, who is gay, on the grounds of sexual five jtic on the supreme urt – Lady Hale, Lord Mance, Lord Kerr, Lord Hodge and Lady Black – found the bakery did not refe to fulfil Lee’s orr bee of his sexual orientatn and therefore there was no discrimatn on those grounds.

“The bakers uld not refe to supply their goods to Mr Lee bee he was a gay man or supported gay marriage, but that is que different om obligg them to supply a ke iced wh a msage wh which they profoundly disagreed.

SUPREME URT SIS WH BAKER WHO REFED TO MAKE GAY WEDDG KE

The US supreme urt reached a siar ncln another bakery se June, when led favour of a Colorado baker who had refed to produce a weddg ke for a gay uple the lg, Lee said: “I’m very nfed about what this actually means. ”The Rabow Project, Northern Ireland’s largt support anisatn for lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr (LGBT) people, exprsed s disappotment at the #Ashers lg is an historic and semal judgement. ”A spokperson for the gay rights anisatn Stonewall said: “This is a backward step for equaly which needs to be urgently addrsed.

The cisn that Ashers bakery were not discrimatory the so-lled ‘gay ke’ row is very ncerng for anyone who r about equaly. As well as meang that Ashers nnot be legally forced to aid the promotn of same-sex marriage, also means that gay bakers nnot be pelled by law to rate k wh anti-gay marriage slogans.

OPNAMERI'S 'GAY WEDDG KE' URT CISN AND WHAT MEANS FOR ATRALIA

Supreme Court se June over his refal to make a weddg ke a gay uple based on his relig nvictns, he thought his legal battl wh the state of Colorado were over, acrdg to a now Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakhop Lakewood, Colorado, is facg a new urt fight, this one volvg a lawyer who asked him to bake a ke to celebrate the anniversary of her genr transn. The Supreme Court was very clear that was not cidg the qutn of whether a person wh relig objectns to same-sex marriage had a general right to refe to serve gay ctomers.

It found that:The oute of s like this other circumstanc mt awa further elaboratn the urts, all the ntext of regnisg that the disput mt be rolved wh tolerance, whout undue disrpect to scere relig beliefs, and whout subjectg gay persons to digni when they seek goods and servic an open market. However narrow the judgment, some bs — the US or even Atralia — may wrongly thk the cisn allows bakers and others to lawfully refe service to same-sex there be another gay weddg ke se? Jtice Kennedy began his Masterpiece judgment by statg that, "Our society has e to the regnn that gay persons and gay upl nnot be treated as social outsts or as ferr digny and worth".

Further afield, the Supreme Court of the Uned Kgdom has recently heard arguments a se where a baker Northern Ireland refed to make a ke wh a pro-marriage equaly msage on Atralian "gay weddg ke" se has arisen sce same-sex marriage beme legal last year.

RULG MA SE OF COLO. BAKER WHO REFED GAY WEDDG KE

When the bakery refed to sell Dave and Charlie a weddg ke bee they’re gay, the uple sued unr Colorado’s longstandg nondiscrimatn law. The lg mak clear that “is unexceptnal that Colorado law n protect gay persons, jt as n protect other class of dividuals, acquirg whatever products and servic they choose on the same terms and ndns as are offered to other members of the public.