Protecting Religious Pluralism: How the Liberty that Supports Same-Sex Marriage Protects Religious Convictions
23 Pages Posted: 4 Jun 2018 Last revised: 8 Jun 2018
Date Written: May 2018
Abstract
This article addresses a pressing, contemporary issue brought before the United States Supreme Court in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, 137 S. Ct. 2290 (2017): under the United States Constitution, can the government compel individuals in the marketplace to violate their personal identity and sacred beliefs by mandating participation in same-sex weddings? While the Supreme Court ruled 7–2 in favor of the Christian cake artist in Masterpiece, the Court’s holding was grounded upon the Colorado Commission’s open hostility toward religion. Thus, the Court left open the central constitutional question identified above and failed to fully resolve the tension between sexual rights and religious freedom. This article, which was published before the Supreme Court’s decision, supports the Court’s conclusion in Masterpiece, and it addresses the constitutional requirements of the Fourteenth Amendment and the implications of the right to abortion and same-sex marriage for religious liberty. At its core, the article contends that the liberty protected by the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, which undergirds the right to abortion and same-sex marriage, demands protecting religious freedom.
Keywords: Religion, Christianity, Same-Sex Marriage, Personal Identity, Fourteenth Amendment, Substantive Due Process, Due Process Clause, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Obergefell v. Hodges, Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission
JEL Classification: K10, K19, K30, K39
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation