Article
Taking equal protection beyond its proper scope? Why people with sincere religious beliefs can continue to discriminate
Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law
(2019)
Abstract
The balance to be struck between the rights of protected groups (in particular the LGBT+ community) and those who, because of their religious beliefs, object to the full exercise of those rights is a matter of debate in many countries. Cases regarding the rights of gay people to purchase cakes concerning gay marriage have reached the Supreme Courts of the UK and USA in recent months. In Masterpiece Cakeshop Ltd v Colorado Civil Rights Commission, a divided US Supreme Court decided the case on very narrow grounds (the alleged hostility to religion of a lower level adjudicator) but came to no clear decisions on the broader issues involved. In contrast, a unanimous UK Supreme Court in Lee v Ashers Baking Co. Ltd. came down strongly on the side of religious intolerance.
Keywords
- Religion,
- LGBT,
- European Convention on Human Rights,
- Discrimination
Disciplines
Publication Date
2019
Citation Information
Mel Cousins. "Taking equal protection beyond its proper scope? Why people with sincere religious beliefs can continue to discriminate" Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law (2019) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mel_cousins/116/