The United Kingdom’s highest court ruled in favor of a Belfast bakery owned by evangelical Christians who would not bake a cake with a message that promoted same-sex marriage. The unanimous decision overturned a £500 fine that had been imposed on Ashers Bakery, which is owned by Daniel and Amy McDaniel.
In 2014, Gareth Lee went to Ashers and placed an order for a cake that he wanted to take to an event organized by those who were pushing for the legalization of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland. He asked for the cake to feature Sesame Street characters Bert and Ernie and the inscription “Support Gay Marriage.” Mrs. McArthur took the initial order but later informed Lee that she could not bake the cake in good conscience and gave him a refund.
Lee, a gay man, sued Ashers for discriminating against him based on his sexual orientation and political beliefs. A Belfast county court and a court of appeals both ruled that Ashers discriminated against Lee.
In the judgment, Lady Hale explained that the court believed there was no discrimination involved because Ashers refused to bake the cake based on the message it conveyed, not because of the person who ordered it. “It is deeply humiliating, and an affront to human dignity, to deny someone a service because of that person’s race, gender, disability, sexual orientation or any of the other protected personal characteristics,” she said. “But that is not what happened in this case and it does the project of equal treatment no favours to seek to extend it beyond its proper scope.”
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