For over a decade, Jack Phillips -- apparently the only baker in Colorado -- has been embroiled in lawsuit after lawsuit. Why? Because Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece Cake Shop, refuses to make gay and trans-themed cakes, in accordance with his religious beliefs.
Twitchy has written about Phillips in the past, including when he won a partial victory before the Supreme Court. The day SCOTUS agreed to hear Phillips' case, a 'trans' attorney, Autumn Scardina, requested a birthday cake -- blue on the outside and pink on the inside -- to celebrate his transition to a woman. Phillips refused. Scardina sued.
Today, Phillips won. Again.
In case you're wondering, the Colorado Supreme Court finally got around to dismissing the case against baker Jack Phillips brought by a pretty questionable trans person. https://t.co/AqqBhhbKtp
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) October 8, 2024
More from Alliance Defending Freedom:
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit brought by an attorney who’s been harassing cake artist Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, for more than 12 years.
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys have been defending Phillips since 2012, when he was first sued for declining to create a custom cake celebrating a same-sex wedding because it violated his religious beliefs. Around that same time, the attorney who filed the most recent lawsuit against Phillips first contacted him, calling him a hypocrite and bigot. For more than 12 years now, Phillips has been relentlessly pursued and mocked by government officials and activists who disagree with his views.
“Enough is enough. Jack has been dragged through courts for over a decade. It’s time to leave him alone,” said ADF Senior Counsel Jake Warner. “Free speech is for everyone. As the U.S. Supreme Court held in 303 Creative, the government cannot force artists to express messages they don’t believe. In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision.”
This is lawfare for the 'crime' of ungoodthink. Scardina did not hope to win his lawsuit; the punishment is the process. The financial burden borne by Phillips -- including the possible shuttering of his business -- is the goal here. The Left has made it very clear: if you oppose their pet ideologies, they will do what they can to make you persona non grata and ruin your ability to make a living.
It's also another sign of the Left's ongoing hypocrisy.
During July's Republican National Convention in my hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin a bar closed rather than serve 'Trumpers' as I wrote about here.
Back in 2023, Lefties got their knickers in a twist after the Supreme Court ruling in 303 Creative v. Elenis, saying they'd refuse to serve Trump supporters.
It's a theme with the Left: demand businesses, especially Christian business, serve you while refusing to do the same. And they get support from so-called conservatives like David French, who think it's no big deal to spend a decade and lots of money defending your clearly delineated First Amendment rights. Hobby Lobby had to sue the Obama administration over being forced to provide contraceptive and abortifacient coverage in health insurance plans, as did the Little Sisters of the Poor.
I respect Jack Phillips' right to not make cakes for gay weddings or 'transgender birthdays', even though I think giving up business -- especially in the era of Bidenomics -- is unwise. I also think businesses should refuse to serve Trump supporters, with the same caveat: why turn away perfectly good money?
But the problem goes deeper than cake. Remember that it is the Left who, rather rabidly, demanding that people who went unvaccinated for COVID be denied healthcare and access to public spaces.
I don't know about you, but being able to go to a hospital when I am sick is far more important than getting a cake for a gay wedding. But the Left -- who swear up and down healthcare is a right -- have no problem deciding it's not a right when you do something that makes them mad.
See how the game is played?
The process is the punishment for wrongthink https://t.co/s1Ons9Y7Hd
— Taylor🏜️ (@TaylorinAZ5) October 8, 2024
And that's precisely what the Left is doing.
I'm certain before the year is out, Phillips will be the target of another lawsuit by some trans or gay activist who can't seem to find another bakery in the entire state of Colorado.
And I'm certain Phillips will fight back and win. Again.
