NOM BLOG

NRO's Tuttle on the New Mexico Photography Case's "Shocking Precedent"

 

We've reported on the case of the New Mexico photographer before. Ian Tuttle at National Review Online charts the dangerous precedent it sets for religious liberty and free speech:

In its desire to prop up the same-sex-marriage agenda, though, the court has rejected that distinction and, in doing so, established a shocking precedent: Not only photographers but writers, videographers, graphic designers, and a host of others who market their services can now be legitimately forced by the government to work on behalf of causes with which they disagree.

... Elane Photography plans to appeal its case to the New Mexico Supreme Court and, if necessary, to the U.S. Supreme Court. But it’s not merely a matter of overturning an unfavorable ruling. The implications of the decision are staggering. “It needs to be reversed,” Lorence argues, “as a matter of ordered liberty.” The decision could be used to effectively bar those opposed to same-sex marriage (or any other liberal cause) from the marketplace.

... And while it is certainly not clear that as goes New Mexico, so goes the nation, if liberal activists and their judicial backers can chip away at conscience protections in cities and states, they will eventually succeed at the federal level.

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