In 2012, a store in Colorado refused to sell two men a cake for their wedding reception just because they were gay. On December 5th, the Supreme Court will hear the ACLU’s arguments in the Masterpiece Cakeshop case – a case that will decide whether businesses that are open to the public can refuse to serve LGBT people in violation of laws that protect all of us from discrimination.
This case isn’t about the cake. It’s about whether businesses can, in effect, post signs reading “we don’t serve your kind here.”A ruling that our Constitution gives businesses the right to refuse service to customers based on religious beliefs or so-called artistic freedom would be an unprecedented setback for civil rights in our country.
In advance of these landmark arguments, the ACLU of Illinois is working with dozens of institutions and culinary professionals across the Chicagoland area to participate in a day of action on December 5th. Participating employers are placing a sign in their businesses and posting their support on social media using the hashtag #OpenToAll.
Interested businesses can download and print the OpenToAll sign below, or contact mbever@aclu-il.org for more information.
To sign the national petition in support, please click here.
