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DENVER, CO – Representative Brianna Titone today released the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, in which the Court ruled to allow businesses to refuse service to a customer based on the customer’s sexual orientation.
Representative Brianna Titone, D-Arvada Statement and Co-Chair of the LGBTQ caucus:
“The decision by the Supreme Court undermines Colorado’s anti-discrimination protections, directly attacks the rights of LGBTQ Americans and allows businesses to deny services based on ‘First Amendment’ grounds to anyone due to their gender, race, religion, or who they love.
The US Supreme Court has legalized discrimination and bigotry against LGBTQ people and has endangered equal protections under the law. With one decision, the Court threatens decades of progress to secure the freedoms and rights of LGBTQ Americans, and has threatened the rights of Americans to equally and fairly access public accommodations.
Across the country, over 500 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced that put the community in danger of harm, preventing us from freely expressing ourselves or being able to make personal health care decisions. We’ve made great progress in recent years to fight against the increasing anti-LGBTQ+ attacks. We secured the right to access gender affirming care and abortion care, added anti-discrimination protection language to include gender identity and gender expression, and strengthened anti-discrimination protections for people in the workplace. While our new laws ensure Colorado is a safer place for members of the LGBTQ+ community to call home, we still have hills to climb to combat the rising anti-LGBTQ vitriol.
Colorado Democrats will continue to fight for your freedoms and stand up against discrimination, bigotry, and violence against the LGBTQ+ community.”
Today’s ruling sided with 303 Creative, a Colorado-based company that sued the state for the right to refuse service to the LGBTQ+ community. In 2022, Colorado Democrats updated Colorado’s Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA), expanding anti-discrimination protections. CADA guarantees equal access to public accommodations, housing, and employment regardless of disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, religion, national origin, or ancestry.
In recent years, Colorado Democrats have passed numerous laws to increase protections against discrimination. In the 2021 legislative session, lawmakers approved a law that added “gender expression” and “gender identity” as a protected class under Colorado statute. In 2022, House Democrats amended CADA to improve age discrimination protections in employment cases and extend time limits for complaints and charges. This year, several laws were passed to protect people and health care providers from being persecuted for reproductive health and gender-affirming care, prohibit employers from requiring age-related information on job applications, improve safeguards against harassment and discrimination in the workplace, and protect people with a disability from being excluded from or denied the benefits of services, programs, or activities provided by a place of public accommodation.