Before the Supreme Court’s ruling that allows a Christian web designer in Colorado to refuse work for same-sex weddings, the Alliance Defending Freedom legal organization behind the case spent nearly a decade laying the groundwork through similar lawsuits filed across the country.
Achieving Success in Three States
Some of the businesses represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom in wedding cases were in Kentucky, Minnesota, and Arizona. They challenged local laws that prohibit businesses from discriminating based on sexual orientation, which the plaintiffs said violated their constitutionally protected rights.
Businesses Retreat from the Wedding Industry
However, it turned out that two of the three businesses mentioned in the petition by the Alliance Defending Freedom in September 2021 had stopped doing wedding work, and the third business had not photographed any weddings for two years. The Washington Post found that three other businesses represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom in similar lawsuits elsewhere had withdrawn from wedding work or significantly scaled it back after suing local authorities for the right to refuse same-sex couples.
Establishing Businesses and Promoting Causes
The Washington Post also found that the Alliance Defending Freedom had played a role in establishing businesses on behalf of some of its clients. Lawyers affiliated with the legal group signed incorporation documents and helped draft corporate policies that were later used to file lawsuits. The Alliance Defending Freedom promoted some of the lawsuits through videos and images of plaintiffs portraying women in wedding dresses at staged events involving staff from the Alliance Defending Freedom.
Alliances and Political Influence
After the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case involving the Alliance Defending Freedom and Colorado web designer Lorie Smith, 15 organizations – ranging from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to various Republican senators and House members led by Senator Ted Cruz – submitted supporting briefs that also cited the previous wedding-related lawsuits by the Alliance Defending Freedom.
Impact of the Rightward Shift in the Judiciary
The Alliance Defending Freedom has also been able to significantly benefit from the rightward shift in the federal judiciary under former President Donald Trump.
Analyzing Roles and Impact
This information suggests that the Alliance Defending Freedom has a tight strategy to achieve its goals through litigation and establishing businesses for its clients. However, this strategy raises some questions about the intentions of the plaintiffs and their true willingness to exercise the rights for which they are suing. Some may wonder whether these lawsuits have been manufactured to serve as test cases in a national legal campaign.
Moreover, the role of the Alliance Defending Freedom in establishing businesses, promoting causes, and organizing staged events for clients demonstrates how closely it collaborates to achieve its objectives. However, these activities raise some concerns about transparency and credibility.
Overall, it can be said that the Alliance Defending Freedom relies on well-crafted legal strategies and tactics to achieve its goals in protecting religious freedoms and expression. However, these strategies and tactics should be assessed based on ethics, legal principles, and the public interest.
Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2023/09/24/alliance-defending-freedom-wedding-lawsuit/
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