Free Speech, Property, and the Right to Discriminate

By Ryan Puzycki

Later this year, the U.S. Supreme Court will issue its ruling¹ in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.² At issue is whether the proprietor of a bakeshop should be compelled to bake a cake for a gay couple in violation of his religious beliefs. The broader question is: Does a business have a right to discriminate based on its owner’s p…