A Christian wedding photographer in New York challenged in court a state law that would penalize her for refusing to provide services to same-sex couples in need of a photographer.
Emilee Carpenter of Emilee Carpenter Photography filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday against Attorney General Letitia James, Interim Commissioner Jonathan J. Smith of the New York State Division of Human Rights, and District Attorney Weeden Wetmore of Chemung County.
The suit said that Carpenter files her complaint against the state law for her and everyone's protection to have the freedom to follow their personal beliefs and core convictions.
The state human rights' law forbids "unlawful discriminatory practices" based on sexual orientation or gender identity in "any place of public accommodation," said Christian Headlines' report.
The lawsuit details Carpenters religious beliefs and why coercion by law to provide services against her conscience also violates her First and Fourth Amendment rights.
"Emilee celebrates engagements and marriages between one man and one woman through what she photographs, participates in, and posts about in order to share God's design for marriage with her clients and the public consistent with her beliefs," the suit says.
It argued that the law in question would force her to "celebrate same-sex engagements or weddings" and "promote messages" that "violate her religious beliefs or require her to participate in religious ceremonies that violate her religious beliefs."
The suit further argued that the law should not be impartial stating that just as a lesbian baker should not be compelled "to create a cake condemning same-sex marriage or an atheist playwright to wax positively about God," New York's state law could not just force Carpenter, who is a Christian, to promote messages she objects to, the suit says.
There's a note, however, in the suit that states Carpenter can still cater to LGBT individuals and LGBT-owned businesses for non-wedding photography like brandings. To force her to photograph same-sex weddings will violate her religious conviction over the sanctity of Biblical marriage.
The suit continued that the state law that's being contested forbids Carpenter "from adopting an editorial policy consistent with her beliefs about marriage," and that she cannot "post statements on her business's own website explaining her religious views on marriage or her reasons for only creating this wedding content."
At present, her website does not have any word of condemnation against same-sex marriage, but it explicitly details a biblical description of marriage.
Carpenter's attorney, Bryan Neihart of the Alliance Defending Freedom, also affirms that creative professionals like Emilee must be given freedom to work according to their faith-based preferences without fear of any retributions from the government.
"Emilee serves all people; she just cannot promote messages which contradict her religious beliefs about any topic, including marriage," he said. "The government cannot treat some people worse than others based on their religious views."
The Christian Headlines noted that there had been similar cases in 2019 in which both artists won their cases. The U.S. Eighth Court of Appeals and the Arizona Supreme Court ruled in favor of the artists' claims.
