Tinark
Active member
The difference between this case and the gay wedding cake cases is discrimination based on the product requested and discrimination based on who the customer is.
Asking the business to write "God hates gays" on the cake is a specific request about the product. The business is perfectly within its rights to have standards on what kind of products it will and will not sell.
However, if we are talking about a completely incidental product, the scenario is different. If the business says it will sell a wedding cake to one couple but not the exact same wedding cake to another couple because they are a gay couple, then this is discrimination based on who the customer is. This is categorically different than the former scenario.
The first scenario should be acceptable in all cases. If this means that a business refuses to place a gay couple topper on the cake, then that is discrimination based on the kind of product. This is an acceptable form of discrimination as it is merely a refusal to sell a specific kind of product. If it refuses to sell a plain wedding cake to a gay couple merely because they are gay, while it will sell an identical cake to a heterosexual couple, then any anti-discrimination laws in effect should be enforced. Such laws are perfectly acceptable in my opinion as it discriminates based on the characteristics of the customer and not based on the characteristics of the product.
Asking the business to write "God hates gays" on the cake is a specific request about the product. The business is perfectly within its rights to have standards on what kind of products it will and will not sell.
However, if we are talking about a completely incidental product, the scenario is different. If the business says it will sell a wedding cake to one couple but not the exact same wedding cake to another couple because they are a gay couple, then this is discrimination based on who the customer is. This is categorically different than the former scenario.
The first scenario should be acceptable in all cases. If this means that a business refuses to place a gay couple topper on the cake, then that is discrimination based on the kind of product. This is an acceptable form of discrimination as it is merely a refusal to sell a specific kind of product. If it refuses to sell a plain wedding cake to a gay couple merely because they are gay, while it will sell an identical cake to a heterosexual couple, then any anti-discrimination laws in effect should be enforced. Such laws are perfectly acceptable in my opinion as it discriminates based on the characteristics of the customer and not based on the characteristics of the product.
