There is no right to discriminate

A recent letter asserted the existence of the “inalienable rights to open, own, and oversee public businesses,” the right of businesses to deny service to anyone, and the idea that the world is tolerant of all beliefs except Christian ones.

The right to open, own and oversee a public business does not exist. Government can and does have certain requirements that must be met if someone wishes to do business with the public. Among these is the federal ban on discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin and disability. Washington state also bans discrimination based on other factors such age, sexual orientation, military status and sex. RCW 49.60.010 rightly says such discrimination “menaces the institutions and foundation of a free democratic state.”

A public business can refuse to serve someone, but that refusal cannot be arbitrary, inconsistent or aimed at a protected class of people. A restaurant, for example, can deny service to someone who doesn’t meet safety or hygiene requirements, but it cannot refuse to serve a protected class of people such as Christians, homosexuals, African Americans or women.

A democratic state must demand that all citizens be equal under the law. Government therefore must be impartial and disallow the beliefs of one group to outweigh those of other groups unless objective evidence supports doing so to further the public good. That may be upsetting to those who see their values violated, but it is the only path that can hold a nation together.