The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on November 4 in a case that will decide whether taxpayer-funded foster care agencies can legally discriminate against LGBTQ people — simply based on religious beliefs.
At issue in the case is a dispute between the City of Philadelphia and Catholic Social Services, a foster care agency affiliated with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Catholic Social Services asserts it should receive taxpayer funds even as it refuses to place children with prospective foster or adoptive parents, including same-sex couples, based on its religious beliefs. The city of Philadelphia argues that such a policy violates the city’s LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination law.
Speaking with The Daily News, David Flugman, who has worked on a number of high-profile LGBTQ cases, said it appeared that “Justice Kavanaugh was attempting to position himself in the new center of the Court.”
“He expressly noted that nondiscrimination toward LGBT people was an important interest and that he appreciated that LGBT people face stigma. He appeared searching for a way to strike a “win/win” balance between religious beliefs surrounding same-sex marriage, which he said needed to be respected, and nondiscrimination principles,” added Flugman, who co-authored an amicus brief on the case.
Read the full story here.
