General
USCCB's Amicus Curiae Brief in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (2010)
USCCB's Amicus Curiae Brief in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, February 4, 2010
The Bishops of the United States are firmly committed to upholding the dignity of each and every human person, no matter how vulnerable or marginalized. This includes, among many other things, the twin commitments both to assuring that all people (including those with a same-sex sexual orientation) enjoy the equal protection of the laws and freedom from unjust discrimination, and to the enduring, widely held proposition that extramarital sexual conduct (including same-sex sexual conduct) is harmful to the person and morally illicit.
This brief focuses on the nature of one of the government interests asserted in this case-the prohibition of discrimination based on "sexual orientation." See Pet. App. 88a; J.A. 294.
Lower courts have recently addressed the government's constitutional interest in prohibiting "sexual orientation discrimination," but few if any have described precisely what they mean by the term. See, e.g., N. Coast Women's Care Med. Grp. v. San Diego Cy. Super. Ct., 44 Cal.4th 1145, 1158, 189 P.3d 959, 968 (Cal. 2008) (holding that the state has a compelling interest in prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination in access to medical treatment, but without explaining what "orientation" means or whether it includes conduct).