It was perhaps the most spoken wedding cake in the history of wedding ceremonies.
In 2012, Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado, refused to make a personalized wedding cake for the marriage of a same -sex couple. The owner of the bakery opposed, saying that the ceremony was in conflict with his religious beliefs.
Although the Colorado Civil Rights Commission noted that the bakery had discriminated against the couple, the United States Supreme Court then canceled this decision in 2018. The decision declared that the Commission had not maintained religious neutrality, avoiding issues on anti-discrimination and human rights laws.
“The case occurred when two populations wanted very different results,” said Professor Eric D. Yordy of the Wa Franke College of Business at the University of Northern Arizona. “The LGBTQ community was unhappy that the bakery told the couple to find a cake elsewhere. And others have estimated that the bakery should not be forced to do something that was in conflict with the owner’s religion. ”
Social media has put religious conflicts under the spotlight
Yordy will be the guest presenter of the series of Equity Now conferences of School of Business at 6 p.m. on April 16. His presentation, which will be virtual, is open to students, teachers, elders and friends of the university. To register for the program, please visit the Equity Now website
Despite being a nation that embraces religious freedom, the parameters are still evolving.
“We are a country based on religious freedom, but this question is what are the limits of religious freedom and how do they have an impact on business?”, He said.
The cake dispute is only one of the many.
Hobby Lobby, the craft retailer at 1,000 stores, was based on evangelical Protestant beliefs. He found himself in the reticle of law and religion when he refused employees access to the contraceptives and the morning afterwards. The company argued that the first amendment to the Constitution and the Religid Freedom Restoration Act is used to protect its religious beliefs. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the company.
What could have been an internal conflict to be resolved, now frequently leads to public advertising and outcry.
“With the way the world is now and so many things have happened in the past 20 years with social media, business decision -makers must pay much more attention to what they are doing,” said Yordy. “They can be crucified by social media. More than ever, the consequences are greater. Twenty years ago, most people would not have known these disagreements. ”
Ethical model designed by the teacher
Yordy is a business professor covering the law and business ethics at the University of Northern Arizona and he held various management positions, including as a associate dean. He is also the founding director of the Institute of Public and Professional Ethics of the College, an interdisciplinary initiative aimed at increasing the work of ethics on the campus and in the community.
Yordy and a colleague designed the ethical coverage model, an ethical decision -making framework that helps users identify and analyze decisions with ethical ramifications by incorporating managerial decision -making and philosophical approaches. It addresses the values, results and legal requirements.
He is the author or has co-written numerous case studies by using the coverage model and other decision-making tools on subjects as distant as the ethics of reverse mortgages, conflicts of interest, censorship in the development of mobile applications and the marketing of sweet cereals for children.
“We saw a lot of arguments that asked:” If everyone does, is that a bad decision? ” He said. One of the questions we ask is: “If people have heard of what you are doing, it would influence who they think they are?” ”
THE Series of speakers of equity now is produced by the Uconn School of Business in coordination with the Academy of Legal Studies in Business, Virginia Tech, Indiana University and Temple University. This is the last episode of five programs during the 2024-25 academic year.