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- Jan 27, 2013
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- Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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No, I don't think it's that easy. The fact a municipal ordinance or state law exists, by itself, does not make what it requires or prohibits lawful. Like every other law in the U.S., it has to comply with the Constitution. A local ordinance that prohibited everyone in that jurisdiction from possessing a firearm, for example, could not be enforced. And the same goes for state public accommodations laws. In the Dale case, the Supreme Court held a New Jersey law that prohibited a chapter of the Boy Scouts from revoking the membership of a homosexual scoutmaster, on the ground that the Boy Scouts were a public accommodation that was discriminating against the scoutmaster because of his sexual orientation, was invalid because it violated the freedom of expressive association guaranteed by the First Amendment.
I can appreciate that and it would be relevant if the business we're talking about here was one that involved membership, dues, and other conditions of association. You're local bakery or variety store isn't such a business.