Stigma and the Oral Argument in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia
This week, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in the case of Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. Lawyers for the City of Philadelphia argued for the City’s right to stop referring foster children to Catholic Social Services’ placement agency when it was made known that the latter refused to certify same-sex couples for its foster placements. CSS then filed suit against the city in district court, and the case has made its way to the Supreme Court.
For Verdict, Leslie C. Griffin writes about the case and emphasizes that—as is normally the case in questions of discrimination—Fulton v. City of Philadelphia comes down to the question of stigma. Stigma leads to discrimination of all types, she writes, and protecting marginalized groups from the discrimination that comes from that stigma is a reason for state interest in the policies of an organization like CSS.
Griffin references the amicus brief she wrote supporting Philadelphia on behalf of a coalition of organizations that includes the Women’s Ordination Conference: “Our brief explained that some religions long supported in the past and continue to support racial discrimination. Slaveholders invoked the Bible to support their activity, and much of society accepted the discrimination as a plan of God.”