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Can you imagine being forced back into the closet when you and your partner apply for affordable housing? Or not being allowed to honor your spouse’s last wishes upon their passing? And all denied to you because an establishment decides to discriminate against you based on its “religious beliefs” or its own definition of free speech?

The Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission case before the United States Supreme Court represents much more than allowing a same-sex couple its right to purchase a wedding cake. It’s about protecting older LGBTQ+ people from having a license to discriminate in senior centers, housing, long-term care facilities, and funeral homes. That’s why SAGE, with the assistance of the law firm of Squire Patton Boggs, joined the American Society on Aging when it filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in support of the Colorado Court of Appeals’ Masterpiece Cakeshop ruling that everyone has a right to equal treatment under the law.

“This case could affect tens of thousands of older LGBTQ+ people,” says SAGE CEO Michael Adams. “As we have stated in our amicus brief, many LGBTQ+ elders are single. Many are poor. And many are in declining health. Most of these LGBTQ+ older adults are not looking to buy a custom cake or purchase a floral arrangement or have their picture taken. They are seeking nondiscriminatory access to facilities such as senior centers, long-term care facilities, and funeral homes. They are entitled to live out their later years in dignity. SAGE stands in opposition to allowing discrimination under the guise of religious freedom.”