Summary of Argument

The Petitioners seek a complete exemption from the nondiscrimination requirement the State of Colorado imposes on preschools participating in its Universal Preschool Program. Such an exemption would allow Petitioners and other religious preschools participating in the program to engage in invidious discrimination, including discrimination that the Constitution prohibits, while receiving government backing. Such a holding would have serious consequences throughout the country, particularly in states where leadership is overtly hostile toward minority communities.

Colorado seeks to provide its people with the opportunity to receive a high-quality preschool education. Colorado, like every other state, has a compelling interest in preventing invidious discrimination in publicly funded education programs.

In order to ensure that it achieves that aim, Colorado implemented a requirement that all preschools participating in the program agree to a nondiscrimination provision. Accommodating the Petitioner’s religious exercise in this case would impose an unconscionable burden on those who are not receiving the accommodation, namely, the children and families of Colorado.

The nonreligious community has long suffered from invidious discrimination by religious entities providing education, as well as social support services. This discrimination comes in numerous forms and has long-lasting, deleterious consequences for children and families. Children from nonreligious families who manage to get enrolled at religious schools have been denied food, excluded from group activities, and been denied opportunities for academic achievement and advancement.

No American should be forced to fund, through their own tax dollars, their own mistreatment. Colorado, rightly, imposes its nondiscrimination requirement in order to avoid exactly that. It must be allowed to continue protecting its residents.