How far would you go to take a stand for your beliefs? What would you be willing to give up?
These are questions Washington floral artist Barronelle Stutzman had to answer beginning in 2013. That was the year she declined to create custom floral arrangements celebrating the same-sex wedding of a friend and longtime customer because it conflicted with her Christian beliefs. Barronelle ended up in an eight-year lawsuit and risked losing nearly everything she had built over a lifetime, including her business and her life savings.
But Barronelle was not easily intimidated. Her strong Christian faith gave her the strength she needed to stand up for her beliefs.
“You have to make a stand somewhere in your life on what you believe and what you don’t believe,” she says. “It was just a time I had to take a stand.”
Barronelle’s difficult decision
Barronelle is the last person you would have expected to be entangled in a lawsuit. She is a sweet and unassuming grandmother who owned and operated a floral shop called Arlene’s Flowers, where she used her artistic talents to create beautiful floral designs. For decades, Barronelle was known as the go-to florist in her county, and she lovingly served everyone in her community—regardless of how they identified.
She happily served her friend and longtime customer Rob Ingersoll for nearly a decade. But when Rob asked her to create floral arrangements for his same-sex wedding, Barronelle knew that this was a custom design that she could not create. As a devout Christian, Barronelle believes that marriage is between one man and one woman. She could not use her talents to create floral art that celebrates a view of marriage contrary to this belief. Barronelle cares deeply for Rob. But after much thought and prayer, she made the decision to refer Rob to three nearby floral artists she trusted to do a good job.
Barronelle explained her decision to Rob, the two hugged, and he left her shop. That should have been the end of the story.
An unexpected lawsuit
Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson heard about Barronelle’s decision through media reports generated by a social media post and decided to make an example of her. He even made the unusual move of suing Barronelle not just in her role as a business owner but also in her personal capacity.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) also filed a lawsuit against Barronelle, similarly naming her in her personal capacity. This meant that Barronelle could have lost nearly everything—not only the floral business that her mother started, but also her retirement savings.
Barronelle was being targeted even though she served everyone. She knew the attorney general would not be backing down, so she got in touch with Alliance Defending Freedom.
Unfortunately, a Washington state court ruled against Barronelle, saying she must pay penalties and attorneys’ fees for declining to use her artistic abilities to design the custom floral arrangements. On appeal, the Washington Supreme Court sadly agreed. So Barronelle and ADF appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, another prominent ADF case was making its way through the courts. Jack Phillips, the cake artist who owns Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado, had taken his case to the Supreme Court as well. Like Barronelle, Jack had made the difficult decision not to create custom art expressing a message he could not celebrate in good conscience. In 2018, the justices ruled in Jack’s favor, stating that the government had acted with “clear and impermissible hostility” toward him because of his religious beliefs.
In light of the ruling in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, the Court asked the Washington Supreme Court to reconsider Barronelle’s case. Unfortunately, that court ruled against her a second time. Once again, ADF attorneys asked the Supreme Court to hear the case. But this time, the justices declined. Barronelle’s legal journey was coming to an end.
Preserving the right to create freely
To settle the case, Barronelle agreed to pay $5,000 to Rob Ingersoll and his partner and to withdraw a pending petition for rehearing at the U.S. Supreme Court. Though Attorney General Ferguson had threatened this woman’s business and indeed her livelihood, Barronelle ended her case having never violated her conscience.
While Barronelle’s case had officially concluded, the work of protecting free speech went on. Just two years after the floral artist settled her lawsuit, the Supreme Court ruled in yet another ADF case, 303 Creative v. Elenis, involving the same Colorado law that state officials had used to harass Jack Phillips.
In that case, graphic artist Lorie Smith, who owns a design studio called 303 Creative, was challenging Colorado’s law preemptively. Lorie wanted to expand her portfolio to create custom websites celebrating marriage between a man and a woman, but the state had told her that she couldn’t do that—not without also designing custom websites celebrating same-sex ceremonies.
Like Jack and Barronelle before her, Lorie knew she could not violate her Christian beliefs. So she took her case to the Supreme Court, which issued a landmark ruling upholding free speech in 2023. While Barronelle’s case had not ended in a resounding victory, it had served as a building block in another case that did.
When we stand up for our beliefs, we never know what the outcome will be. That’s not for us to decide. Our job is to remain faithful to what God has called us to do. The results are in His hands.
Arlene’s Flowers v. State of Washington
- April 2013: Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit against Barronelle Stutzman and Arlene’s Flowers.
- February 2017: The Washington Supreme Court ruled that the government can force Barronelle—and other artists like her—to create custom art celebrating events with which she disagrees.
- July 2017: ADF attorneys petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Barronelle’s case.
- June 2018: The Court vacated the Washington Supreme Court’s decision and asked it to reconsider Barronelle’s case in light of the Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission decision.
- June 2019: The Washington Supreme Court ruled against Barronelle a second time. ADF attorneys once again asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.
- July 2021: The Court announced its decision not to take Barronelle’s case.
- November 2021: ADF attorneys secured a settlement agreement with the ACLU, ending the lawsuit brought against Barronelle.
