[June 15, 2026] Today, Southeastern Legal Foundation (SLF), a national nonprofit legal organization dedicated to defending constitutional rights, filed an amicus brief supporting businesses and organizations challenging two provisions of Colorado law that violate the First Amendment by allowing the government to punish speech based solely on whether someone claims it made them feel “unwelcome.”

The underlying case challenges Colorado’s “Unwelcome Clause” and “Unwelcome Advertisement Clause,” provisions that prohibit speech if a listener subjectively believes it makes them feel unwelcome based on their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. SLF filed the brief because Colorado’s continuous efforts to silence those who believe in biological sex and reject radical gender ideology has to stop. Colorado has repeatedly used its Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA) and similar laws to target constitutionally protected speech, particularly in cases involving religious liberty, free expression, and debates surrounding LGBTQ+ issues. Enough is enough.

SLF argues in their brief, “Colorado has a dubious history of trampling First Amendment rights in its pursuit to shield members of the LGBTQ+ community from dissent regarding their lifestyle choices…Colorado does not respect, and indeed tramples on, the free speech rights of those who disagree with its preferred message on LGBTQ+ matters.”

SLF President Kim Hermann said, “Colorado has proven time and again that they are willing to enforce laws and acts that explicitly violate the First Amendment in the name of Woke. No one wants anyone to feel unwelcome, but the First Amendment does not disappear simply because someone takes offense. These provisions create an incredibly vague and subjective standard that allows government officials to punish speech based on feelings rather than facts. In America, the government does not get to decide which viewpoints are acceptable and which are not.”

Download full press release.