2026-04-20 15:42:24 UTC / 路透社
作者：约翰·克鲁泽尔
2026年4月20日 世界标准时间15:42，更新于31分钟前
- 摘要
- 天主教原告反对反歧视要求
- 涉事项目为学前教育机构提供州政府资助
华盛顿，4月20日（路透社）——美国最高法院周一同意受理丹佛总教区及其他天主教机构的申请，准许它们豁免科罗拉多州学前教育资助项目的反歧视要求。这是美国最高司法机构在宗教权利与LGBTQ+保护议题上的最新交锋。
大法官们受理了下级法院判决的上诉案，该判决认定根据美国宪法第一修正案，科罗拉多州的项目并未侵犯天主教原告的宗教权利。
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该项目为学前教育机构提供州政府资助。天主教原告反对州政府提出的要求：根据该项目获得资助的学校必须让所有儿童享有“平等机会”入学，不得因学生或其家庭成员的性取向、性别认同等特征进行区别对待。
丹佛总教区下辖34所天主教幼儿园。
最高法院预计将在10月开始的下一任期内审理此案。唐纳德·特朗普政府支持天主教原告提出的由大法官审理此案的请求。
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天主教原告声称，科罗拉多州的项目迫使家庭选择“与政府在这些问题上观点一致”的学前教育机构，从而惩罚了持不同意见的宗教学校和家庭。
原告律师在提交给大法官的文件中提及最高法院2015年将同性婚姻全国合法化的裁决，称法院曾承诺“宗教团体在反对关于婚姻和性的世俗正统观念时将受到保护”。
原告律师援引了第一修正案中保护宗教信仰自由的条款。
他们写道：“如果自由实施条款可以如此轻易地被规避，那么它就无法完成这项被本院描述为‘多元社会核心’的重要工作。”
科罗拉多州辩称，其平等机会要求并未侵犯自由实施条款，因为这些要求是中立的，且普遍适用于参与项目的团体。
双方就科罗拉多州的学前教育项目是否为某些世俗目的（如优先照顾低收入家庭儿童或残疾儿童）创设了例外，却拒绝为宗教原因提供豁免一事存在分歧。
2024年，一名科罗拉多州联邦法官支持科罗拉多州官员对该项目的辩护。总部位于丹佛的美国第十巡回上诉法院去年维持了该判决，由此引发了此次向最高法院提起的上诉。
约翰·克鲁泽尔 报道；威尔·邓ham 编辑
我们的准则：汤森路透信托原则。
US Supreme Court to scrutinize Colorado preschool program’s protections for LGBT parents
2026-04-20 15:42:24 UTC / Reuters
By John Kruzel
April 20, 2026 3:42 PM UTC Updated 31 mins ago
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The facade of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 14, 2026. REUTERS/Will Dunham/File Photo
- Summary
- Catholic plaintiffs object to nondiscrimination requirement
- Program at issue provides state funds for preschools
WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Monday to hear a bid by the Archdiocese of Denver and other Catholic entities to be exempted from a Colorado preschool funding program’s nondiscrimination requirement in the latest clash between religious rights and LGBT protections at the nation’s top judicial body.
The justices took up an appeal of a lower court’s decision that found that Colorado’s program did not violate the religious rights of the Catholic plaintiffs under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment.
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The program provides state funds for preschools. The Catholic plaintiffs objected to the state’s requirement that schools receiving funding under the program give all children “equal opportunity” to enroll in preschool regardless of certain characteristics, including the sexual orientation or gender identity of students or their family members.
The Archdiocese of Denver oversees 34 Catholic preschools.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear the case in its next term, which begins in October. President Donald Trump’s administration backed the request by the Catholic plaintiffs for the justices to hear the case.
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The Catholic plaintiffs claimed that Colorado’s program pushes families toward preschools that “share the government’s views on these issues,” thereby penalizing religious schools and families who disagree.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling legalizing gay marriage nationwide, the lawyers for the plaintiffs told the justices in a filing that the court had promised “that religious groups would be protected when they dissent from secular orthodoxies about marriage and sexuality.”
The lawyers for the plaintiffs cited the First Amendment provision protecting freedom of religious exercise.
“The Free Exercise Clause simply cannot do that important
work – which this court has described as ‘at the heart of our pluralistic society’ – if it can be so easily evaded,” they wrote.
Colorado has argued that its equal-opportunity requirements do not intrude on the Free Exercise Clause because they are neutral and apply generally to participating groups.
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The parties disagree over whether the state’s preschool program creates a carveout for certain secular purposes, such as to prioritize children from low-income families or those with disabilities, while refusing exemptions for religious reasons.
A Colorado-based federal judge in 2024 sided with Colorado officials’ defense of the program. The Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling last year, prompting the current appeal to the Supreme Court.
Reporting by John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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