Also known as: public accommodation · public accommodation law
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A facility or organization that holds itself out as open to the public and therefore becomes subject to antidiscrimination requirements under statutes like the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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Preston Pratt applied to join the Midtown Press Club after seeing its public advertisements for weekly panels. The club denied him because he was not a man. The city agency enforced its public accommodations law and ordered admission. The club argued expressive association but the order stood because the large nonselective group could still advocate its views after compliance.
Portia Price was turned away from a resort that served interstate travelers and used equipment shipped across state lines. She sued under the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The resort claimed private status but the court applied public accommodations rules because its operations affected commerce.
Pavel Petrov sought service at a local business that refused him on religious grounds. Congress attempted to extend public accommodations protections through enforcement legislation. The court held that the statute exceeded congressional power because it regulated private conduct without sufficient state action connection.
Phuong Pham was denied service at a company cafeteria open to the public because of gender identity. The employer argued the location was private. The court treated the cafeteria as a public accommodation and applied statutory protections against sex discrimination.
Pilar Pena was refused a room at a motel that advertised nationally and served out-of-state guests. She brought suit under federal civil rights law. The motel claimed private operation but the court found it a public accommodation reachable through the Commerce Clause.
Paula Pierce requested a custom cake from a bakery open to walk-in customers. The owner declined on religious grounds tied to the event. The state civil rights commission applied public accommodations law and the court examined whether enforcement violated free exercise or speech rights.
A large nonselective civic group that advertises events to the public and sells tickets functions as a public accommodation. Enforcement of neutral antidiscrimination laws is constitutional if it serves a compelling interest in eradicating discrimination and does not significantly impair the group's ability to advocate its views.
Supporting sources
A privately owned resort qualifies when its operations connect to interstate commerce through serving items or using equipment that moved across state lines. This connection allows Congress to prohibit racial discrimination at the facility.
Supporting sources
…came, however, with the challenge to congressional Commerce Clause authority to prohibit racial discrimination in places of public accommodation, when the Court simply made explicit what the earlier cases had implied: "where we find that the legislators, in light of the facts and testimony before them, have a rational basis for…