- The “Stop WOKE” act is championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
- The judge says it violates the First Amendment and is impermissibly vague.
- He refused to issue a stay that would keep the law in effect during any appeal by the state.
A Florida judge on Thursday ruled that a state law that limits racial discussion and analysis in business and education, which was supported by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, is unconstitutional.
In a 44-page decision, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker of Tallahassee ruled that the “Stop WOKE” statute is unconstitutionally ambiguous and infringes on First Amendment rights. Walker also declined to issue a stay that would maintain the law’s application throughout any state appeal.
The law aims to combat what DeSantis has referred to as a “pernicious” worldview, epitomised by critical race theory, which holds that racism is institutionalised in American society and serves to maintain white supremacy.
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When it comes to diversity, inclusiveness, and bias training in the workplace, Walker said the statute “upside-down” the First Amendment because it forbids speech by forbidding the presentation of specific ideas in training programmes.
Let Florida present its case if it genuinely feels that race no longer exists in society, the judge ruled. But by silencing its opponents, it cannot win the debate.
An email asking for comment received no immediate response from the governor’s office. DeSantis has stated time and time again that appeals courts, which are often more conservative, will likely overturn any losses at the lower court level on his objectives.
Teaching or business practises that assert that members of one ethnic group are innately racist and should feel responsible for past wrongdoings by others are illegal. Additionally, it rejects the idea that a person’s privilege or oppression is inevitably related to their race or gender or that discrimination is permissible in order to promote variety.
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Three cases contesting the Stop Woke legislation were the subject of the decision on Thursday. Private organisations, including Clearwater, Florida-based Honeyfund.com and others, filed it, arguing that the law violates company training initiatives that place a strong emphasis on diversity, inclusiveness, eliminating bias, and preventing workplace harassment. Companies with 15 or more employees may be subject to civil litigation for their actions.
According to the lawsuit, Honeyfund, a company that offers wedding registries, aims to uphold private employers’ rights to “engage in open and unfettered exchange of information with employees to discover and begin to rectify discrimination and damage” in their workplaces.
After the decision, Honeyfund CEO Sara Margulis posted on Twitter, “Diversity in the workplace is good for business.” “Concepts like systemic racism, unconscious bias, and privilege are frequently discussed in diversity training. This is the reason why @Honeyfund contested the constitutionality of the speech ban.
The law, according to a different lawsuit filed on Thursday by professors and students at colleges, is “racially motivated censorship” that will stifle “widespread demands to discuss, study, and address systemic inequalities,” which will be highlighted by the national conversation on race following the May 2020 shooting death of Black man George Floyd by Minneapolis police.
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