‘Greatest First Amendment sin’: Appeals court panel blocks Florida’s ‘Stop Woke’ Act
An appeals court panel has ruled that Florida cannot ban mandatory diversity training in the workplace and public education, upholding a lower court decision blocking the state law.
A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit unanimously ruled Monday against Florida’s “Stop Woke” Act, which was signed into law in April 2022.
Two companies, Honeyfund and Primo Tampa, filed a lawsuit over the law because they want to require the types of mandatory diversity training sessions that the Act prohibits.
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Circuit Judge Britt C. Grant, a Trump appointee, authored the panel opinion, arguing that the Act unlawfully engages in viewpoint discrimination, concluding that the law engages in “the greatest First Amendment sin.”
“By limiting its restrictions to a list of ideas designated as offensive, the Act targets speech based on its content. And by barring only speech that endorses any of those ideas, it penalizes certain viewpoints,” wrote Grant.
“The only way to discern which mandatory trainings are prohibited is to find out whether the speaker disagrees with Florida. That is a classic — and disallowed — regulation of speech.”
Grant added that even if “Florida is correct that the ideas it targets are odious,” such a fact “is irrelevant” since “the government cannot favor some viewpoints over others without inviting First Amendment scrutiny.”
“Banning speech on a wide variety of political topics is bad; banning speech on a wide variety of political viewpoints is worse,” she continued.
“Intellectual and cultural tumult do not last forever, and our Constitution is unique in its commitment to letting the people, rather than the government, find the right equilibrium.”
Also known as the Individual Freedom Act or House Bill 7, the law was signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in April 2022 and championed as a way to prevent ideas like Critical Race Theory from entering education and business.
“No one should be instructed to feel as if they are not equal or shamed because of their race,” said DeSantis in a statement released at the time.
“In Florida, we will not let the far-left woke agenda take over our schools and workplaces. There is no place for indoctrination or discrimination in Florida.”
Florida House Speaker Chris Sprowls was also quoted in the statement as supporting the legislation, arguing that, thanks to the Act, “Florida’s students and employees will be judged as individuals, by their words, character and actions, not simply by their race, sex or national origin.”
“Florida took an important step to ensure that our schools and workplaces are spaces where we can have healthy instruction and conversation without losing sight that we are first and foremost individuals,” Sprowls stated in 2022.
“Importantly, the bill provides assurance for parents that some of the most difficult lessons about our nation’s history and current events are taught accurately while treating everyone as individuals.”
