A federal judge has decided that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis cannot unilaterally designate the largest Muslim-American civil rights organisation as a "terrorist" group because it infringes on First Amendment rights.
The temporary injunction on Wednesday blocks DeSantis's executive order signed in December, designating the Council on American Islamic Relations (Cair) as a terrorist organisation, and opening up a potential pathway for state prosecutions of anyone believed to be supporting them.
“The question before this Court is whether the Governor can, in a non-emergency situation, unilaterally designate one of the largest Muslim civil rights groups in America as a ‘terrorist organization’ and withhold government benefits from anyone providing material support or resources to the group,” judge Mark Walker wrote in his order.
“This Court finds he cannot.”
He said his decision is based on DeSantis's "coercion of third parties to cut ties with Plaintiff" because Cair had lost contracts with Florida companies while other advocacy groups severed ties with them.