Florida’s crackdown on the Council on American-Islamic Relations has delivered an immediate result: The organization has suspended its operations in the state.
The retreat followed a federal judge’s refusal to temporarily block Florida’s designation of CAIR as a domestic terrorist organization, giving Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration a court victory as the broader legal battle continues, Breitbart reported.
Chief U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor of the Northern District of Florida declined Wednesday to halt the designation. It took effect Thursday after DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet approved it Sept. 29.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier welcomed the outcome, calling it a “great win by our Solicitor General’s office and for the people of Florida,” according to Breitbart.
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CAIR-Florida announced its suspension in a statement displayed against a black background on its website.
“We have suspended our operations in Florida because of Gov. DeSantis and other state officials’ baseless and unconstitutional enforcement of the state’s unprecedented new ‘domestic terrorist organization’ laws against us,” the organization stated, according to Breitbart.
The suspension has no announced end date. CAIR continues to challenge the designation in federal court, arguing that it violates the First Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process protections.
Ashley Gorski, senior counsel for the ACLU National Security Project, which represented the group, accused state officials of targeting its advocacy.
“Florida officials have been relentless in seeking to silence our clients’ civil rights work and advocacy, damaging not only them but also their community,” Gorski said, according to Fox 13, as cited by Breitbart.
CAIR was among 90 groups the Cabinet designated as domestic or international terrorist organizations. Others included the Muslim Brotherhood, Tren de Aragua, the Iranian regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and antifa.
Winsor’s decision leaves Florida’s designation in effect while the lawsuit proceeds. It does not settle CAIR’s constitutional claims, but the operational consequences have already arrived.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
