In a significant legal defeat for Gov. Ron DeSantis, a federal judge has permanently blocked restrictions placed on handling race-related issues in workplace training under the state’s Individual Freedom Act, also known as the “Stop WOKE Act.” The act, signed into law by DeSantis in 2022, aimed to prevent teachings or mandatory workplace activities suggesting that a person is privileged or oppressed based on their race, color, sex, or national origin.
On Friday, Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued a two-page order granting a permanent injunction against the law’s workplace training provisions, ruling that the law “violates free speech rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.” This ruling follows a preliminary injunction issued by Walker in August 2022, which initially blocked the state from enforcing these prohibitions. Walker had described the act as “discriminating on the basis of viewpoint in violation of the First Amendment and impermissibly vague in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment.”
The legal challenge to the law was brought in June 2022 by several Florida businesses, represented by Protect Democracy, a nonpartisan, anti-authoritarianism group.
“(This is) a powerful reminder that the First Amendment cannot be warped to serve the interests of elected officials,” said Shalini Goel Agarwal, counsel for Protect Democracy, in a post on X. “Censoring business owners from speaking in favor of ideas that politicians don’t like is a move ripped straight from the authoritarian playbook.”
Florida’s “anti-woke” policies, part of the Stop WOKE Act, targeted schools and companies, making it illegal for lessons or trainings that could make a person “feel guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” due to their race, color, sex, or national origin. However, the law faced immediate legal challenges, including from businesses such as Honeyfund.com, a Ben & Jerry’s franchisee, and workplace diversity consultancy Collective Concepts. These businesses claimed the law forced them to censor themselves on important societal matters and prevent robust discussions essential for improving workplaces.
Despite disagreeing with the rulings, describing them as upholding the idea that “companies have a right to indoctrinate their employees with racist and discriminatory ideologies,” the DeSantis administration did not oppose the motion to make the injunction permanent.
A separate challenge regarding the application of these policies to colleges and universities awaits a ruling in appeals court.
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