US court finds Florida's 'woke' education ban unconstitutional

A federal appeals court in the United States has ruled Florida's "Stop W.O.K.E." law unconstitutional, finding it violates free speech rights. The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals overturned provisions of the act that prohibited public university professors from teaching about race and gender.

The court's 2-1 decision stated the law represented an "astonishing assertion of power to prohibit unpopular ideas from public discourse in the very places that the state's own statutes recognize as centers of inquiry: the classroom, where students are trusted to fully explore good ideas and bad." The ruling affirmed that the law contravenes the First Amendment of the Constitution.

This decision came after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) filed a lawsuit in 2022 on behalf of professors and students affected by the measure. The law, enacted in 2022, prevented discussions on racism, sexism, privilege, and prejudice.

LDF's Jin Hee Lee highlighted the national implications of the ruling, noting that over 30 states have pursued similar bans. She criticized the "Stop W.O.K.E." law as a "blatant example of the widespread efforts across the country, particularly in Florida, to compel the public higher education system to adopt the views of those in power."