Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has enacted a new law granting state officials the authority to label certain groups as terrorist organizations and expel university students who promote support for such designated entities. The legislation, signed on Monday, also includes a ban on Florida courts enforcing any provision of religious or foreign law, specifically mentioning Sharia law, which guides many Muslims' moral and spiritual conduct.
Key Provisions of the Legislation
The law establishes a framework where the top official at the Florida Department of Law Enforcement can designate a group as a domestic or foreign terrorist organization. This designation requires approval or rejection from the governor and three other members of the Florida cabinet, which includes the state attorney general, chief financial officer, and agriculture commissioner, all elected separately.
Targeting Specific Organizations
During a news conference at the University of South Florida campus, Governor DeSantis singled out the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as organizations the legislation aims to target. He had previously designated both groups as foreign terrorist organizations in an executive order signed last December, though a federal judge temporarily blocked its enforcement after CAIR filed a legal challenge.
Impact on Students and Schools
Effective July 1, the law allows the state to expel students at state universities who "promote support for designated terrorist organizations." Expelled students attending on visas will be reported to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Additionally, the legislation prohibits private schools from receiving state vouchers if they affiliate with a designated terrorist organization.
Political and Legal Reactions
Republican Representative Hillary Cassel, who sponsored the bill, stated that the legislation "creates a framework to ensure that Florida taxpayer dollars are not used to support institutions with ties to bona fide terrorist organizations — protecting our public schools, colleges and communities from the misuse of public funds." However, CAIR has criticized the law, arguing it unfairly targets Muslims. Omar Saleh, a CAIR-Florida attorney, told CBS News, "There's a clear message, at least from these lawmakers, that Florida Muslims are not welcome in Florida: That's their message."
Governor DeSantis emphasized the law's intent to enhance safety, saying, "We've been very strong in Florida from the beginning on all of this nonsense and doing whatever we can to keep people of this state safe." He added, "We have got to stop as a country importing people that reject the values of this country and that's just been going on for a long time." The law has sparked debate over civil liberties and national security, with implications for education and immigration policies in the state.
