The Council on American-Islamic Relations is suing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for designating the country’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group a foreign terrorist organization.
DeSantis issued an executive order last week titled “Protecting Floridians from Radical Islamic Terrorist Organizations,” drawing a link between the American civil rights organization and other groups such as Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, which he also designated a foreign terrorist organization.
CAIR, founded in 1994, says it provides legal services and support to “Muslims and others who have experienced religious discrimination, defamation or hate crimes.”
In its lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Florida, CAIR alleges DeSantis has exceeded his authority by designating an American organization as a terrorist group, a power that lies with the U.S. State Department. The group also contends DeSantis’ order violates its members’ constitutional rights to due process and free speech.
The litigation mirrors that in Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott last month issued a proclamation with similar language and CAIR sued.
The move by the two Republican-led states has few direct implications, but CAIR worries it will scare off donors.
CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell told MS NOW that the negative press from the “bigoted publicity stunt” causes “real damage nonetheless.”
“The most immediate threat is the damage to our reputation and to the reputation of the broader American Muslim community,” Mitchell said, adding that the terrorist designation can confuse donors and make it more difficult for the organization to obtain state contracts or use public facilities.
“We are a civil rights organization, period. We have never been an offshoot, subsidiary, agent or partner to any foreign organization, much less a foreign terrorist organization,” Mitchell said.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter and producer for MS NOW. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.