Overview
- The Florida Cabinet’s designation of the Council on American‑Islamic Relations and CAIR‑Florida took effect Thursday after U.S. District Judge Allen C. Winsor denied an emergency request to halt enforcement.
- CAIR announced it has suspended all Florida operations, stopped accepting donations from residents in the state, and told Floridians not to join its mailing lists.
- The court granted a narrow injunction protecting the provision of legal services from prosecution under Florida’s material‑support rules but left the broader designation and constitutional claims intact.
- House Bill 1471, which took effect July 1, gives Florida officials new statutory power to label groups as domestic or foreign terrorist organizations and to cut funding, bar contracts, restrict campus promotion, and create material‑support penalties.
- Civil‑rights groups including the ACLU and the Southern Poverty Law Center are representing CAIR and have said they will appeal, arguing the law violates the First Amendment and due process while the state says the measure protects public safety.