Judge Takes Final Step to Overturn Florida’s ‘Stop WOKE Act’

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A judge on Friday issued a permanent injunction striking down a Florida law backed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that sought to limit diversity and racial discussions in private workplaces.

U.S. District Judge Mark Walker previously ruled the law unconstitutional. That decision was upheld by an appeals court in March. Walker’s latest order makes his temporary ban permanent.

The law, called the “Stop WOKE Act,” sought to ban educational or business practices that claim members of an ethnic group are inherently racist and should feel guilty for the past actions of others. It also bans the idea that a person’s status as privileged or oppressed is necessarily determined by their race or gender, or that discrimination is acceptable to achieve diversity.

DeSantis frequently referenced the law during his failed presidential campaign, using the slogan that Florida is where “woke” go to die.