The plaintiffs, including the Mississippi Association of Educators, claim that the ban violates their free speech rights.
A federal court in Mississippi momentarily impeded the state from applying a law against diversity, equity and inclusion systems in educational establishments.
U.S. District Court Judge Henry Wingate issued a temporary restraining order on Sunday as a response to lawsuits brought by the Mississippi Association of Educators, students, parents, and civil-rights groups, according to the Clarion Ledger newspaper. The groups are represented by the ACLU of Mississippi and the Mississippi Center for Justice.
According to The Epoch Times, House Bill 1193 of Mississippi went into effect on April 17. The law bans DEI doings in public schools and public postsecondary educational places. It forbids the establishment of engagement in divisive concepts, DEI offices, consideration of diversity statements from job applicants as part of hiring, and maintenance of academic programs promoting ideologies such as DEI and transgenderism.
Judge Wingate concurred with the plaintiffs’ contentions that HB 1193’s restrictions are too broad and risk hushing protected speech, according to The Ledger. He wrote that the law targets specific viewpoints — such as affirmative action, gender identity and systemic racism — while permitting opposing perspectives.
“The Supreme Court has long recognized the ‘transcendent value of speech in the university setting’” Wingate wrote. “HB 1193’s restrictions target specific viewpoints allegedly disfavored by the State – e.g., affirmative action, gender identity, collective responsibility – while permitting opposing viewpoints. This is the essence of unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.”
President Donald Trump signed an executive action “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” on Jan. 21. The order stated any school that doesn’t end its DEI programs will lose federal funding.
Trump later signed an executive order to end DEI in the accreditation of colleges and universities.
“The existing accreditation monopoly raises costs, contributes to the ever-increasing tuition and fees faced by American families, favors legacy four-year institutions, blocks new accreditors from the market, interferes with states’ governing board decisions, and pushes universities in ideological directions when they should be focused on core subjects,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement at the time.
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