CAIR Challenges DeSantis’s ‘Terror’ Label in Federal Court

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its Florida chapter have filed a federal lawsuit against Governor Ron DeSantis, challenging his recent executive order designating the group as a “foreign terrorist organisation.”

The lawsuit, submitted on December 16, 2025, claims that the order violates CAIR’s First Amendment rights and targets the organization for its advocacy on Palestinian human rights.

“It rests on political rhetoric and imposes sweeping legal consequences on a domestic civil rights organisation because of its viewpoints and advocacy,” the filing states.

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Executive Order Lacks Legal Basis

DeSantis issued the executive order last week, labeling CAIR along with the Muslim Brotherhood, despite the fact that only the US Secretary of State has the authority to designate foreign terrorist organizations.

The lawsuit notes:

• No criminal charges or convictions exist against CAIR.
• The designation is preempted by federal law.
• The executive order is self-executing, indefinite, and issued without procedural safeguards, denying CAIR due process.

CAIR’s deputy director, Edward Ahmed Mitchell, called the move “blatantly unconstitutional”, emphasizing that the organization has done nothing wrong.

“If you want to punish an organisation for wrongdoing, you find evidence, present it in court, and due process occurs. Governor DeSantis has skipped that entire process,” Mitchell said.

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Context: Suppression of Palestine Advocacy

CAIR highlighted that its legal advocacy for Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) was a motivating factor behind the designation.

“CAIR’s advocacy on Palestine-related issues, including representation of SJP chapters and opposition to state censorship of pro-Palestinian speech, forms an important part of the factual context in which Defendant DeSantis issued the EO,” the lawsuit states.

The filing frames the executive order as part of a broader pattern of Islamophobic and politically motivated actions aimed at silencing Muslim civil rights voices in the United States.

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DeSantis’s Public Statements Show Bias

Last week, DeSantis publicly welcomed legal action from CAIR, saying it would allow the state to subpoena the group’s bank records. CAIR’s lawyers cited this as evidence of the governor’s pre-existing bias.

“These contemporaneous statements confirm that the Executive Order was intended to burden and deter Plaintiffs’ advocacy rather than to serve any legitimate state interest,” the filing reads.

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Similar Measures in Texas

DeSantis’s order follows a similar designation by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, which CAIR is also challenging. Republican Senator John Cornyn has further threatened to revoke CAIR’s tax-exempt status, citing baseless claims about the group attempting to impose Islamic law in the United States.

Mitchell dismissed these allegations, noting that American Muslims comprise only about 1% of the population, and that CAIR operates lawfully within the US legal framework.

“More likely he is spreading conspiracy theories for political gain,” Mitchell said.

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Broader Implications

Legal experts say the case could have far-reaching consequences for civil rights and free speech in the US, especially regarding Muslim advocacy and Palestine-related activism. The lawsuit also highlights growing concerns over state-level efforts to circumvent federal authority in designating domestic groups as terrorist organizations.