Attorneys general from 13 states have filed a friend-of-the-court brief asking the Supreme Court to take up Florida's fight over its Stop WOKE Act, arguing that public university professors should not get special First Amendment protection for speech they make in their official roles, JNS reports.
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman and Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall co-led the brief, filed Monday in Florida Board of Governors v. Pernell. It backs Florida's request that the justices review a lower-court ruling that blocked the state's Individual Freedom Act, which bars public university professors from endorsing certain concepts about race, sex and national origin while still letting them discuss those ideas in class.
The attorneys general pointed to the University of Kentucky's case against law professor Ramsi Woodcock, who was removed from teaching in July 2025 after remarks about Israel, including a petition calling for military action against the Jewish state. The university is investigating whether his statements violated its policies and created a hostile environment for Jewish students. Woodcock has challenged the university's actions and says his speech is protected.
"Every American has the right to free speech and expression," Coleman said. "However, the Constitution is clear that the states do not have to subsidize antisemitic speech on their college campuses."
The coalition is made up of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina and Texas. The Supreme Court has not yet decided whether it will hear Florida's appeal.
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