Omar Saleh of CAIR-Florida // Chris Young, WMNF News, 12/16/2025
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The Florida Chapter of Council on American-Islamic Relations, as well as the national CAIR, filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Governor Ron DeSantis after he issued an executive order labelling the group a terrorist organization.
Akeel & Valentine, CAIR Legal Defense Fund, the Muslim Legal Fund of America and the Southern Poverty Law Center announced they filed a federal lawsuit.
The lawsuit claims that DeSantis exceeded his legal authority and violated free speech and due process rights.
Megan Amer is the policy director at CAIR Florida and spoke during a press conference in Tampa today.
“This lawsuit is about holding Governor Ron DeSantis accountable for his actions that violate the US Constitution, endangered the civil liberties of every single American, and harmed Florida communities by using the power of government to not only discriminate, but to silence us,” Amer said.
Omar Saleh is an attorney at CAIR Florida.
“When Governor DeSantis issues this executive order, it just doesn’t flow through the air. We get several calls, not just from community members, but from haters, telling us that we’re criminals and a lot of other expletives that you don’t want to hear- but he’s riling people up,” Saleh said.
CAIR-FL leadership says they have seen partners reviewing contracts with the organization.
In a press conference earlier this month, DeSantis said he welcomes the lawsuit and looks forward to subpoenaing bank records from the organization.
Saleh called DeSantis’s comments a “loose conspiracy theory.”