December 10, 2025

Florida Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders for Progress (FLAAPP) denounces Governor DeSantis’s decision to label the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as a “foreign terrorist organization.” Not only do states lack the authority to designate terrorist organizations, but this decision is baseless, inherently anti-Muslim, and would intimidate, silence, and endanger individuals and organizations fighting for the civil rights of all Floridians.

CAIR is the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization. In Florida, CAIR works to protect religious freedom, combat discrimination, and ensure that Muslim Floridians — like all Floridians — can live with dignity and without fear. Last month, CAIR Florida successfully led a grassroots campaign to bring 16-year-old Floridian, Muhammad Ibrahim, home from nine months of Israeli imprisonment. The decision to deem a civil rights organization as a terrorist group is an attempt to codify the Islamophobia and anti-South Asian hate that has been rising online, as reported by national organization Stop AAPI Hate. 

Hate — whether online, in our communities or in our laws — endangers all of us. That is why as a diverse nonpartisan coalition building civic power for the AAPI community, FLAAPP stands in solidarity with our Muslim community members. We urge all Floridians, faith leaders, civil society advocates, and elected officials to defend Muslim Americans’ freedom to organize and protect our First Amendment rights

Ensure your voice is heard by:

• Contacting your state senator or representative. 
• Registering to vote on www.flaapp.org/vote
• If you are an organization, local business or coalition, consider signing this solidarity statement