President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump reacted to the arrest of protesters around the country, and Gov. Ron DeSantis signs a pair of bills.
Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis discusses Florida's Property Insurance Market
As Citizens and other insurers navigate the state's insurance crisis, Patronis shares a vision for the future.
Trump and Biden react to protester arrests across the country
Today graduations began at the University of South Florida, but protestors said they won’t stop their demonstrations.
Now, the university is trying to make sure students can collect their diplomas without any interruptions.
Also today, representatives from the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations spoke about how police handled the protest at USF on Tuesday. They criticized officers for tear gassing protesters, stressing students have the right to protest peacefully.
“Let us remember that throughout history, student protests have often been the harbingers of essential change," attorney Mohammad Mubarak said. "They have stood at the forefront of movements for civil rights for peace and democracy."
University leaders said they value free speech, but argued the protest escalated to a level that was unsafe.
They say they ordered protesters to clear out by 5 p.m. Wednesday, and they didn’t move to break up that protest until about 20 minutes after the deadline.
President Joe Biden spoke about the protests this morning, saying he will defend free speech, but there’s no room for antisemitism on American campuses.
“Make no mistake, I will always be just as strong in standing up for the rule of law," Biden said. "That’s my responsibility to you, the American people. My obligation to the constitution."
The president added these protests have not changed his thinking on war between Israel and Hamas.
And before heading into court this morning, former President Donald Trump commented on the protests happening at Columbia University and UCLA.
“It’s a shame," he said. "I’m so proud of the New York’s finest. Uh, they’re great. They’re great people, too. I know so many of them. They’re incredible. They did a job at Columbia and likewise in Los Angeles, they did a really good job at UCLA."
Gov. DeSantis signs law targeted at DEI and CRT in teacher training
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills Thursday targeting “indoctrination and global elites.”
One of those bills is House Bill 1291. It deals with teachers and the type of training programs they might attend.
Starting July 1, the bill will ban training for teachers that focuses on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) or Critical Race Theory ideology. The bill summary lists examples like systematic racism, sexism, oppression and privilege.
“Parents want to send their kids knowing they're going to get an education. I don’t think they’re interested in an indoctrination," DeSantis said at the bill's signing. "I don’t think that parents care if a teacher has a certain political cause that they care about or a political ideology. That’s not the appropriate venue for that to be in a second-grade classroom.”
The second bill, House Bill 989, provides new consumer protections against what the governor called "viewpoint discrimination," as well as other financial concerns.
As an example, if a financial institution stopped business with a Florida gun store because they are a gun store, a legal recourse in the state is now available.