Republican-controlled Florida legislature has passed a bill that would force college professors to be recorded in the state, and once a year they would be forced to undergo questioning about their personal political beliefs. Many students would also be subjected to the same kind of questioning. This is actual fascism in the United States, and the Republicans in Florida say that they are doing this to stomp out “cancel culture.” Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins explains what’s happening.

Gov. Ron DeSantis & Florida Republican passes a law that could create harshest punishments for protesters in the nation.

Florida passes law to make Protesting Illegal

CBS NEWS: Florida Republicans want take away peoples right to peacefully protest with Anti-Democratic Authoritarian “Rioting Bill” to quash Freedom of Speech.

Saying it is designed to quash the voices of Black and brown people, Florida Democratic lawmakers on Monday excoriated a proposal pushed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and legislative leaders aimed at cracking down on violent protests.

WJXT NEWS 4: Florida activists push back against proposed increased punishment for protesters

A day after Gov. Ron DeSantis rolled out a legislative package aimed at cracking down on protesters by creating a host of new crimes, a group of Florida civil-rights activists on Tuesday came out strong against the proposed laws.

‘Rally to Save Protesting’: March for our Lives Florida rallies against DeSantis’ ‘anti-riot’ bill

Florida Senate passes controversial ‘anti-riot’ bill pushed in wake of Black Lives Matter protests

The Florida Senate passed a controversial anti-riot bill that was pushed by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests last summer.

Per the above article; “The Florida Senate on Thursday passed, largely along party lines, a controversial anti-riot bill that was pushed by GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests last summer.

The bill would increase criminal penalties for assaulting law enforcement officials while engaging in a “riot” and defacing monuments and other public property during riots. It would also penalize local governments that interfere with law enforcement efforts to contain riots and set up a citizen’s appeal process when cities and counties try to reduce police budgets in response to riots.

The final vote in the Senate was 23-17, with one Republican voting with Democrats in opposition. The bill passed the GOP-controlled House in late March. Democratic legislators argue that it would create a chilling effect on First Amendment rights and restrict political dissent”.

“This legislation strikes the appropriate balance of safeguarding every Floridian’s constitutional right to peacefully assemble, while ensuring that those who hide behind peaceful protest to cause violence in our communities will be punished,” DeSantis said in a statement”.

DeSantis statement; “This legislation strikes the appropriate balance of safeguarding every Floridian’s constitutional right to peacefully assemble” is total BS. The criminal penalties in the bill PROVES his statement is BS.

Florida protest laws could be harshest in nation under DeSantis proposal

Protesters arrested in Florida could face the harshest punishments in the nation if a new proposal from Gov. Ron DeSantis becomes law. The sweeping policy changes would make felonies out of partici…

Florida Governor Proposes Immunity For Running Over Protestors

Trump Loving Florida Governor Makes It LEGAL To Kill Protestors

Under a proposed piece of legislation from Ron DeSantis, the Trump-loving governor of Florida, it would be legal for citizens to run over protestors without any fear of prosecution, as long as the protestor was in the street. This is a direct attack on the First Amendment of the United States, and DeSantis is merely trying to give voters the impression that things are out of control in the state. Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins explains why DeSantis is doing this.

Where Running Over Protesters Could Become Legal

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is dusting off a right-wing playbook to give violence a legal seal of approval.

Per the article above; “DeSantis’ proposals, announced in a Monday tweet, amount to a grab bag of anti-protest measures that read like they were devised by a police union. The measures would ratchet up charges for people involved in disorderly assemblies or damaging statues, make it a crime to participate in a disorderly assembly at a public accommodation or restaurant, and attach racketeering (RICO) liability to people who organize disorderly assemblies.

But perhaps most ominously, they would provide immunity for drivers who strike and even kill protesters “if fleeing for safety from a mob.”

Caroline Mala Corbin, a law professor focusing on constitutional and First Amendment law at the University of Miami, said that while it was difficult to analyze legislation that hasn’t been introduced, it looked like a naked attempt to discourage protest in the state.

“Even if the laws turn out to be constitutional, they are clearly aimed at chilling the exercise of First Amendment rights,” Corbin told The Daily Beast.

Much of the proposed legislation, which combines a number of recent anti-protest tropes like charging protesters under racketeering laws or barring them from posting bail, seems more like a gift to Trump supporters than a response to actual Florida protests. CJ Staples, a lead organizer with the Democratic Socialists of America’s Broward County chapter, said the proposed legislation punched at the left, even though protests in the state had been subdued.

“In Florida, there hasn’t been that much violence or property damage, so to come out with something so aggressive when we have not seen half of the incidents we’ve seen across the country was very concerning and made us wonder where [the legislation] was coming from,” Staples told The Daily Beast. “I’m definitely suspicious as to who authored or provided that bill, because I could definitely see it coming up in other states as well.”

Fourteen Characteristics of Fascism – Article by Dr. Lawrence Britt

1. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights – Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

2. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause – The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

3. Supremacy of the Military – Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

4. Rampant Sexism – The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.

5. Controlled Mass Media – Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

6. Obsession with National Security – Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

7. Religion and Government are Intertwined – Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.

8. Corporate Power is Protected – The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

9. Labor Power is Suppressed – Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

10. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts – Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.

11. Obsession with Crime and Punishment – Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

12. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption – Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

13. Manipulate & Control elections – Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate & control elections.

14. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism – Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Similar to Islamic ISIS Terrorist, flags are seen everywhere, as flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

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