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Professor’s anti-DEI views protected by First Amendment, court rules
A federal judge in California has issued a permanent order protecting Bakersfield College History Professor Daymon Johnson from punishment for refusing to endorse “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” and “anti-racism” ideologies in a Tuesday ruling.
“Professor Johnson’s speech regarding political and social issues, including his speech about Bakersfield College and its preferred ideologies, criticism of other faculty and administrators, and his advocacy and expression related to [Renegade Institute for Liberty], all constitutes speech on matters of public concern and petition protected by the First Amendment from viewpoint discrimination,” the settlement states.
He is the faculty lead for RIFL, “a sanctioned organization within Bakersfield College comprised of faculty members dedicated to the pursuit of free speech, open inquiry and critical thinking,” the settlement states.
The order affirms that the First Amendment protects Johnson’s right to express “views that are incompatible with Defendants’ DEIA and anti-racist ideologies.”
Johnson had been self-censoring after the college investigated him for his dissenting views, threatened further investigations, demonstrated hostility toward his positions, and fired his predecessor as RIFL faculty lead for similar speech.
Now Professor Johnson can express his views without the threat of investigation or termination. Johnson was also awarded $150,000 for attorneys’ fees.
The Institute for Free Speech filed the federal lawsuit in 2023 on behalf of Professor Johnson, alleging that the university’s practices are unconstitutional and “repressive,” according to the case summary on IFS’ website.
Following the ruling, Professor Johnson said, “After three years, rather than being mandated to value and promote DEI with its neo-Marxist understanding of race, grievance, identity politics, and cloaked affirmative action, I can finally get back to focusing on what I’ve always cared about—teaching history and engaging in the free exchange of ideas,” according to a news release from IFS.
IFS Vice President for Litigation Alan Gura said, “California community colleges tried to make Professor Johnson say things he didn’t believe—under threat of discipline or termination if he refused. That’s a straightforward First Amendment violation.”
“California cannot demand that community college professors conform their speech to an official government ideology—including so-called ‘DEI’ and anti-racist ideologies,” he said.
In February, a federal judge issued a temporary injunction, blocking the community college from requiring the professor to embed DEI practices in his classroom, while the case was ongoing, The College Fix previously reported.
Johnson had been investigated for calling a peer a “social justice warrior” on the Facebook page for the Renegade Institute for Liberty.
The professor also used his personal Facebook account to comment, “Maybe he should move to China, and post this about the PRC in general or the Chinese Communist Party and see how much mileage it gets him.”
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