Mississippi passed a law banning DEI from their taxpayer-funded schools and universities, and yet a Reagan-nominated federal judge has just blocked the law, which went into effect at the beginning of this month, from remaining in effect for the next 14 days. He claims the DEI speech blocked by the law is constitutionally protected speech.

Here’s more from Fox News:

A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order Sunday against a Mississippi law banning diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) from public schools and universities.

U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate, a nominee of former President Ronald Reagan, approved the request brought by plaintiffs, including the Mississippi Association of Educators, who are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Mississippi Center for Justice. The order pauses implementation for at least 14 days of a state law known as House Bill 1193, which was approved in April and first took effect July 1.

In his ruling, Wingate cited instances where the law is already having an impact as part of his reason for siding with the plaintiffs.

Faculty members at Jackson State University have been instructed not to discuss gender theory or systemic racism, he wrote as an example.

“Suppressing constitutional speech through vague prohibitions and the specter of financial retribution does not serve the public good – it undermines it,” Wingate wrote. “An over-broad, constitutionally borderless law should be the target of a well-aimed injunction to promote, rather than impair, the interests of Mississippi citizens, the integrity of its institutions, and the constitutional principles on which this republic stands.”

The legislation bans DEI offices, programs, trainings and statements and prohibits institutions from considering DEI in contracts and their hiring processes. It also prohibits programs or academic courses promoting “divisive concepts,” including that one race, sex, color, or national origin is superior to another or that someone is inherently racist or oppressive, consciously or unconsciously, based on those characteristics. Schools or universities may not promote the concept that an individual’s moral character is determined by his or her race, sex, color, or national origin or that “meritocracy or traits such as hard work ethic are racist or sexist, or were created by a particular class to oppress another class.”

The law also bans “concepts promoting transgender ideology, gender-neutral pronouns, deconstruction of heteronormativity, gender theory, sexual privilege or any related formulation.”

Institutions found to be in violation of the law could lose state funding.