A federal judge halted a Kansas law that requires any person who contracts with the state to certify they aren’t boycotting Israel, ruling Tuesday that the law could violate the First Amendment.
Esther Koontz, a public school teacher who personally boycotts products from companies that operate in Israeli settlements, challenged the law, saying she was denied a chance to work as a contractor for Kansas because she wouldn’t sign the state’s anti-boycott certification.
U.S. District Judge Daniel Crabtree, an Obama-appointee, said the state law, which went into effect last summer, muzzled individuals like Ms. Koontz, who wish to express their political views.
“The conduct the Kansas law aims to regulate is inherently expressive,” said Judge Crabtree in the opinion for the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. “Forcing plaintiff to disown her boycott is akin to forcing plaintiff to accommodate Kansas’s message of support for Israel.”
He issued an injunction preventing the law from being enforced while the case proceeds.
Other states, like Arizona, have similar laws.
“This ruling should serve as a warning to government officials around the country that the First Amendment prohibits the government from suppressing participation in political boycotts,” said Brian Hauss, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing Ms. Koontz.
Judge Crabtree’s ruling could also affect a push by several lawmakers in California to boycott any company involved in the building of President Trump’s border wall.
Contact the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.