On Thursday August 29 AAPS General Counsel Andrew Schlafly filed an amicus brief asking the Ninth Circuit to reverse a lower court ruling that incorrectly upheld California AB 241. AB 241 was enacted in 2019 to mandate that “all continuing medical education courses shall contain curriculum that includes the understanding of implicit bias.”
AAPS Past-President Marilyn Singleton, M.D., J.D. strongly opposed this California speech mandate, and before her untimely passing, was a co-plaintiff in this lawsuit challenging its constitutionality.
Dr. Singleton was a truly remarkable person, educator, physician, attorney, and podcaster, who was at the pinnacle of both the medical and legal fields. As an African American longtime resident of California, Dr. Singleton’s passing was mourned in both the medical and legal professions. She leaves us with a record of inspiration and achievement that will inspire many students and practitioners in these professions for years into the future.
Among other arguments in the amicus filed Thursday, AAPS tells the Ninth Circuit:
The First Amendment fully protects academic freedom, as repeatedly held by the U.S. Supreme Court. Yet the ruling below [upholding AB 241] drives a stake through the heart of this fundamental protection, by declaring that the government can coerce speech by instructors in classes provided to adults, without any application of the First Amendment. … The “unintended consequences” are severe of California compelling all CME instructors to include a certain ideology in all of their courses. Based on the First Amendment, this Court should invalidate [AB 241].
The full amicus brief can be read at: https://aapsonline.org/judicial/aaps-amicus-khatibi-v-hawkins-8-29-2024.pdf
