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‘Administrators investigate and punish faculty who criticize or question their preferred views’: Institute for Free Speech

A conservative Bakersfield College professor is appealing a court’s decision to dismiss his lawsuit alleging his employer’s diversity, equity, and inclusion policies infringe on his First Amendment rights.

Daymon Johnson, a history professor at the public community college, sued the California institution after he said he endured a five-month administrative investigation for voicing his opinions online. The Kern Community College District, which oversees the college, also is named in the lawsuit.

Johnson’s lawyer with the Institute for Free Speech told The College Fix he is appealing the ruling.

“Obviously, we’re disappointed by the court’s decision, and we have appealed from it,” Vice President for Litigation Alan Gura stated in a recent email to The Fix. “Our opening brief on appeal is due October 30.”

On Sept. 23, the U.S. District Court for Eastern California ruled that Johnson had not adequately proven he faced an “actual or imminent” injury from the district’s investigation or implementation of its DEI policy, Policy 3050.

“Johnson fails to allege a substantial threat of enforcement of Policy 3050 against him,” the ruling states. “As a threshold matter, it is unclear that Policy 3050 can be enforced against anyone—it appears to be an aspirational policy without any enforcement or disciplinary action.”

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Kern Community College District told The College Fix it is prepared to keep defending its policy in court.

“The District is pleased with the Court’s ruling,” the spokesperson stated in a recent email. “The District values the First Amendment rights of its faculty, students, and community members and will continue to defend this matter.”

Ultimately, Johnson’s lawsuit seeks to stop college leaders from “investigating or disciplining [him] for offering his viewpoints” and end the mandatory teaching of “diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility” ideology.

MORE: Professor disciplined for criticizing DEI gets $2.4 million settlement

Johnson and his lawyers claim the district and college have put in place “rules and practices” that “prevent faculty from exercising basic rights to free speech,” according to a summary of the case on the institute’s website.

“Administrators investigate and punish faculty who criticize or question their preferred views, including state-mandated, administration-approved ‘anti-racism’ ideology,” the institute states.

“These administrators have sent an unmistakable message: anyone who dares commit wrongthink against the state-approved ideology—or who challenges other faculty who promote that ideology—can have their careers sidetracked or ruined,” it states.

Johnson does have reason to fear after another professor, Matthew Garrett, was disciplined for expressing similar complaints about the policy in 2022, according to his complaint.

Garrett later sued and agreed to a $2.4 million settlement with the Kern Community College District, The Fix reported. He also agreed to resign from the college, according to the settlement.

Johnson’s original complaint states Bakersfield’s grounds for firing Garrett included his equation of diversity trainings as legal discrimination and use of his personal social media accounts to express critical opinions of the college.

As a result of Garrett’s case, Johnson refrained from expressing similar opinions online, according to his lawsuit.

Johnson also stepped down from managing a conservative Facebook page, declined to appear on the same radio show as Garrett, and remained quiet on his opinions of “anti-racist ideology” embraced by then-college President Zav Dadabhoy, according to the complaint.

As previously reported by The Fix, Johnson also faced a five-month investigation in 2021, prompted by an administrative complaint from one of his colleagues, Professor Andrew Bond. Later, Johnson was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Bond accused Johnson of “harassment and bullying” after Johnson criticized a 2019 Facebook post of Bond’s that referred to America as a “piece of s**t nation,” according to the report.

“Maybe Trump’s comment about shithole countries was a statement of projection because honestly, the US is a f***ing piece of shit nation,” Bond wrote. “Go ahead and quote me, conservatives. This country has yet to live up to the ideals of its founding documents.”

Johnson reposted Bond’s post on the Renegade Institute for Liberty’s Facebook page with the caption: “Here’s what one critical race theorists at BC sounds like. Do you agree with this radical SJW from BC’s English Department? Thoughts?”

An unnamed individual then posted a comment below the institute’s post, writing: “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. I wonder, do they still send the family the bill for the spent round?”

The Renegade Institute for Liberty, which Johnson leads, is a group of Bakersfield faculty who are “dedicated to the free speech, open inquiry, critical thinking to advance American ideals.”

It hosts debates and guest speakers on campus to promote “meritocracy, individual agency, civic virtue, liberty of conscience and free markets.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated to indicate an an unnamed individual on Facebook wrote the comment about Bond moving “to China,” not Johnson.

MORE: Professor sues college after calling peer social justice warrior on social media

IMAGE: Vinnícius Lopes/Institute for Free Speech

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