On November 6, 2025, attorneys for the African People’s Education and Defense Fund (APEDF) appeared in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Jacksonville, Florida, to argue for the reinstatement of their lawsuit against Pinellas County for the unlawful defunding of the noncommercial FM radio station WBPU, known as “Black Power 96,” in St. Petersburg.
Standing in court on the side of Black Power 96 was an entourage of community members led by the station’s 100% blind manager, Mr. Eddie Maultsby. Some supporters drove five hours from the St. Pete/Tampa Bay area to attend, while others traveled from Gainesville and other parts of Florida.
On Pinellas County’s side of the aisle sat only Daniel Abbott from the high-priced Miami law firm Weiss Serota Helfman Cole + Bierman, hired to defend the County’s actions.
Black Power 96’s lawsuit seeks the restoration of federal funding withheld in violation of their First Amendment rights, as well as protections against racial discrimination. This case was a “canary in the coal mine,” foretelling the current wave of politically motivated defunding. If successful, the suit will set case law precedent benefiting hundreds of institutions currently fighting defunding.
In 2022 and 2023, APEDF applied for two federal COVID-relief grants through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), totaling $104,128 for broadcast equipment and a backup power generator. Both applications ranked 4th highest out of scores of applicants, demonstrating the value of the station’s service to St. Petersburg’s impoverished Black community and documenting its COVID-related losses.
The first grant was approved unanimously by the Pinellas County Commission and a contract was sent to APEDF. Before the funds were dispersed, newly seated County Commissioner Chris Latvala introduced a motion to revoke the grant. He denounced Black Power 96’s association with the Uhuru (Black freedom) Movement and declared that “they should not ever receive funding from this Board.” The Board agreed and revoked the funding.
Despite its high ranking, APEDF’s second grant application for a backup generator was then denied, with the County fabricating a series of nonsensical excuses.
In October 2023, APEDF filed a federal lawsuit charging Pinellas County with violating the nonprofit’s First Amendment right to freedom of association and with racial discrimination, since COVID relief funds were distributed disproportionately to organizations serving mostly white constituents, in violation of ARPA guidelines.
The County argues that they do not need a reason and can fund or defund anyone they choose. Black Power 96’s case rests on established law stating that government funding decisions cannot violate constitutional protections.
Addressing the broader wave of defunding targeting universities that permit legal pro-Palestine protests, journalist and First Amendment legal expert Glenn Greenwald noted:
“Once the federal government, or any government, decides to offer a benefit that’s optional… it cannot then condition receipt of that benefit on your expressing a particular view, affirming a particular view, or refraining from expressing a political view. It is basic First Amendment doctrine.”
The case was heard by a three-judge panel: Judges Kevin Newsom and Andrew Brasher, both Trump appointees and Federalist Society members from Alabama, and Senior Judge Paul Huck, a Clinton appointee and University of Florida alum. The judges must decide whether to uphold Tampa federal Judge Barber’s decision to dismiss the case or send it back to Tampa to be fully litigated.
The County’s defunding of Black Power 96 was unconstitutional—and they know it. Commissioner Latvala admitted as much in text messages obtained in discovery by Attorney Lirot. In these messages, Latvala directed a staff member to “look into that African group” and confided to an associate:
“They may try to sue over discrimination which is why I focused on the radio station aspect the other day. The contract was literally sitting on the CEO’s desk. I told staff after the workshop I was going to bring it back up to try and kill it. Don’t publicize either of those things.”
One judge referred to these messages as “a smoking gun… coarse, gross, and ugly.”
Major colonial media outlets across the U.S. have ignored this case despite its implications for their own editorial independence. Support has instead come from independent media activists and First Amendment scholars. A panel presentation about the case was well-received at September’s Grassroots Radio Conference in Spokane, Washington.
NYC radio host and founder of the Ida B. Wells Media Defense Network, Mimi Rosenberg, called the lawsuit a frontline battle deserving support from all independent media. The “FCC Actions Alert” newsletter noted that the appeals court decision carries implications for the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
Attorney Luke Lirot is contributing his work and that of his staff on a pro bono basis, committed to the justness and importance of the case. APEDF is responsible for filing fees, printing, travel, and other costs and needs community support to continue the fight.
Donations to the legal fund can be made at:
www.blackpower96.org/legalfund
More information: contact@blackpower96.org or 727-914-3614
