What the Florida Supreme Court just did to voting rights is fairly described by the famous words of the French politicienne, Jeanne-Marie Roland, as she was being guillotined in 1793: “Oh, Liberty, what crimes are committed in thy name!”

Five Florida justices, all Gov. Ron DeSantis appointees, invoked the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to uphold his cynical 2022 gerrymander that deprived Black voters across North Florida of any chance to be represented in Congress by someone of their choice.

A historic amendment meant to protect members of a minority was turned against them.

The gerrymander put three-term U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, a Democrat and one of Florida’s most prominent Black politicians, in a redrawn majority white and Republican district that guaranteed he would lose to fellow Rep. Neal Dunn.

This DeSantis scheme gave his party four more Florida seats in Congress, which is their present slim majority. But only Lawson’s old District 5 was at issue before the Supreme Court.