You get a lawsuit, you get a lawsuit. After the third story, I realized this post was all about lawsuits. You got to love this litigious world we live in. This blog is brought to you by lawyers everywhere.
Karen Gets A Lawyer
So one of the famous Karens, the Central Park Karen a.k.a. Amy Cooper, “filed suit in US District Court against financial services firm Franklin Templeton, CEO Jenny Johnson and unnamed employees. Cooper alleges that she was terminated improperly, and that the firm did not adequately investigate Cooper’s actions and allegations her call was racially motivated — a claim she denies. Cooper was fired last May after she was videotaped calling police on a Black birdwatcher in New York City’s Central Park.The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office in February dropped a misdemeanor charge against Cooper after she completed education and therapy classes on racial equity. She had been accused of falsely reporting an incident in the third degree. Cooper is seeking lost pay and emotional damages, as well as punitive damages “to be determined at trial.” CNN: White woman sues over termination after calling police on a Black man in Central Park Oh Karen, sweet Karen. I guess those education and therapy classes did nothing. Now, you want to sue your old job for firing you. Good luck with that because, “a spokesperson for Franklin Templeton told CNN that the company stood by its decision. We believe the circumstances of the situation speak for themselves and that the company responded appropriately,” spokesperson Stacey Coleman said in an emailed statement. “We will defend against these baseless claims.” Karen/Amy you got fired, just look for another job. You were not defamed. You did a racist thing with racist undertones. Then you were called racist. You remember what they say about walking and quacking like a racist.
Vati-Can’t Draw
Apparently the Vatican is an art thief. According to “Rome street artist Alessia Babrow, she glued a stylized image of Christ she made onto a bridge near the Vatican and a year later, she was shocked to learn that the Vatican used a reproduction of the image. The image featured Babrow’s hallmark heart emblazoned across Christ’s chest, as its 2020 Easter postage stamp. Babrow sued the Vatican city-state’s telecommunications office last month, alleging it was wrongfully profiting off her creativity and violating the intent of her artwork. The lawsuit seeks nearly 130,000 euros ($160,000) in damages.” AP News: Vatican issues a street art stamp, ends up getting sued The image of someone from the Vatican seeing some street art, stealing it, and then selling it for EASTER is hilarious to me. While I am not familiar with Rome law, some “copyright lawyers familiar with the case say this lawsuit is evidence of the increasing appreciation for Banksy-style street art. They say it underscores that even anonymous graffiti or “guerrilla art” deserves protection against unauthorized corporate merchandising, or, in this case, church merchandising.”
Tran – Sue
“The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued Arkansas in an effort to block enforcement of a recently passed law that prohibits physicians in the state from providing gender-affirming treatment for trans youth, arguing it violates the Constitution and will have “devastating consequences” for members of the community. The lawsuit, filed in federal court on behalf of four transgender adolescents in Arkansas and their families, as well as two doctors who provide gender-affirming care to trans youth in the state, is reportedly the first legal challenge to Arkansas’ Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act, which became the first such ban to be approved by a state after Arkansas’ legislature overrode Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s veto of the measure last month.” CNN: ACLU sues Arkansas to block enforcement of ban on gender-affirming treatment for trans youth I think the most offensive thing might be the name of the act, “save adolescents from experimentation.” I am by no means a transgender expert but I know these children and their parents are NOT experimenting. I also know that the process to start medical treatments is not a quick or an easy one. So these lawmakers sitting in a room making decisions that negatively affect these people’s lives is simply, hubris. I wish the ACLU luck because Arkansas is not the only state being stupid.
Social Media No Ban
“Two tech industry organizations have sued Florida over its newly passed rules for social networks. NetChoice and the CCIA — which represent Amazon, Google, Intel, Samsung, Facebook, and other tech giants — say SB 7072 violates private companies’ constitutional rights. They’re asking a court to prevent the law from taking effect, calling it a “frontal assault on the First Amendment.” SB 7072, which Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed earlier this week makes banning any Florida political candidate or “journalistic enterprise” unlawful, lets users sue if they believe they were banned without sufficient reason, requires an option to “opt out” of sorting algorithms, and places companies that break the law on an “antitrust violator blacklist” that bars them from doing business with public entities in Florida. Notably, it includes an exception for companies that operate a theme park.” The Verge: Industry groups sue to stop Florida’s new social media law The blatant exclusion of Disney is par for the course for DeSantis. He has always catered to the rich and powerful. But really this is Republicans talking out of both sides of their neck. On one hand, private businesses can do what they want and exclude who they want, follow what COVID rules they want, physicians and pharmacist can assist who they want, and corporations are people when donating money. But none of this same autonomy applies if they run a social media site that disagrees with Republican talking points and shuts down blatant lies and misinformation on the Internet. It’s the hypocrisy for me.
The Culture Commentary 