On Monday, two internet trade groups sued the state of Florida in federal court, saying that a law passed earlier this year that says kids younger than 14 can not have social media accounts is unconstitutional.
NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) are suing Ashley Moody, who is the attorney general of the Sunshine State.
There is a law that kids younger than 13 can not make or keep social media accounts. This year, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed it into law. It would let 14- and 15-year-olds have accounts with permission from their parents.
On the other hand, the groups in the 48-page lawsuit say that goes against the kids’ First Amendment rights.
“Florida House Bill 3 is the latest in a long line of attempts by the government to limit new forms of constitutionally protected speech because they are worried about how they might affect children.”
“In the past, books, movies, TV, rock music, video games, and the Internet have all been said to be dangerous for kids,” plaintiff lawyers write.
They also say that the government should have a say in debates about things like social media, but the “First Amendment does not take kindly to government effort to resolve them.”
It says that the Constitution puts the power to decide what speech is appropriate for kids where it belongs: with their parents.
Some of the companies that CCIA works with are Google and Meta, which owns Facebook. The suit aims to stop the law from starting on January 1. Plaintiffs say the law only goes after certain websites.
A press release said, “It only covers the websites that minors like to use regularly, punishing those users and their favorite websites in a way that is completely incompatible with the First Amendment.”
The groups say that there are already safeguards in place to keep kids from seeing inappropriate content. Parents can choose when and if to let their kids use devices, there are tools to block certain apps and websites, and internet browsers can not do certain things.
There are also tools on social media sites, like Snapchat’s “family center,” that let parents see who their kids are messaging and who they are friends with.
Facebook and Instagram both have similar settings, but YouTube has settings for videos that are appropriate for all ages.
Plaintiffs also say that their First Amendment rights and the rights of the other people in the group have been violated. They are suing Moody because it is her job to follow the law.
The lawsuit was sent to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, but DeSantis is not named in it.
The following statement was made by Moody’s:
“The lawsuit is being looked at, but as a mother, Attorney General Moody will fight hard in court to make sure that Florida children can be protected.”
The bill passed 30–5 in the Senate and 109–4 in the House, with support from both parties in the Florida Legislature.
It came after DeSantis vetoed the first bill because he was worried about privacy. Supporters said that social media can be addicting and that kids can be sexually abused on it.
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