ORLANDO | Sixteen survivors from the June 12, 2016 massacre at Pulse Orlando filed a federal lawsuit in the Middle District Court of Florida April 4 against Google, Facebook and Twitter asserting the online media titans provided “material support” to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, commonly referred to as ISIS.
The 122-page lawsuit states the plaintiffs are seeking damages against the three companies “for aiding, abetting, and knowingly providing support and resources to ISIS, the notorious designated foreign terrorist organization that carried out the June 12, 2016 terrorist attack in Orlando, Florida, that killed 49 innocent civilians and wounded some 53 others.” The lawsuit goes on to list the 16 plaintiffs.
The lawsuit claims they companies are in violation of both the Antiterrorism Act (ATA) and the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA).
“The expansion and success of ISIS is in large part due to its use of the defendants’ social media platforms to promote and carry out its terrorist activities,” the lawsuit reads.
The lawsuit further claims that Google, Facebook and Twitter have “knowingly and recklessly” provided ISIS with social media accounts on their platforms “as a tool for spreading extremist propaganda, raising funds and attracting new recruits” for several years.
“This material support has been instrumental to the rise of ISIS and has enabled it to carry out or cause to be carried out, numerous terrorist attacks,” the lawsuit states.
Examples of ISIS propaganda are listed within the lawsuit, stating that “ISIS, in particular, embraced and used Google’s YouTube platform and services as a powerful tool for terrorism.” The lawsuit continues, stating that the social media companies not only assisted by providing support and resources but that they also profited from the ISIS content through ad revenue.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs are seeking compensatory damages in amounts to be determined at trial; treble damages; any and all costs sustained in connection with the prosecution, including attorneys’ fees; and an order declaring the defendants violated, and continue to violate, the ATA.
WKMG News 6 posted the entire 122-page lawsuit. You can read that here.
