Yes, Alex Jones & Kanye West Deserve To Pay Millions For The Damage They Cause Families Of Victims
Kanye is being sued by George Floyd's 8-year-old daughter.
Wikimedia Commons / Vic Hinterlang / Shutterstock Similar to Alex Jones, Kanye West could potentially face the same fate of having to pay millions for the dangerous rhetoric he's been spewing — and maybe that's a good thing.
The family of George Floyd recently announced that they will be filing a $250 million lawsuit against West following comments that were made about Floyd during his appearance on the podcast "Drink Champs."
The suit will be filed by Roxie Washington, the mother of George Floyd's only daughter, on behalf of their 8-year-old daughter Gianna.
According to a statement from Washington's attorneys, she plans on suing West, his business partners, and associates for "harassment, misappropriation, defamation, and infliction of emotional distress seeking $250 million in damages."
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While on the "Drinks Champs" podcast, West alleged that Floyd died from a fentanyl overdose, which has been debunked by the chief medical examiner who performed Floyd's autopsy.
The medical examiner testified that Floyd's immediate cause of death was the stopping of his heart and lungs that prevented him from breathing due to Derek Chauvin kneeling on his neck.
"Kanye's comments are a repugnant attempt to discount George Floyd's life and to profit from his inhumane death," Attorney Pat D. Dixon III said.
"We will hold Mr. West accountable for his flagrant remarks against Mr. Floyd's legacy."
The lawsuit penned against Kanye West could lead him toward the same fate as Alex Jones.
On October 12, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was ordered to pay nearly $1 billion to the families of eight Sandy Hook shooting victims and an FBI agent who responded to the attack, according to the Associated Press.
Jones faced liability for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violations of the state Unfair Trade Practices Act, for spreading a false narrative that the Sandy Hook massacre was a hoax.
The victims' families argued that Jones profited off of his lies while they were routinely harassed by those who believed Jones' theories.
Jones raked in hundreds of millions of dollars due to the emotional distress he caused Sandy Hook families, and while West hasn't profited off of the comments he made about Floyd, they are still the same.
When people like Jones and West have large platforms that can greatly influence other people, there needs to be a consideration of how words can be harmful.
Yes, there is such a thing as freedom of speech, but it doesn't absolve someone of the consequences that come after spouting dangerous and harmful rhetoric.
West's inaccurate comments against Floyd were an insult to his family who fought for justice after his wrongful death.
The same thing can be said for Jones, who terrorized the families of children murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School, accusing them of being "crisis actors" amid their endless grief after losing their children in such a horrific way.
Jones deserves the financial burden for his brutal words, and it's time West faces that same fate.
It's no longer considered "free thinking" after sitting on a widely-listened podcast just to say incorrect statements like "George Floyd died from fentanyl” or “the officer’s knee wasn’t even on his neck like that."
Men like Alex Jones and Kanye West, who have platforms full of devoted fans, need to face ramifications for their ignorant and false assumptions that cause harm to people who have already been victimized.
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Keep up with her on Instagram and Twitter.