Parents of the victims of the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, are suing major American companies on the allegation that they glorified guns and violence, in part leading to the deaths of 19 children.

Uvalde

Parents of children killed and injured in the Uvalde school shooting have initiated legal action against several companies, including the makers of the video game Call of Duty, gun manufacturers, and major social media platforms. The lawsuits claim these companies played a role in promoting or facilitating the use of firearms, specifically the type used in the attack, and contributed to the circumstances that led to the tragedy.

The legal challenges face significant hurdles, as federal laws provide certain protections for both gun manufacturers and technology companies against such lawsuits. However, the plaintiffs argue that the companies' actions, such as targeted algorithms and marketing, go beyond these protections. If the courts allow the cases to proceed, it could set a precedent for future litigation against similar companies.

Uvalde parents sue companies for gun violence promotion

They're trying to connect a chain of events from what happened in that school that day, back through the fellow that brought the firearm to campus and started shooting, back to how he got the gun, got interested in it, and so on and so forth. The parents sue Call of Duty, the most popular game series of all time, for glorifying the same gun purchased and used by the 18-year-old in Uvalde, and the tech companies that gave both platforms responsible in part for what happened at Robb Elementary. 21 killed, including 19 children and 17 others injured. There's a claim against the gun manufacturer for sort of selling to people like the buyer that ultimately dealt the harm in Uvalde. There's a claim against Activision for selling a game that essentially teaches you how to operate that kind of firearm. And there's claims against the social media companies for making the other companies look good. David Cole says both gun manufacturers and tech companies have federal laws that shield them from many of these type lawsuits. For Meta and Instagram, it's the Communications Decency Act, and a part of that considers tech companies no different than a power company that sends electricity through its lines. But one of the arguments that's developed in these cases is no, you're not like the power company. You have algorithms that actually go into the flow of information on your site, and you adjust it and send it to people who you think are gonna be more interested and wanna interact with it more. A lot of eyes watch it because the laws that protect Meta and weapons manufacturers are designed to insulate them from lawsuits about certain activities. If they can show up, take a crack in that armor and get behind it, then they get to pursue discovery, then they get to build their case, then they go to go to trial, and that could really have some adverse consequences for the defendants.

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