Lawsuit against Google alleges pro-life censorship

A Florida woman is taking legal action against Google, alleging that the tech giant blocked her from accessing her account after she attempted to organize a Catholic Mass and group prayer event outside a local abortion clinic.

Photo credit: Mick Haupt

Highlights

By Catholic Online (California Network)
7/31/2024 (4 months ago)

Published in U.S.

Keywords: Catholic News, Google, Censorship, Abortion in the United States, Pro-Life Advocacy, Thomas More Society

Trudy Perez-Poveda, a member of the pro-life group Family for Life (FFL), filed a lawsuit last week in Florida circuit court. According to the suit, in September 2023, Perez-Poveda sent an email to members of her Jacksonville-area pro-life group, notifying them of an upcoming Mass outside an abortion clinic adjacent to FFL's offices. Approximately one hour later, Google allegedly suspended her account without explanation.

After several days of attempting to recover her account, Google informed Perez-Poveda that it had been permanently disabled for violating the company's "acceptable use policy." When pressed for details, Google cited "security reasons" for not sharing the exact cause of the suspension. Additionally, the company stated it could not retrieve over a decade's worth of data and messages from the account due to the suspension.

The Thomas More Society, a legal advocacy group, is representing Perez-Poveda in the lawsuit. The group sent Google an initial legal demand regarding the dispute but received no response. In a statement, Perez-Poveda expressed her distress, comparing the loss of data to coming home to a house furnished with family mementos over 12 years, only to find it completely empty without explanation.

Matt Heffron, a lawyer with the Thomas More Society, highlighted the growing concern of censorship in the country. "Large social-media companies act as a 'digital public square' and play a central role in the debate of ideas," Heffron said. He emphasized that the lawsuit is a crucial part of the pushback against this rising tide of censorship. "Nobody should be treated the way Google treated Trudy Perez. She is a delightful person: humorous, warm, peaceful, prayerful, and absolutely persistent," he added.

The lawsuit seeks both preliminary and permanent injunctions against Google, as well as statutory and actual damages and lawyer's fees.

In a remarkably similar turn of events, Your Catholic Voice Foundation (YCVF), a non-profit primarily supporting free, online Catholic education, faced significant setbacks when it was deplatformed in January 2024, likely over its pro-life stance. This disruption severely impacted its charitable activities, leading to substantial losses. Despite rebuilding its platforms with the help of many generous donors, YCVF still requires considerable support.

The threat of censorship against Christians, especially those persons and organization that express pro-life views, is quite real. In Germany, a law was recently passed criminalizing Christian gatherings in the vicinity of abortion mills. At the same time, Christian symbols and traditions are free for others to co-opt and pervert for their "art" and other offensive uses. When this happens, it is free speech. There is no objection to free speech, even when it is offensive. The problem is the double-standard, which in many cases condemns Christians for exercising their speech versus others who are free to act without fear of responsibility. 

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