Everyone remembers the Miley Cyrus photo scandal, right? No, not the one where she and her father were groping each other. The other one, where Miley and her friends were photographed making “slant eyes” at the camera. During the week-and-half long ordeal where Miley didn’t apologize, then she did apologize, an Asian advocacy group decided to sue Miley for $4 billion for “violation of civil rights”.
During the whole incident, Miley pretty much acted like a bratty teenage girl. Which is so totally shocking! Or not. When she finally gave a real apology, all of the angst pretty much died down, but there was still this lawsuit pending from the Asian group. Miley’s lawyers have now filed a “request for judicial notice in support of demurrers” which basically means Miley’s lawyers want the case thrown out because it’s stupid. They have a point. Radar Online has more:
After taking a photo that launched a thousand stories, Miley Cyrus is fighting back against a $4 billion dollar lawsuit claiming the singer violated civil rights by discriminating against those of Asian-Pacific Islander descent.
The lawsuit stems from a picture in which Cyrus, sitting atop her boyfriend Justin Gaston’s lap, pulled her eyes backwards into a slanted position. In the photo, she is surrounded by a group of friends doing the same thing as a male Asian American pal sits in the middle with his eyes wide open.
“As admitted by Plaintiff in her Complaint, Defendant [Cyrus] did not intend to discriminate,” the document released by the Los Angeles Superior Court on March 10 states. The document was officially a “request for judicial notice in support of demurrers” which means that regardless of whether the plaintiff’s set of facts is correct, they are insufficient and the defendant should not have to answer them or proceed with the case.
In the papers, Cyrus’s lawyers call the complaints “frivolous” and that the claims “lack standing.”
The plaintiff, Lucie J. Kim, wants $4,000 in damages for each potential plaintiff.
A hearing is requested for April 24, 2009.
From Radar Online
I have no idea if Miley’s actually had an “intent to discriminate”, mainly because I don’t think she’s bright enough to form that kind of intent. Otherwise, I think her lawyers have a pretty good rebuttal: no, that’s stupid. That’s what it boils down to, and they’re right! It is stupid to bring a class-action lawsuit on a dumb teenage girl who made “slant eyes” at a camera. Miley wasn’t beating up Asian kids, she was just being a brat. Enough with this lawsuit business. I really hope the judge throws the case out.
Miley Cyrus is shown out having lunch with her parents and boyfriend on 3/22/09. Credit: WENN.com
Much as I think the girl needs a smack upside the head, the lawsuit is.. yeah. They should save this sort of action for intentional, serious racism cases. Not a dumb teenage girl with poor judgement who happens to be very rich.
The lawsuit actually (sort of) ticks me off. 4 billion?! Seriously? Discrimination laws were more or less put in place to prevent individuals from being discriminated against in hiring, credit decisioning, promotional opportunities, etc… Those laws have nothing to do with a stupid girl pulling her eyes in a slanty position. These types of things just lower the level of belief and credibility for everyone.
Ordinarily I would agree with all of the above, but… this is Miley Cyrus, and if her humble pie costs 4 bill then please, order up.
$4 billion is abuse of our judicial system. Judge Judy would throw out the case.
Whatever creepy wierdo Miley.. PAY UP HO !!
Listen, she’s not creepy or weird or a “ho”, whatever that is supposed to mean this week, and should not have to pay vast sums of money to anybody that screams, just because she has some; she’s just a teenager and has learned from her mistake. This is how teenagers learn, and it illustrates how absurd and ridiculous the business of filing lawsuits against rich folk is just because they have money. Time to grow up America. Nobody can afford frivolous lawsuits anymore and it wastes time the judicial system could better use to try actual criminals, not as an excuse to smack down wealthy teenagers, or cover up silly mistakes.
Well said gg, I couldn’t agree more.
New to this story, but let me say that the frivolous, ridiculous tone of the suit cheapens and belittles the legitimate struggles of minorities for equal treatment. Particularly the hundreds of Japanese American citizens during world war 2 who were stripped of homes, businesses, property etc and herded into concentration camps here in the USA and received NO recompense of any kind. Where’s the outrage over this ?
This made me so mad when I first heard about it. Some people will do anything for money.
gg–you put it perfectly!
surely this won’t actually come to court…ridiculous.
I do agree with you, gg, your comment is very well-put, but this girl doesn’t learn. I do think this lawsuit is going to get thrown out, it’s absolutely ridiculous, but she does need something like this, something huge, to seriously move forward with actual consequences before she’ll learn. Her parents aren’t disciplining her, obviously, so why not let the judicial system do it?
Alright.
Let me explain something to everyone.
First off, a “demurrer” or a motion to dismiss is something ALL defendants file. Always. No matter what. It’s the first move in response to a complaint. Even when they’re totally guilty, the first move in civil court is a demurrer. I should know.
Second, I really really doubt that the intent is to actually get money from her, but rather, to show that racism still exists for Asian Americans. Other minorities see us as the “model minority” and all that jazz, but in reality, we get racism too. And a lot of it, but it’s just more acceptable because hey, it’s kids being kids. Or it’s harmless because hey, it’s not my fault I don’t speak Asian. (YES. I have had MORONS say that to me before.)
BTW. For the person mentioning internment camps, you realize they haven’t overturned Korematsu yet right? his conviction was (finally, like 40 years after the fact) but the initial ruling of race-based classification being ok, never was.
So yes, I do find this lawsuit particularly idiotic, however, I see its relevance. I see that it goes beyond teaching a young woman a lesson. Asians get discriminated against, who cares, but throw in any other ethnicity and boy, there’d be an uproar.
Then you need to sue anyone and everyone that looks at you wrong. You only sue people with money .How is that not discrimination. Why not sue the rest of the kids in that photo including the Asian one who was in it and laughing?? I am sick of this crap
that because some one doesnt like a photo or what someone says they run to the courts and cost us money because WE pay the damn judges and juries not you. Too bad if she made slant eyes. SHe was wrong but she did nothing to make it worth 4 billion and the only thing she has learned is that she is a target because she has money and the people in the photo who did it too are not targets because people cant suck their money away from them if they dont have any.
It’s not the money, it’s the influence she has and the publicity this garners.
Get it?
It’s similar to the strategies used during the Civil Rights Movement by the brilliant NAACP.
Racism happens on the general level (sadly) but on the grander scale, when it’s someone who sells millions of records, movies, lipgloss, backpacks – having that person held responsible says something more than suing Tom and Sue down the street.
OH F*CK OFF. what is WRONG with you ppl???
She is a f_cking teenager. TEENAGERS DO STUPID THINGS!!! Suing is for adults only. and $4 BILLION? oh COME ON… that just makes me really angry… and last time I checked, holding your eyes so that they go slanty is not racist. It is not derogatory at all. It could only be derogatory if you think there is something wrong with having slanty eyes. And there is not. That’s like me being brunette and dying my hair blonde and then all these aryans come out sayin im being racist cos i made my hair blonde… hello its b-llshit. and how come that jonas twirp can do it and nobody cares but miley gets sued??