SOUND THE ALARM: EMILYs List Women in Minnesota Won’t Let Elon Musk and Pedophiles Win

In case you missed it, just days before the new law was set to go into effect Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI filed a lawsuit challenging a Minnesota law banning apps that digitally alter photos to make someone appear naked. Minnesota is the first state in the country to pass a ban on this technology. The law allows for victims to sue the owners of tech apps for damages, and institutes a $500,000 fine per violation. 

EMILYs List-endorsed Minnesota state Senator Erin Maye Quade and state Representatives Kristin Bahner, Jess Hanson, and Kelly Moller were all co-authors of the legislation, and candidate for Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District Kaela Berg voted to pass the bill as a state representative.

State Sen. Erin Maye Quade, who authored and introduced the law in Minnesota’s state legislature, said in response to Musk’s lawsuit:

  • “I am surprised that Elon Musk’s attorneys had time to file a lawsuit in Minnesota yesterday because they were sued three different times for this exact conduct that is now illegal in the state of Minnesota.”
  • “The audacity to come to Minnesota — that is the first, but not the last state to protect children and the people within this state — the same day you have multiple people across the world suing you for the harm that you’re causing is pretty audacious.”
  • “We will prevent that harm from happening here in the state of Minnesota, and other states will follow suit. When the richest man in the world is suing you because you want to protect kids, you have to wonder, why doesn’t he want them protected?”

Minnesota state Rep. Jess Hanson, who was the chief author of the bill in the Minnesota state House, responded to the lawsuit by stating:

  • “It’s absolutely disgusting that Elon Musk and his xAI are fighting a law designed to protect children from sexual exploitation. Nudification is simply an indefensible tool of AI. As the use of AI continues to grow, so does its potential harms, with nudification features being among the most urgent to address – and that’s exactly why we banned them in Minnesota.”
  • “This is what happens when corporations think they can do whatever they want to make a profit. They’re enabling the sexual exploitation of children for their own greed. Protecting children from pedophiles, sexual exploitation, and the commercialization of crimes should be universal no-brainers.”
  • “I look forward to hearing Elon Musk trying to explain to the public exactly the redeeming qualities he thinks nudification has and why it’s important for him to undermine these critical protections.”

EMILYs List-endorsed nominee for governor, Sen. Amy Klobuchar has fought for similar policies in the U.S. Senate and will continue to do so as governor of Minnesota:

  • “I made it a federal crime to share non-consensual nude images or deepfakes online with my bipartisan TAKE IT DOWN Act. Minnesota became the first state in the country to ban the technology used to create them. Elon Musk’s company is now suing to undo that.”

###