Case: 12-57302, 05/18/2015, ID: 9540348, DktEntry: 197-1, Page 32 of 42
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GARCIA V. GOOGLE
wish to see it even if YouTube no longer hosts it. Bottom
line: Garcia’s requested injunction won’t change anything
about the content of the film or the part, however limited, she
played in its making.
Of course, Garcia’s role in making the film has been
completely misunderstood. She never actually uttered the
highly offensive words her character speaks in the film. She
had no idea that the scenes in which she appeared would later
be used as part of an anti-Islam diatribe, and she strongly
opposes the film’s message. Correcting these misperceptions
might well eliminate or reduce the threat Garcia faces, but she
has already taken numerous steps to do just that. She has
publicly denounced the film and done everything within her
power—including bringing this lawsuit—to disassociate
herself from the film’s hateful message.
The declaration submitted by Garcia’s expert on Islamic
and Middle Eastern law—the only evidence she offered that
addresses causation directly—candidly describes the tenuous
causation theory Garcia relies on. Garcia’s expert did not
assert that removing the film from YouTube would likely
cause the fatwa against her to be lifted. He instead noted that
Garcia’s “public statements condemning the film here have
been received in the Muslim world with controversy,” and
opined that removing the film from YouTube would cause
others to believe that Garcia’s condemnations are sincere: “If
she is successful in pulling the content down from the
internet, it will likely help her in terms of believability of her
message condemning the film and its message.” (Emphasis
added.)
In my view, this sparse evidence does not show that
removing the film from YouTube would be likely to mitigate
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