The business software behemoth Salesforce recently announced it would no longer allow companies that sell assault weapons to use its customer management system. The move follows other corporate giants taking stands on the call for gun reform post-Parkland.
On the June 12 Miami Law Explainer podcast episode, Mary Anne Franks unboxes all the first and second amendment issues with a good-for-the-goose, good-for-the-gander look at the powers that twist the Constitution to drive their agendas. Franks takes a deep dive into the subject of her latest book, “The Cult of the Constitution: Our Deadly Devotion to Guns and Free Speech,” where she examines how groups from the NRA to the ACLU have fetishized our nation’s most sacred document.
On the show, “Business Tackles Gun Control,” Franks drills down on the historical – both near and far – of businesses’ role in changing societal issues, whether its airlines discontinuing the NRA discounts or Blacks being able to circumvent Jim Crow laws with the introduction of the Sears and Roebuck catalogue. She also tackles how market forces can overcome opposition by powerful political actors.
Franks is widely known for her national campaign to criminalize the online distribution of intimate images. In 2013, Franks drafted the first model criminal statute on nonconsensual pornography (sometimes referred to as “revenge porn”), which has been used as the template for multiple state laws and for pending federal legislation on the issue.
She also served as the reporter for the Uniform Law Commission’s 2018 Uniform Civil Remedies for the Unauthorized Disclosure of Intimate Images Act. She regularly advises legislators and tech industry leaders, including Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Microsoft, on issues relating to online privacy, extortion, harassment, and threats. Frank is also a highly sought after expert and commentator on nefarious use of deepfake videos and other cybercrimes.
The Miami Law Explainer is a weekly podcast from Miami Law where expert faculty give context, relevance, and significance to the news of the day. The Explainer is available wherever fine podcasts are found, including iTunes, SoundCloud, and Spotify.
