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Lawmaker Pushing Anti-Photoshopping Bill Victimized by Photoshopping
'No one has the right to make fun of anyone,' says State Rep. Earnest Smith
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Image: Andre Walker
Not that he didn't see this coming.
A Georgia lawmaker became the victim of the very activity he'd like to stamp out after someone photoshopped his head on to a porn star, reports the Daily Caller. Rep. Earnest Smith introduced legislation last year that would make it a misdemeanor, complete with a $1,000 fine, to alter someone's photo in an "obscene" fashion. His efforts are now gaining renewed interest due to Smith's own victimization.
"No one has a right to make fun of anyone," said Smith, who was inspired to craft the law by the story of a teen-age girl subjected to online attacks."
But while Smith claims the legislation doesn't run afoul of the 1st Amendment, the creator of the altered Smith photo says otherwise.
"The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States protects all forms of speech, not just spoken word," said photo-maker Andre Walker, who called the bill "asinine." "It attempts to regulate speech and I doubt it would stand up in a court of law."
Walker also claims to be genuinely gobsmacked by Smith's anger at his antics: "I cannot believe Representative Earnest Smith thinks I'm insulting him by putting his head on the body of a well-built porn star."
Via the Daily Caller and the Athens Banner-Herald.
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