EFF Calls for Nationwide Protests to Counter CHIPA Internet Blocking Legislation

Call to Action for Protests at FCC Offices, Libraries, and Blocking Companies

Will Doherty, EFF Online Activist / Media Relations
wild@eff.org
+1 415 436 9333

Katina Bishop, EFF Offline Activism & Education Dir.
katina@eff.org
+1 415 436 9333 x101

San Francisco -- The Electronic Frontier Foundation today issued a call to action for nationwide protests on Friday, April 20, 2001, opposing implementation of Congressionally-mandated Internet blocking in schools and libraries. The protests will take place at Federal Communications Commission offices, other federal offices, libraries, and Internet blocking companies, as well as in "blackouts" of websites in support of the protest.

Local organizers interested in protesting Internet blocking are invited to contact EFF to co-sponsor nonviolent protests, to obtain an Internet blocking protest kit, and for help in publicizing the protests.

"The government-mandated requirement for Internet blocking in schools and libraries violates the free expression rights of American, adults and minors alike," explained Will Doherty, EFF Online Activist. "We must protest Congressionally-mandated Internet blocking because it censors Constitutionally-protected materials, stunts the intellectual growth of American children, and weighs unfairly on disadvantaged and 'controversial' communities."

Internet blocking technologies underblock what they are supposed to block and overblock what they are not supposed to block. They rely on subjective control from software product companies many of whom exhibit clear political and religious biases, rather than relying on local communities to decide for themselves. The products are error-prone, vulnerable, problematic, and unfairly discriminatory, denying access to constitutionally protected and educationally important materials that schools and libraries would otherwise provide. Government-mandated censorship does not solve problems better handled through local decision making and educational efforts.

Some protests will take place at offices of the Federal Communications Commission because it is the agency tasked by Congress with enforcement of the Children's Internet Protection Act (CHIPA a.k.a. CIPA) blocking law.

EFF, along with co-sponsors such as the Online Policy Group ( http://www.onlinepolicy.org ), called the protests to demonstrate the widespread public opposition to use of Internet blocking in schools and libraries.

A Long Island protest will take place at 12:00 noon ET on Friday, April 20, 2001, in front of the Federal Court Building on Carlton Ave., just north of the Southern State Parkway, Central Islip, Long Island, NY 11722. Please contact Alex Urbelis at 631-589-2205 (home), 631-467-8844 (work) or by email at alex@2600.com
See http://www.eff.org/events/20010420_11722_rideshare.html for ride-sharing information.

The San Francisco Bay Area protest will take place at 12:00 noon PT on Friday, April 20, 2001, in front of the FCC office at 5653 Stoneridge Drive, Suite 105, Pleasanton, California 94588 (accessible by Dublin/Pleasanton BART). Please contact Will Doherty at 415-436-9333 x111 or by email at wild@eff.org
See http://www.eff.org/events/20010420_94588_rideshare.html for ride-sharing information.

Information on the Internet blocking protests is available on the EFF website at:
http://www.eff.org/br/br1.html

"The Internet is a Terrible Thing to Waste" - Get Involved in Stopping Censorware!

Here are some basic ideas about how to get involved in preventing the spread of Internet blocking, especially in schools and libraries:

• Endorse the Joint Statement Opposing Internet Blocking Requirements in School and Libraries (send your endorsement to statement@onlinepolicy.org).
• Request a copy of your local school and library Internet use policies. Examine them closely and reply with polite, constructive, and firm criticism if they are defective.
• Attend public hearings about school and library Internet policies and voice your views about the effects of Internet blocking on students and library patrons.
• Organize or attend a local protest opposing requirements for Internet blocking at schools and libraries. Try to enlist the aid of librarians, educators and sympathetic library officials and school board members.
• Write your representatives in Congress and your state legislature to urge repeal of the federal Children's Internet Protection Act and any similar state or local legislation or regulations. For more information on how to contact your legislators, see EFF's guide on the topic at:
  http://www.eff.org/congress
• Join the anti-blocking speakers' bureau to help educate and influence opinion on Internet blocking in your local area. (Contact statement@onlinepolicy.org to join.)

For more information about community responses to Internet blocking, see the EFF website at http://www.eff.org/br/

To let EFF know what you are doing about Internet blocking so we can work together and publicize our activities, you can email freespeech@eff.org

For additional background on the blocking debate, see:
http://www.censorware.net
http://www.peacefire.org

About EFF:

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil liberties organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and government to support free expression, privacy, and openness in the information society. EFF is a member-supported organization and maintains one of the most linked-to Web sites in the world:
  http://www.eff.org

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