IP: EFF Calls for CIPE Protest April 20

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

>
>******** www.cybertelecom.org **********
>
>http://www.eff.org/br/br1.html
>
>ALERT: EFF Calls for CHIPA Censorware Law Protests
>
>Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Advisory, April
>2, 2001
>
>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
>Monday, April 2, 2001
>
>EFF Calls for Nationwide Protests to Counter CHIPA
>Internet Blocking Legislation
>
>Call to Action for Protests at FCC Offices, Libraries,
>and Blocking Companies
>
>Contacts:  Will Doherty, Online Activist / Media
>Relations, wild@eff.org, 415-436-9333  Katina Bishop,
>Offline Activist, katina@eff.org, 415-436-9333 x101
>
>April 2, 2001 -- 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.
>
>The San Francisco Bay Area protest will take place at
>1200 noon on Friday, April 20, in front of the FCC
>office at 5653 Stoneridge Drive, Suite 105,
>Pleasanton, California 94588 (accessible by
>Dublin/Pleasanton BART).
>
>More information on the Internet blocking protests is
>available on the EFF website at:
>http://www.eff.org/br/br1.html
>
>The Electronic Frontier Foundation (
>http://www.eff.org ) 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 websites in the
>world.
>
>   - end -
>
>"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
>
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