House Judiciary Committee Moves Internet Freedom Bill
May 26th, 2006A bipartisan majority on the House Judiciary Committee yesterday passed the “Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act” - a good bill that would use antitrust law to protect Network Neutrality, according to the SavetheInternet.com Coalition led by Free Press.Net.
But the questions remain: Will the Internet remain in the hands of users and innovators? Or will a handful of telephone and cable companies determine which Web sites you see and which you don’t?
“Yesterday’s vote - a milestone for our movement - would have been unthinkable just three weeks ago,” said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press.Net. “But we’ve shown once again that organized people can defeat powerful corporations.”
The opponents of net neutrality spent untold millions on high-priced lobbyists, slick ad campaigns and fake grassroots groups, he said. But the voices of hundreds of thousands of citizens made the difference.
The SavetheInternet.com Coalition led by Free Press now boasts nearly 700 groups that span the political spectrum, including MoveOn.org, the Christian Coalition, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Gun Owners of America, Consumers Union, and the American Library Association. Thousands of blogs have taken up the cause. Yesterday, the coalition’s petition drive surpassed 750,000 signatures.
“Our top priority is increasing the number of people who know about this threat to Internet freedom,” Silver said. He urges people to find five friends to join the fight.
“The struggle in Congress isn’t over,” he said. “Our work is not done. But momentum is on our side.”
The full House will take up the bipartisan Judiciary bill (H.R. 5417) - as well as the massive rewrite of the Telecom Act - after they return in June. The Senate is also considering major legislation that currently fails to protect Net Neutrality, though a bipartisan group of Senators are lining up behind the excellent Snowe-Dorgan bill (S. 2917).
What people can do:
1. Sign the SavetheInternet.com petition and send a message to Congress.
2. Check out the latest news on the SavetheInternet.com blog.
3. Learn the facts. Read the report on Why Consumers Demand Internet Freedom.
Tags: Net Freedom
