Hello signatories of the Harpers letter! As an org that has worked for years to defend free expression, we are so grateful for your concern. We assume any minute now you will issue a statement opposing the reauthorization of the PATRIOT ACT, attacks on encryption & CDA 230 etc
oh and we can only imagine you all endorse the #BanFacialRecognition legislation introduced last month, and will unequivocally call for the repeal of SESTA/FOSTA. And of course it goes without saying you will support a ban on microtargeting and algorithmic amplification
additionally we assume you will use your collectively massive platform to oppose the EARN IT act & call for meaningful anti-trust action against Big Tech companies that restrict democratic debate. We could not be more grateful for your opposition to the criminalization of Antifa.
All in all this is just a great thing. An uprising for freedom of speech and expression. We are overjoyed! Please let us know when you have actually done a single goddamn thing to protect free expression and basic rights. We are ready and waiting to amplify your call.
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Tomorrow, @InternetArchive will file their reply brief in the suit from major publishers to end the right of IA and all libraries to own and preserve spyware-free digital books.
Reading what they’re replying to, we’ve gotta ask:
Who is the real "Napster" here?
A thread.
What the Archive’s book library does is scan paper books to make their own digital copies so that they can loan them without letting tech companies and publishing conglomerates spy on readers. fightforthefuture.org/news/2023-12-0…
And loan such books out in a 1-to-1 ratio, just like they would the paper book sitting in their warehouse, without paying totally atrocious licensing fees over and over. ebooksforus.com
@SenSchumer + @SpeakerPelosi are poised to put special interests before people by ramming through the so-called Journalism Competition and Protection Act.
Instead of holding big tech accountable by bringing #AICOA and #OAMA to a vote as @SenSchumer promised, we are hearing that he’s looking to put a handout to Murdoch, Alden Capital, and Gannett in the National Defense Authorization Act. Why you should be outraged, a thread.
The #JCPA is a pro-monopoly bill, allowing news publishers to form a cartel and demand payment for any links to their content. It’s must-carry, and must-pay, no matter how extreme the content. That's why 20+ civil society and library groups opposed.
NEW: ❤️Fight and @MediaJustice are calling on MGM to cancel their new show, Ring Nation. This trainwreck will use video from Ring cameras to sell surveillance to viewers.
There are so many reasons civil rights groups agree that Ring is dangerous. hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/ed-…
Ring Nation tries to put a friendly face on a dangerous product.
Ring is the figurehead of Amazon’s surveillance empire. Its cameras capture the whereabouts and actions of millions and share warrantless surveillance data with the police. theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
Ring’s DIY surveillance toolkit gives racists a platform to criminalize people of color, and anti-choicers a network to surveil and report abortion seekers.
Will Ring Nation air soundbites of racial profiling? Of hateful anti-abortion confrontations? vice.com/en/article/qvy…
1/6: Creepy surveillance tools are spreading like wildfire across school campuses.
Since moving to remote learning, students like Aaron Ogletree have been forced to show school admin and other students their bedrooms every time they take a test. Aaron sued—and yesterday, he won.
2/6: In a landmark victory, a federal judge in Ohio ruled that remote “room scans” are a warrantless search under the 4th Amendment. These scans use a student’s webcam to probe their room (usually their bedroom 🙃) & are a gross privacy violation.
3/6 This is big. Students like Aaron now have the tools to fight eproctoring tools like Honorlock, Proctorio, and Respondus that invade their private lives, force them to adopt weird behavior to pass an AI check, and discriminate based on race and ability. theverge.com/2022/8/23/2331…
Today is #AntitrustDay, and nonprofits, tech companies, and internet users are uniting in calling on Congress to end Big Tech’s abusive monopolies. We can’t restructure our relationship with tech until we have antitrust laws. Contact lawmakers now. antitrustday.org
The bad provisions in the #InfrastructureBill might be the law, but the fix bill these Senators have introduced is a clear signal:
🔥The fight for a common sense approach to new tech that doesn't entrench Zuck as Ruler of web3 is not over.
We drove 40,000+ calls to the Senate on this issue and we are being heard. The Chair of the Senate Finance Committee is taking a stand, will your Rep join him? Find out: dontkillcrypto.com