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‘Today is the day’ as FCC readies historic vote on Net Neutrality
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http://eepurl.com/Mci4f After millions made it clear they would not allow the commission, lawmakers or the telecom industry ‘to mess with the Internet,’ broad coalition plans celebrations on verge of historic vote
By Jon Queally | Common Dreams
Champions of the concept known as net neutrality—who have literally been counting the hours—are preparing celebrations on Thursday as the FCC is expected to officially enshrine the policy by reclassifying the Internet as a public utility – a decision which follows intense lobbying over recent months by grassroots organizations and web users who say the vote represents the most important ruling by the commission in a generation.
As Free Press, one of the groups that have led the charge to defend net neutrality by having the FCC place the Internet under what is known as Title II protection, tweeted early Thursday morning: “Today is THE day.”
The FCC’s meeting is scheduled for 10:30 AM EST, with the three Democratic members of the panel expected to approve the reclassification rules, overcoming the opposition of the two Republicans on the panel who have voiced their opposition.
What now appears like a victory, however, was not always assured. Digital activists, civil rights advocates, and others formed a large national (and international) coalition to force the FCC away from previous rules changes that would have betrayed the foundation on which the Internet was built, which is that all digital traffic should be treated equally by the Internet Service Providers (ISPs), which include the well-known cable giants such as Comcast, Time Warner, and AT&T.
As Evan Greer, a campaign manager for advocacy group Fight for the Future, told the Guardian on Thursday while he stood among other activists outside FCC headquarters in Washington, D.C.: “We need to send another signal that you can’t mess with the internet.”
In an op-ed published on Thursday, Malkia Cyril, the founder and executive director of the Center for Media Justice, praised the work of those who fought so hard to make reclassification a political possibility, and now, a reality.
“If the rumors are true,” Cyril writes, “it looks like these activists, and the over 4 million people who advocated for strong net neutrality rules, might just get the protections they’ve been waiting for.”
And, she continued:
The open internet is the first and only mass communications platform to allow under-served communities to bring injustices once in the shadows to light, and speak truth to power.
That’s why if the FCC protects internet users with strong network neutrality rules this week, I will be among those clapping and crying for joy. Though the struggle for equal communication rights and access is far from done, an open internet gives those without traditional power the tools to plead our own cause – and that is something worth fighting for.
As Matt Wood and Candace Clement of Free Press explained earlier this month, there’s a reason that Thursday’s vote by the FCC is, colloquially-speaking, “the biggest deal ever.” They explained:
Title II doesn’t just restore the principles of nondiscrimination that have served as the bedrock of two-way telecommunications policy in the U.S. It also gives the FCC the authority it needs to preserve universal and affordable access, competition and consumer protections for broadband users. Like Net Neutrality, these foundational principles are at the core of our communications needs for the next century and beyond.
With Title II we have the legal authority we need to win the battles that are coming around the bend. Folks in Congress who are in the pocket of ISPs will try to tear this victory down. ISPs will search for ways to skirt the law — and they’ll sue to overturn it. But we’ll stand on the strongest legal footing possible to win in Congress and in the courts.
If the FCC votes to reclassify under Title II, it will be one of the greatest public policy victories in decades — because it’s not a defensive move. Title II is the law the FCC should have applied all along, and reclassification is a proactive push to protect the rights of Internet users at a time when companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon are trying to control the market and strengthen their monopoly status.
A Title II win will prove that organized people can trump organized dollars — and that industry’s half-assed attempts to co-opt grassroots language are no match for the innovative tactics of true Net Neutrality activists.
Follow the #netneutrality hashtag on Twitter for ongoing updates and commentary:
This article originally appeared on Common Dreams.
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