American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Advocacy Alert – November 2017
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is scheduled to vote on December 14 to rescind its 2015 Open Internet Order to implement and enforce net neutrality. Under the leadership of the FCC’s new chairman, Ajit Pai, the new proposal would repeal rules that bar internet service providers (ISPs) from blocking, slowing access to or charging more for certain content.
Equal access to information is a fundamental principle of the internet. Net neutrality ensures that everyone–whether a researcher, attorney, self-represented litigant, small business owner, or student–has a consistent and reliable way of accessing information online.Net neutrality protects intellectual freedom, which is critical to democracy. Law librarians strongly believe in the right of the public to be informed. Net neutrality provides all internet users with access to lawful content on the web, regardless of ISPs’ opinion of the material. AALL supports nondiscriminatory access to information for all library users. Read more in our advocacy one-pager.
The FCC is no longer accepting public comments, so it is vitally important that you contact your members of Congress to voice your support for net neutrality. We need to be heard, and hope that Congress forces a delay of the December 14 vote.
Western Pennsylvania Law Library Association 