A group of United States veterans resolved to use this year’s Fourth of July as an opportunity to call for Congress to reinstate net neutrality protections that were recently eliminated by the Federal Communications Commission. In cooperation with digital rights nonprofit Fight for the Future, the activist veterans are now urging their peers to sign an open letter to Capitol Hill demanding the reversal of the FCC’s highly polarizing decision. Both veterans and active service members depend on a completely open Internet in order to be able to communicate with their loved ones and families, as well as access basic services pertaining to employment, education, and healthcare, the group claims, adding that the repeal of net neutrality has the potential to limit their options, make them more expensive, or both.
All U.S. veterans interested in supporting the push for the return of net neutrality protections are now being asked to sign an open letter that can be accessed by referring to the banner below. Fight for the Future is asking everyone else to share the letter on social media and via other means so as to draw more attention to its cause. U.S. veterans interested in personally endorsing the letter in another manner are being asked to contact the nonprofit directly for more information on the “Vets for the Net” initiative, as well as details on how they could go about doing so.
Broadband and wireless Internet service providers in the country repeatedly argued that they’re not against the idea of an open Internet itself but claimed the Title II regulations put in place by the FCC under the former Obama administration in 2015 were the wrong approach to the issue due to the fact that they classified them as utility providers and hence placed them under unfair regulations. While the likes of AT&T already called for Congress to intervene and create an “Internet Bill of Rights” meant to regulate net neutrality, they’re also lobbying for paid prioritization not to be outlawed, which critics claim is just a differently presented way of throttling and — consequently — censoring the World Wide Web.
'Veterans Support Net Neutrality' Letter