Latino Groups to Deliver Tens of Thousands of Petition Signatures Urging FCC to Restore the Open Internet

January 30, 2013

Blair FitzGibbon, (202) 503-6141 

Presente.org, National Hispanic Media Coalition Join Broad National Coalition in Calling On Obama Administration FCC to Protect Net Neutrality

Washington, D.C. - Presente.org and the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) join a broad national coalition in delivering tens of thousands of petition signatures urging Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler to take immediate action to protect the open internet after a federal appeals court struck down a large portion of the FCC's network neutrality rules. The petitions will be included with the hundreds of thousands of signatures gathered collectively by a wide variety of groups set to be delivered at the nation's capital Thursday.

For a basic explanation on network neutrality, visit: https://www.nhmc.org/blog/?p=880

"We demand that the Obama Administration stop corporate control of the internet," said Arturo Carmona, Executive Director of Presente.org, which will contribute 16,000 signatures from its members. "Latinos are among the fastest-growing group of internet users. Latinos cannot afford to allow Verizon, AT&T and other telecommunications companies to either slow or block content and services they don't like or speed up those they like. At a time when communications technology is ubiquitous, Internet freedom is fundamental to basic freedom."

"Without open internet protections, the biggest phone and cable companies are now free to fundamentally change how the internet works for their customers in order to further pad their already astronomical profits," said Jessica González, NHMC's Executive Vice President & General Counsel. "For Latinos and other traditionally disadvantaged Americans who have used the internet to push back against discrimination and to make a living, the consequences of facing yet another gatekeeper are particularly dire. Thankfully, the FCC clearly has the power to restore the open internet and stand up against business practices that would restrict our voices and impede our access to websites we need. I urge the FCC to assert its authority over Internet Service Providers by correcting past mistakes and reclassifying them as 'common carriers."

On the heels of a federal court decision striking down "net neutrality," the rules securing a free and open Internet, Presente and NHMC join a broad, national coalition including Free Press, ColorOfChange, CREDOAction, the ACLU, Sierra Club and many others calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to nullify the court decision by reclassifying Internet services.

Details of petition delivery action in  Washington, D.C. are as follows:

WHO: Presente.org, NHMC, Free Press, ACLU, Sierra Club, Color of Change, and other advocacy organizations.

WHAT: Delivery of hundreds of thousands of petitions urging the FCC to protect the open internet.

WHEN: 12:30 p.m. ET.  Thursday, January 30, 2014

WHERE: Federal Communications Commission

445 12th Street SW

Washington, DC 20554

MORE:  For more information on network neutrality, visit www.nhmc.org/openinternet.

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About NHMC The National Hispanic Media Coalition is a non-partisan, non-profit, media advocacy and civil rights organization established in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. Its mission is to educate and influence media corporations on the importance of including U.S. Latinos at all levels of employment. It augments the pool of Latino talent with its professional development programs. It challenges media that carelessly exploit negative Latino stereotypes. It scrutinizes and opines on media and telecommunications policy issues. Learn more at www.nhmc.org. Receive real-time updates onFacebook and Twitter @NHMC.