Yesterday afternoon, a House committee caved to the narrow interests of telecom companies and voted to strip Net Neutrality from a bill moving through Congress.

Network Neutrality is the Internet’s First Amendment — without it companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast will move to control what you do, where you go, and what you watch online.

The vote was an outrage, but the fight for Internet freedom is far from over. More important votes are coming in Congress — and we have the momentum.

You are one of more than 250,000 people who wrote and called Congress in the past five days. Because you raised public awareness of this threat to Internet freedom, no member of Congress can in good conscience vote with the telecom cartel.

Politicians take action when they realize the public is paying attention. Yesterday’s vote was much closer than predicted. Call your members of Congress to let them know that no bill should become law without meaningful protections for Network Neutrality:

Sen. Orrin Hatch: (202) 224-5251

Rep. Jim Matheson: (202) 225-3011

Tell them that the public is now watching this issue, and we will not stand for any law that threatens Internet freedom. Network Neutrality must be protected by Congress.

We have ignited a prairie fire of protest. In less than one week, our SavetheInternet.com Coalition has lit up the phones in Congress. We’ve rallied more than 600 blogs to write about this issue. We’ve formed a diverse, bipartisan coalition of more than 75 organizations banding together to fight for a free and open Internet.

Congress needs to hear from you right away. Please call and send a letter to your elected representatives. And don’t forget to spread the word to your friends, colleagues and family:

Stop Congress from Selling Out the Internet

The fight has just begun. We’ve already proven that people can make a difference by simply speaking out. Now, let’s win.

Onward,

Timothy Karr
Campaign Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net

P.S. Stay up to date on breaking developments. Visit SavetheInternet.com

P.P.S. To learn more about yesterday’s Committee vote, see the vote tally and call your representative.