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| by Kathryn |
You may or may not have heard about two pieces of Congressional legislation in the works -- the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) -- but the fact that you're online right now, reading this blog post means that they could potentially profoundly affect you.
In short, these acts would empower the government to block or restrict websites based on the desires of corporations. It would infringe upon the innovation and growth within the web industry. It would violate many Americans' conception of the Internet as a bastion of free speech, creativity and productivity. And it will very likely pass without citizens taking action against it.
And where action is needed, it's no surprise to find Meetups involved.
Tech Meetups are a rapidly growing topic on Meetup, and even though these acts could impact everyone who uses the Internet, tech groups are currently spearheading the on-the-ground movement against PIPA and SOPA. The New York Tech Meetup, NYC's largest group with nearly 20,000 members, has declared an emergency Meetup, calling on every concerned resident to take to the streets. In solidarity, the Hackers and Founders Meetup of the Bay area scheduled their own Meetup to rally folks in and around San Francisco.
On Wednesday, January 18, members of the tech community in both cities will meetup to give a physical voice and presence to their demand that our Congress men and women halt their support of PIPA and SOPA. There are related Meetups in the works in other cities around the U.S.
If you're in New York, go here to participate: NY Tech Meetup
If you're in the Bay area, go here: Hackers and Founders Meetup
This won't be the last action needed against this legislation. There's nothing more powerful than self-organized people -- particularly constituents -- so get involved with your local Meetup Organizers and members to figure out what you can do together.
For more information on SOPA and PIPA, and to take online action, check out http://americancensorship.org/
