On Feb. 11, 2014, in honor of the dual-anniversaries of Aaron Swartz’s death and the SOPA Internet blackout, there will be a global day of action in opposition to mass surveillance. We are proud to be one of the core organizers, along with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, DemandProgress, Mozilla, Reddit, and many others.
You can help make this the biggest protest since Edward Snowden's revelations began last year.
The event is well-timed to get real reform moving in the US, to spark actual debate/discussion elsewhere, and to contribute momentum to the buildup of events later this year like the upcoming Brazil Meeting on Internet Governance.
On “The Day We Fight Back,” millions of Internet users will make their voices heard. We will call and e-mail lawmakers demanding reform to the laws that are being used to justify massive human rights violations on a global scale. We will endorse new principles for privacy and security online. Owners of websites will install banners to encourage their visitors to fight back against surveillance, and employees of technology companies will ask that their organizations do the same. Internet users are being asked to develop memes and change their social media avatars to reflect their demands.
The date has been set. Now we need to rally together to make this a unifying movement.
Here are some things you can do:
- Reach out to individuals you know who run websites, especially high-traffic web platforms and talk to them about participating.
- Promote via your social media and in online communities or lists you participate in.
- Sign up your personal website to participate.
- Convince your employer to join us and other companies like Reddit, Mozilla and Tumblr in participating.
The hub for the day is https://thedaywefightback.org. Sign up to keep informed and register your website as a participant!
Disclaimer: The statements and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the positions of Thoughtworks.