CPSR on the CDA
Court Victory
CYBERSPACE SPEECH VICTORY IS GOOD NEWS,
BUT NOT THE FINAL WORD
This week's decisive victory for First Amendment rights on the Internet
is wonderful news, but it's also just the beginning of a protracted struggle
to ensure free speech rights in cyberspace, according to Computer Professionals
for Social Responsibility (CPSR).
"This is clearly cause for celebration," said CPSR Executive Director
Audrie Krause. Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., CPSR
member Craig Johnson said that an impending "age of electronic book
burning" had been halted in its tracks. "Thanks to a panel of
judges who could read the Constitution, the bonfire never got started,"
declared Johnson.
"But it isn't just the U.S. Congress that has attacked free speech
in cyberspace," Krause warned. Many of the worst aspects of the
Communications
Decency Act are in the process of being implemented by other governments,
she noted. France, Australia, and several other nations have already taken
steps to limit free speech rights on the Internet.
CPSR sponsors several online discussions, including one focused on cyber-rights
and another focused on global computing issues. Participants on both those
lists have communicated concerns about crackdowns on free speech that are
occurring in other nations.
And with the U.S. Department of Justice expected to challenge today's First
Amendment victory over the CDA with an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court,
there is still a lot of hard work ahead for cyberspace activists.
"Today's ruling suggests that the key to ensuring free speech in cyberspace
is to make sure that the technology is understood by those who are in a
position to make our laws," said Krause.
Chief Judge Dolores K. Sloviter, Judge Stewart Dalzell and Judge Ronald
Buckwalter clearly made an effort to understand the technology, Krause said.
CPSR is a public interest alliance of computer professionals and computer
users concerned about the implications of information technology on society.
CPSR is a plaintiff in the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) lawsuit
challenging the constitutionality of the CDA.
Further information regarding CPSR, including information about its cyber-rights
and global discussion lists, is available on the CPSR website at:
http://www.cpsr.org/dox/home.html.