The World Wide Web was created on a philosophical foundation of freedom and equality, but over the years those principles have faced many threats from bad actors seeking to make ever-increasing quantities of money off of the billions of people who depend on the internet for their livelihoods, relationships, and lifestyles. In 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) attempted to combat these threats with a set of Open Internet rules. But its efforts were full of legal and practical holes, and in 2014, when—after a legal challenge from Verizon—those rules were overturned, the FCC set about drafting a new set of rules better suited to the challenge.

Among other groups, the Electronic Frontier Foundation—a nonprofit founded in 1990 to champion user privacy, free expression, and innovation through litigation, policy, activism, and technology—was incredibly instrumental in helping draft this new policy and ensuring that freedom and equality of information would be ensured for future generations of internet users.

And then in 2017, of course, the new chair of the FCC dismantled the Net Neutrality rules, but despite their best efforts, it isn’t dead; the repeal is currently being challenged in court, in Congress, and by the states.

Today, it is more important than ever to support organizations like EFF who are working tirelessly to make sure that the internet that we all depend on stays free.

Visit their website to learn more about what the Electronic Frontier Foundation does or to donate.

Image courtesy Electronic Frontier Foundation