NARAL and the Christian Coalition Ask Verizon: Can You Hear Us Now?
October 17th, 2007 by Jen HowardUnlikely allies NARAL Pro-Choice America and the Christian Coalition have co-authored a Washington Post op-ed calling on Congress to address the censorship policies of phone companies like Verizon and AT&T.
“As the presidents of NARAL Pro-Choice America and the Christian Coalition of America, we are on opposite sides of almost every issue. But when it comes to the fundamental right of citizens to participate in the political process, we’re united — and very, very worried,” write Nancy Keenan and Roberta Combs.
Last month, Verizon arbitrarily banned text messages from NARAL, deeming the lawful political speech too “controversial and unsavory” to send to the NARAL members who had voluntary signed-up to receive the messages.
“Free speech shouldn’t stop when you turn on your computer or pick up your cellphone,” write Keenan and Combs. “Recent actions by the nation’s biggest communications corporations should be of grave concern to all who care about public participation in our democracy.”
When news of the censorship sparked widespread public outrage, the telco giant quickly apologized, reversed its decision and tried to spin the incident as mistake based on a “dusty internal policy.”
For Keenan and Combs, Verizon’s apology doesn’t cut it.
“When it comes to censoring free speech, sorry just isn’t good enough,” they write. “Whatever your political views — conservative or liberal, Republican or Democrat, pro-choice or pro-life — it shouldn’t be up to Verizon to determine whether you receive the information you requested.”
In calling for congressional hearings on the censorship, NARAL and the Christian Coalition join a growing list of organizations, businesses and everyday citizens who want Congress to take immediate action to protect free speech on all communications platforms.
We can’t trust phone companies to safeguard our basic American freedoms.
As NARAL and the Christian Coalition write, “If corporations can’t tell Americans what to say on a phone call, they shouldn’t be able to control content or tell us what to say in a text message, an e-mail or anywhere else. That’s something all Americans — regardless of their political views — can agree on.”
