Censorship laws are not just a rumor. We have grown up to the World Wide Web and its easy accessibility, so to even think about a restricted Internet, is just unreal. Well, it’s time to start taking it seriously. SOPA/PIPA are two of the censorship laws that have been causing great steam, especially in recent news. SOPA is a House Bill and PIPA is a Senate bill. SOPA probably won’t be passed, but PIPA might. Even though one has a higher chance of not passing, it doesn’t mean it is 100%. By raising awareness here, we can show the public how these laws can affect so many aspects of our current life.
There are three main aspects as to how censorship laws, specifically SOPA/PIPA, are detrimental to students across the country are as follows; breaks the First Amendment, blocks our usage of search engines, and blocks the “oh so important’ social networking sites that we live off of.
So how is this possible? SOPA, or the Stop Online Piracy Act, and PIPA, Protect IP Act, both have aims to stop “foreign-based websites that sell pirated movies, music and other products,” a stated in The Wall Street Journal online, in an article “What is SOPA Anyway? A Guide to Understanding the Online Piracy Bill,” by Amy Schatz. Now, we understand that this is an issue, but this may be an issue of too much power, rather than the right power. By being able to shut down any website that uploads pirated content, we are allowing courts to have the power to shut down Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking sites that allow their users to upload content freely. They would also block websites and direct people away from search engines that show any pirated content or “promote” any copy infringement.
We, as students, are highly affected by all this. How we learn, how we communicate, and how we collaborate all happens on the internet. By allowing these laws to be passed, we are giving the government the OK to limit our abilities. They will hold our hands behind our backs as we search the web and go to search engines and social networking sites, if they haven’t been shut down already.
image: Anti SOPA Image
What is SOPA Anyway? A Guide to Understanding the Online Piracy Bill
Students Against Censorship 
