Pasadena Public Library proudly took part in the “Stop SOPA” Internet Blackout on January 18th, 2012.
We joined internet presences great and small (including Wikipedia, Google, WordPress.org, and many libraries and individual blog owners) to help raise awareness about this pending bill and the severe ramifications it would have on free speech and the freedom of the internet.
By providing a pop-up with quick information about SOPA, its threat to free speech and access to internet content, AND providing a way to contact local representatives with ease, the voices of U.S. citizens have been heard — Brendan Sasso of the Hill.com technology blog wrote:
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) announced on Friday that he will postpone consideration of his Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) until there is wider agreement on the controversial legislation.
“I have heard from the critics and I take seriously their concerns regarding proposed legislation to address the problem of online piracy,” Smith said. “It is clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products.”
Smith’s announcement came just minutes after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced he would shelve the Senate’s version of the anti-piracy legislation, the Protect IP Act.
Smith was the author of SOPA and its most vocal proponent. He had repeatedly said the bill did not need to be changed and accused the critics of “spreading lies.”
But support for the bill collapsed after a massive Web protest on Wednesday. Major sites including Google and Wikipedia either shut down in protest or displayed messages opposing the legislation.
Add to that the Motion Picture Association’s Chris Dodd, saying:
“This is altogether a new effect,” Mr. Dodd said, comparing the online movement to the Arab Spring. He could not remember seeing “an effort that was moving with this degree of support change this dramatically” in the last four decades.
The Pasadena Public Library is actively working to ensure your access to cultural and educational materials by participating in events such as the Internet Blackout.
We are proud to serve the community of Pasadena, Texas both online as well as at both our locations by providing free access to internet resources in both our locations, including free wifi, free computer classes at our business center teaching Microsoft Word, Excel, and classes for Internet en Espanol, as well as easy access to our vast array of online databases both in the library and from the comfort of your home through our site at PPLTX.net.
For more information on the services we can provide, please contact us through this site, or call us at (713) 477-0276.
WIFI Info