Washington – Just five days after the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and NetChoice filed an emergency brief asking the Supreme Court to act immediately against an unconstitutional Texas social media law, a diverse group of 38 organizations and individuals filed a series of “friend of the court” briefs in support of the associations’ effort to block enforcement of the statute and preserve First Amendment rights online.
Texas’s HB20 would prevent online platforms from practicing content moderation, forcing them to host dangerous, misleading, and harmful content in an unprecedented violation of the First Amendment. In a tellingly swift response, the following organizations and experts filed amicus and joint amici briefs to the Court in support of CCIA and NetChoice:
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- Chamber of Progress; Anti-Defamation League; Connected Commerce Council; Consumer Technology Association; Engine Advocacy; Family Online Safety Institute; HONR Network; Information Technology & Innovation Foundation; Interactive Advertising Bureau; IP Justice, LGBT Tech Institute; Multicultural Media; National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; National Hispanic Media Coalition; Our Vote Texas; Software & Information Industry Association; Stop Child Predators; TechNet; Telecom and Internet Council; Texas State Conference of the NAACP; Washington Center for Technology Policy Inclusion;
- Former United States Representative Christopher Cox;
- The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press; American Booksellers for Free Expression; American Civil Liberties Union; American Civil Liberties Union of Texas; Authors Guild; Media Coalition Foundation; Media Law Resource Center;
Professor Eric Goldman; - The Copia Institute;
- Center for Democracy & Technology; Electronic Frontier Foundation; National Coalition Against Censorship; R Street Institute; Wikimedia Foundation; Woodhull Freedom Foundation;
- TechFreedom;
- the Cato Institute.
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CCIA has advocated for free speech online for over 25 years. This effort has included protecting the First Amendment right for citizens and businesses to exercise both the right to speak and not to be compelled to speak online.
The following may be attributed to CCIA President Matt Schruers:
“We welcome the extensive support that this cause is receiving on such an expedited timeline from a diverse group of institutions and experts.”