FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 28, 2017
CONTACT Clarissa Corona 213.718.0732 communications@nhmc.org
BREAKING: Broadband Privacy Decision Leaves Latinos Vulnerable to Corporate Sharing of Personal Information, Says NHMC
Today, despite a flood of more than 20,000 calls from Americans asking their lawmakers to preserve the Federal Communication Commission’s broadband privacy rules, the House of Representatives voted to use the Congressional Review Act to rescind these vital consumer protections in a 215-205 decision. The bill will also prevent the FCC from issuing similar rules in the future to protect consumers, and just needs a signature from President Donald J. Trump to be finalized. The National Hispanic Media Coalition released the following statement from Carmen Scurato, director of policy and legal affairs: “Today’s vote is a disturbing rubber stamp from conservative policymakers aimed at dismantling needed consumer protections for corporate profit. With the approval of the president, corporations will now be handed the ability to share the sensitive, personal information of millions of Americans without their consent and hinder the FCC’s role as a consumer watchdog far into the future. “We urge President Trump to listen to the opposition of Americans across the country, particularly Latinos who are increasingly concerned about the kind of information that is being collected about us, how it is being shared and with whom. The decision to use information about our families should never leave our hands, and we hope that Internet Service Providers will value long-term customer loyalty over short-term profits.” More than 20,000 Americans called Congress and made their voices heard against rolling back strong privacy rules in only two days. The National Hispanic Media Coalition, Color of Change, Daily Kos, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Free Press, sent calls to action to their networks, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent a letter to 11 Internet Service Providers asking them to make their position on the resolution public.###
The National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) is a media advocacy and civil rights organization for the advancement of Latinos, working towards a media that is fair and inclusive of Latinos, and towards universal, affordable, and open access to communications. Receive real-time updates on Facebook, Twitter @NHMC and Instagram @NHMC_org.
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