'TikTok ban' is more than just TikTok, Unsettle your state representatives

Y'all. We have to push back against a LOT of things, but it's going to be real hard to organize if congress restricts access to different communication technologies and decides to get their grubby hands on the internet. 

This upcoming 'Tik Tok ban' is about more than about one silly little platform, it has the potential to change how we navigate and interact with the internet, social media, and information/news from other countries. This is ultimately going to affect our 1st amendment rights to freedom of speech.

I don't know about you, but I have anxiety and hate making calls, so I typed up a script in case You also have anxiety. Most of it is basically word-for-word just what I heard Alex Perlman (pearlmania500) say on Tik Tok, but I added some more stuff. 

1. Search for your state + local representatives

https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm

https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative

*Senators represent the entire states, but members of the House represent individual districts.*

2. Add your zip code or address

3. Add your contact info

4. Contact Representative Via Phone/Email/Snail-Mail

(or all 3) (or if were really being honest 2)

You MUST be NICE.  MUST. They will listen longer than if you are disrespectful or rageful. Use your best ~customer service voice~, something very *Nice* (but sorta unsettling).

Feel free to make it you're own, I just typed it up because I don't like to do this kind of stuff without some sort of guidance. (༎ຶ⌑༎ຶ)

*Note: If you are a veteran or in the military, let them know that.

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Hi my name is ________. (I'm a veteran / I'm a member of the military)
I'm a voter in your district and I am a member of your political party. I just want to let you know that if you vote to ban Tik Tok, I'm going to spend next year, during the election cycle, volunteering and fundraising for your opponent in the primary. I will spend next year working for anyone, anybody, who primaries you. I will volunteer for their campaign. I'll make calls, I'll send emails, I'll work text banks, and I'll give money to their campaigns. I will not only vote for them, but I will convince as many people as possible, including friends, family, and followers to vote against you so as well. 

In the meanwhile, leading up to this next election cycle, I will convince others people to get involved in the political process and campaign against you. 

The Freedom of speech and association not only protects written, oral, or signed speech, but also many other actions designed to convey ideas. This includes our right to choose our own communication technologies.

Congress should not censor entire platforms and strip Americans of our constitutional rights to freedom of speech and freedoms of expression. I understand there is a concern over data privacy, and national security HOWEVER all social media platforms and other online businesses collect a lot of personal data from their users. Moving forward on these bans is not the solution to our problems. The better approach is to limit how all businesses here collect personal data which would reduce the supply of data that any adversary might obtain.

If you want to understand why I will be able to go out of my way, it is because I will now have the free time to do so because I won't be distracted by social media anymore.

Thank you so much, I look forward to your response. 

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*remember, we are not begging, we are telling :)

I'm not going to pretend I have faith in the political process / system, but inconveniences and annoyances and contacting them is literally *the barest of minimums*. Even if it doesn't work, at least you used your voice.

Good Luck, I believe in you. 
upset them

TikTok's I referenced:

https://www.tiktok.com/@pearlmania500/video/7213862837578485034

https://www.tiktok.com/@pearlmania500/video/7213867702748761386

 Pónganse las pilas
Ay que ser le la lucha