John,

The subject of internet freedom in Iran has long been a double edged sword. On one side, the Iranian government has consistently cracked down on free expression and access to information by throttling internet speeds, blocking websites and services, and building a national "halal" intranet. Iranians who circumvent these restrictions only face secondary restrictions imposed by tech companies afraid of running afoul of U.S. sanctions. Sanction over-compliance combined with confusing general licensing guidelines and costly waivers has only created more obstacles to internet access for ordinary Iranians.

This is why I hope you'll join us this Friday, March 26th at 12pm ET / 9am PT for our panel entitled Obstacles to Access: A Conversation on Tech Freedom and Iran. [[link removed]]

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Alongside policymakers, Internet freedom advocates, and tech industry leaders, we'll explore actions the Biden administration and tech companies can adopt to support everyday Iranians as they work to secure tech freedom. The panel will include special remarks from Rep. Ro Khanna and a panel discussion featuring Mahsa Alimardani of ARTICLE19, Peter Micek of Access Now, Mike Linksvayer from GitHub, and Amir Rashidi from the Miaan Group.

With the Iranians presidential elections on the horizon and the U.S. and Iran locked in a political stalemate over the nuclear deal, the conversation around tech freedom has never been more imperative. Make sure to RSVP today and join us for a discussion you won't want to miss.

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Best,

Mana Mostatabi
Communications Director, NIAC
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