John,

Remember when Ajit Pai took over the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and gutted net neutrality? We’ve been working for years to overturn that corrupt move, and we finally got our chance when the White House nominated Gigi Sohn, a highly qualified public interest advocate¹ who’s free from industry influence.

Sohn has been waiting for Senate confirmation for over a year, and she’s been subjected to a massive telecom-funded smear campaign² because she’s pledged to restore net neutrality and ensure affordable internet access. Now these attacks have reached a shocking new low.

Sohn would be the first openly gay Commissioner on the FCC, and net neutrality opponents have begun blatantly attacking her sexuality. Even worse, only one Senate Democrat has stepped up to defend her. We need Democratic leaders to denounce these homophobic attacks on Sohn. Otherwise, the bigots win.

Take Action

Outlets like Fox News, The Daily Mail, and Breitbart have all launched a slew of false attacks³ that peddle in QAnon conspiracy theories and the worst homophobic tropes. Their argument? Because Sohn sits on the board of the highly respected Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), she must somehow… “oppose” efforts to fight sex trafficking. EFF has opposed⁴ dangerous and misguided legislation like SESTA/FOSTA, which experts have warned for years actually makes it harder to combat sex trafficking while wreaking havoc on online free speech.

If Senate Democrats and the White House don’t condemn these attacks, homophobia and hate will become a go-to strategy for bigots looking to sink any LGBTQ person’s nomination. Tell them to fight these homophobic attacks and stand up for Gigi Sohn.

Thanks,

Evan at ❤️ Fight

1. Letter of support from 375+ people and groups: https://www.freepress.net/sites/default/files/2022-05/GigiSohn-FCC-Support.pdf

2. Los Angeles Times: https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2022-05-19/gigi-sohn-biden-federal-communications-commission

3. Broadcasting and Cable: https://www.nexttv.com/news/preston-padden-isps-complicit-in-smear-campaign-against-fcc-nominee-gigi-sohn

4. EFF: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/01/setting-record-straight-eff-statement-support-fcc-nominee-gigi-sohn