Every Thursday is Thotty Thursday on the MO Ho Instagram!
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Thotty Thursday’s topic:
What to know about the EARN IT Act
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What is the EARN IT Act?
The EARN IT Act (Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies) is a policy designed to crack down on Child Sexual Abuse Material (or CSAM) online. Instead, it harms sex workers and threatens critical privacy protections such as end-to-end encryption.
The EARN IT Act modifies Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Section 230 protects internet platforms from legal liability for content posted on their website, except in the cases of facilitating or promoting sex trafficking. Section 230 also makes knowingly possessing or sharing CSAM illegal.
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Why does it matter?
The EARN IT Act will allow states to enforce their own laws around CSAM and create more stringent standards for legal liability. This greatly undermines the protections provided to internet platforms in Section 230.
This will encourage internet platforms to proactively search through content and create backdoors to monitor content. It may also pressure internet platforms to eliminate privacy protections, such as end-to-end encryption, altogether.
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Why should we care?
The effect of EARN IT could be similar to those made by earlier policies made and passed to “protect” against sex trafficking.
SESTA/FOSTA (2018) pressured digital platforms to remove any content that could be construed as ‘sexual’ from their platform. Its impact? Sex workers, sex educators, harm reduction specialists, and LGBTQI+ groups were removed en masse from multiple internet platforms.
The EARN IT Act threatens to similarly harm our communities, encouraging de-platforming, censorship, and ending privacy protections.
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But what about the children?
CSAM is already ILLEGAL without the EARN It Act. This new policy is not needed.
The EARN IT Act makes sex workers, LGBTQI+, and people of color unsafe. Sex workers would no longer have spaces where we can safely contact clients, advertise our services or share information.
The EARN It Act does nothing to actually help child victims of sexual exploitation. It does not provide services to survivors or address the underlying factors that cause CSAM.
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Are you concerned?
We understand, and we are, too! As consumers of the internet, our rights to privacy are collectively being threatened.
What can you do about it?
Spread the word! Let people know about this potential policy, and remind them there are other ways to keep young people safe.
Want to know more?
Check the link in bio for our sources.