Infuriatingly, they signed an industry-backed letter telling the FCC to abandon efforts to protect Internet users by prohibiting big companies from blocking Internet traffic.
Not only is this letter an attack on net neutrality, but by signing the industry letter, these Democratic members of Congress are attempting to drastically undercut the FCC's ability to make a fast, affordable and open Internet available to everyone in America — they are actually taking a position against the interests of rural and low-income communities.

This is unacceptable.

We need to make sure they know that their constituents and other consumers are paying attention and will hold them accountable when they undermine net neutrality protections.

Click here to automatically sign our petition to the 74 Democrats telling them that you're upset by their decision to side with the wealthy telecommunications corporations over their constituents

What this comes down to is a principle known as "net neutrality." Net neutrality means that Internet users, not Internet service providers, should be in control. It ensures that Internet service providers can't speed up, slow down, or block Web content based on its source, ownership, or destination.

Of course broadband providers are insisting that we should just trust them and there's no need for consumers to be protected by net neutrality rules. But we cannot trust AT&T, Verizon or Comcast to protect a free and open Internet any more than we could trust BP to protect the oceans.

Without strong net neutrality rules, we might have to rely upon the good will of large telecoms to protect our access to the diversity of political perspectives. We might have to trust companies like Comcast, which actively and secretly interfered with users' ability to access popular video, photo and music sharing applications. We might have to trust companies like AT&T, which censored anti-Bush comments made by Pearl Jam's lead singer during a concert.

A free and open Internet is an important part of 21st Century democracy, but these members of Congress signed a letter that undercut the efforts of the FCC to make sure the Internet stays free and open.

In other words, they decided to stand with wealthy corporations rather than stand up for your interests.