Protest and Online Organizing

Tunisia protest

Protests and Online Organizing

The right to protest is essential for the future of human rights, justice, and democracy. Protests and online organizing are evolving in digital spaces, and autocratic governments are responding with attempts to undermine privacy, quell dissent, and punish those who speak out. We demand governments and companies respect and protect our freedom to assemble, associate, and speak freely, online and off. We also offer activists and human rights defenders digital safety tools and resources.

Tunisia protest

Will the Right to Protest survive its migration online?

The human right to protest is crucial because it is a gateway right —  it onboards us to other rights. Even for those who have never participated in a protest, or ever plan to, many of the rights we enjoy today are the result of others in the past exercising their right to protest for those rights.

Resources

Content Governance

New world disorder: digital attacks on freedom of assembly

Access Now’s latest report examines the power — and fragility — of our rights to peaceful assembly and association in the digital era.

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Freedom of Expression

Iran: alarm over mass arrests of human rights defenders amidst protests

Civil society call for an end to the deliberate violence and arrests against human rights defenders, journalists, and activists during the Iran protests

Digital rights

Freedom of Expression

At the U.N., a new push to end surveillance of protesters — and protect their lawyers

Digital surveillance is threatening the right to protest worldwide. U.N. human rights expert Clément Voule is fighting for strong encryption and tight restrictions on the use of spyware. Here’s why that push is important for human rights lawyers and the activists they represent.

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Freedom of Expression

Arab Spring: ten years in, how can we reclaim the internet as an open space?

The internet played a pivotal role during the Arab Spring protests. But a decade on, the state of internet freedom in many Arab countries has deteriorated. Join us for a virtual conversation to explore the evolution of the digital space from a tool of mobilization to one of repression.

|Image: surveillance cameras on the street.

Covid-19

RightsCon spotlight: “The Privatised Panopticon: Workers’ Surveillance in the Digital Age”

In a session with European Digital Rights at RightsCon, we will explore how surveillance technology can make your workplace function like a prison: a privatised panopticon that threatens labour movements and undermines human rights.

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Digital Security

Human rights groups ask U.N. to intervene in U.S. crackdown on racial justice protesters

Access Now and partners ask the United Nations to take a stand against the U.S. government’s violent response to peaceful protests.

Digital Security

To #SaveDotOrg, we still need safeguards

Today, NTEN, EFF, and Access Now delivered the following letter to the leaders of ISOC and PIR calling on them to reflect and to take immediate action to adopt the safeguards put forward by the #SaveDotOrg campaign.

Latest Updates

Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

Where to find Access Now at FIFAfrica 2023

20 Sep 2023
Post
Where to find Access Now at FIFAfrica 2023
20 Sep 2023
Where to find Access Now at FIFAfrica 2023
مؤتمر المناخ كوب 28
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

COP28: UAE authorities must stop greenwashing human rights abuses

14 Sep 2023
Press Release
COP28: UAE authorities must stop greenwashing human rights abuses
14 Sep 2023
COP28: UAE authorities must stop greenwashing human rights abuses
Gabon's election internet access
Protest and Online Organizing
Protest and Online Organizing

The world must not forget Mahsa Amini

14 Sep 2023

It has been a year since Mahsa Amini died while in the custody of Iran’s “morality police,” leading to waves of protests across the country – and a subsequent crackdown by the country’s rulers against dissent, both offline and online. We’ve mapped some of the troubling trends in Iran’s digital authoritarian playbook.

Post
The world must not forget Mahsa Amini
14 Sep 2023
The world must not forget Mahsa Amini
مؤتمر المناخ كوب 28
Surveillance
Surveillance

Open letter: Governments must address UAE human rights abuses ahead of COP28

14 Sep 2023

Access Now and over 200 organizations call on governments to address the UAE’s human rights abuses ahead of COP28.

Press Release
Open letter: Governments must address UAE human rights abuses ahead of COP28
14 Sep 2023
Open letter: Governments must address UAE human rights abuses ahead of COP28
Transparency
Transparency

An open letter to the RightsCon community about RightsCon Costa Rica and what comes next

31 Aug 2023

We explain the challenges and exclusion some participants faced, apologize and take accountability for our role, and share thoughts on the road ahead.

Post
An open letter to the RightsCon community about RightsCon Costa Rica and what comes next
31 Aug 2023
An open letter to the RightsCon community about RightsCon Costa Rica and what comes next
violence in Cambodia
Content Governance
Content Governance

Online platforms must reject Cambodia prime minister’s incitement to violence

3 Jul 2023

Access Now urges digital platforms to remain alert to incendiary behavior and take steps to prevent online violence in Cambodia.

Press Release
Online platforms must reject Cambodia prime minister’s incitement to violence
3 Jul 2023
Online platforms must reject Cambodia prime minister’s incitement to violence
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

Around the world, threats to LGBTQ+ speech deepen

28 Jun 2023
News
Around the world, threats to LGBTQ+ speech deepen
28 Jun 2023
Around the world, threats to LGBTQ+ speech deepen
Passport and Visa Systems must not exclude members of human rights community around the world
Protest and Online Organizing
Protest and Online Organizing

Joint Statement: Passport and visa systems must not exclude members of the human rights community from cross-border convenings

7 Jun 2023

These discriminatory systems prevent human rights defenders from coming together to advance their work, bring severe hardship and harm to those impacted, and unjustly place the heaviest burden on people from the Global Majority. Join us in taking a stand.

Campaign
Joint Statement: Passport and visa systems must not exclude members of the human rights community from cross-border convenings
7 Jun 2023
Joint Statement: Passport and visa systems must not exclude members of the human rights community from cross-border convenings
Ethiopian government internet
Internet Shutdowns
Internet Shutdowns

Arrêtez de couper l’internet en Guinée : les autorités doivent garder internet accessible pendant les manifestations

24 May 2023

Access Now et la coalition #KeepItOn condamnent fermement les coupures d’internet et la censure des médias dans le pays.

Press Release
Arrêtez de couper l’internet en Guinée : les autorités doivent garder internet accessible pendant les manifestations
24 May 2023
Arrêtez de couper l’internet en Guinée : les autorités doivent garder internet accessible pendant les manifestations
Comunicado conjunto contra la persecución de Oscar Costero
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

Comunicado conjunto contra la persecución de Oscar Costero

22 May 2023
Press Release
Comunicado conjunto contra la persecución de Oscar Costero
22 May 2023
Comunicado conjunto contra la persecución de Oscar Costero
Comunicado conjunto contra la persecución de Oscar Costero
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

Organizaciones de sociedad civil denuncian la persecución del activista venezolano Oscar Costero

22 May 2023
Press Release
Organizaciones de sociedad civil denuncian la persecución del activista venezolano Oscar Costero
22 May 2023
Organizaciones de sociedad civil denuncian la persecución del activista venezolano Oscar Costero
Ethiopian government internet
Internet Shutdowns
Internet Shutdowns

Stop shutting down the internet in Guinea: authorities must #KeepItOn amidst protest

22 May 2023

Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition strongly condemn the internet shutdowns and media censorship in the country.

Press Release
Stop shutting down the internet in Guinea: authorities must #KeepItOn amidst protest
22 May 2023
Stop shutting down the internet in Guinea: authorities must #KeepItOn amidst protest
Tech and conflict
Transparency
Transparency

Tech and conflict: a guide for responsible business conduct

18 May 2023

This guide is meant to help tech companies think through the impacts of their decisions in the context of conflict.

Guide
Tech and conflict: a guide for responsible business conduct
18 May 2023
Tech and conflict: a guide for responsible business conduct
Gabon's election internet access
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

To defend democracy, stand up for civil society 

30 Mar 2023

As governments, businesses, and civil society organizations gather for the 2nd U.S. Summit for Democracy, our message is clear: to defend democracy in the digital age, states must stand up for civil society, online and off.

Post
To defend democracy, stand up for civil society 
30 Mar 2023
To defend democracy, stand up for civil society 
Kazakhstan internet
Freedom of Expression
Freedom of Expression

Ethiopian authorities must stop blocking social media

10 Feb 2023

Authorities in Ethiopia must immediately reinstate full access to social media platforms across the entire country, and put an end to censorship.

Press Release
Ethiopian authorities must stop blocking social media
10 Feb 2023
Ethiopian authorities must stop blocking social media
Image: Taxonomy of internet shutdowns
Internet Shutdowns
Internet Shutdowns

Internet throttling in Bangladesh: government, telcos must #KeepItOn

12 Dec 2022

Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition are demanding unfettered access to all people across Bangladesh at all times.

Press Release
Internet throttling in Bangladesh: government, telcos must #KeepItOn
12 Dec 2022
Internet throttling in Bangladesh: government, telcos must #KeepItOn