It is carried out by governments and private groups all over the world. While some information can be harmful if dispersed to the public, (i.e. child pornography, national security info, false accusations, etc.) there is a constant struggle over what the public has the right to see, hear, or say.
Many government, private, and religious groups have attempted to suppress information throughout history at the expense of private citizens. Governments have been involved in censoring media reports that paint them in a bad light, jailing journalists who don’t follow guidelines. From the Tiananmen Square Massacre to WikiLeaks there has been a concentrated effort to control what the people know. In the modern era, we are seeing these issues starting to affect more platforms of speech with the expansion of social media and tech companies. Many global companies have been accused of pushing their own ideologies and helping governments suppress expression. We find ourselves at a very important crossroads where me must decide if we will support the freedom of expression, or become the ones who suppress it.
This project was created to give a small taste of what censorship looks like in an attempt to inform people of some of the human rights abuses we face. If we don’t act soon, the idea of freedom to speak, to hear, to see will be something of the past. If we don’t pay attention to what is happening around us, by the time we do, it will be much too late. Please support free expression by pushing back against censorship and suppression.