The Westminster Declaration: Artists, Journalists, and Intellectuals Demand The Censorship Industrial Complex is Dismantled

If you’re tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The rise – in the West – of online censorship, exactly what it does, and how, has been well documented over the last half a decade now. But beyond voicing an opinion that – due to said censorship – might not even reach a wider audience – what were the “peers of the industry” – when it concerned academia, journalism, entertainment, etc., opposed to this dangerous, unprecedented trend – at least where its length and breadth are concerned – supposed to do? Well, now they have come up with one idea – first, (somewhat reluctantly) branding what’s been happening as a “Censorship Industrial Complex” (which, though it sounds bombastic, on second thought – might easily be exactly what it is). The initiative is called, the Westminster Declaration, and has drawn support from dozens of public figures, with journalists and whistleblowers like Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, and Matt Taibbi among them – but also big entertainment industry names like US actor and filmmaker Tim Robbins, Oliver Stone, legendary UK comedian John Cleese, former ACLU President Nadine Strossen, scientists like Richard Dawkins – and even Greece’s finance minister from the times of the country’s financial collapse, Yanis Varoufakis. Think what you will of any of these people – including economist Jeffrey Sachs, and philosopher Slavoj Zizek – but you cannot say they are speaking out of turn here. Each has a rich personal and professional experience…The Westminster Declaration: Artists, Journalists, and Intellectuals Demand The Censorship Industrial Complex is Dismantled