The Internet is becoming and increasingly censored place for youth. Once considered a beneficial archive of information, many authorities now fear it as a dark place full of corrupting influences. Schools, libraries, and even homes are installing Filtering software those blocks out large swaths of the Internet and restrict young people's freedoms of thought and expression. In 1996 a student named Bennett Haselton took objection to this and formed the online organization Peacefire, a youth-run alliance against censorship.
"Filtering Software" is a euphemism used for censorware. Ostensibly used to block access to pornography, hate groups, and other such detritus, the websites that are censored are often selected with political motivation. Programs such as CYBERsitter do not just block access to porn, but to sites advocating political views the authors of the software disagree with. This is not made known to the customers. Groups such as the National Organization for Women, Human Rights Watch, and Peacefire themselves find themselves censored. Conservative groups exploit the knee-jerk censorship reaction of parents to surreptitiously censor benign web pages whose political views they oppose.
Peacefire has been on the frontline in opposition to censorware and for the free speech rights of young people. Since it's founding Peacefire has grown by leaps and bounds, with a member over 3,300 and growing. Anyone can join by simply filling out a form on the web page. Members write letters to the editor, organize protests, and even create parodies to oppose the censorship movement.
Members of Peacefire have been interviewed for prominent media outlets such as Wired, have worked alongside the American Civil Liberties Union against censorship bills. Their web page features a daily "blocked site of the day" from censorware archives of blocked sites, and it is often surprising who is blocked. They also have downloadable programs that crack blocked sites so you can see what the real agenda is behind the censorware your school or library uses. Peacefire also highlights current cases and issues in censorship, such as young people who are persecuted or even kicked out of school just for accessing information. It is through the activism of Peacefire and other anti-censorship groups that the Internet remains the free archive of information it is today.