U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN YVETTE D. CLARKE | Proudly Serving New York’s 11th District

I am opposed to the Stop Online Piracy Act, a bill that would have required Internet service providers to block access to websites, such as YouTube and Google, which provide links to material that infringes on lawful copyrights.  The existing copyright law allows search engines and other websites with a “safe harbor,” provided that materials protect by copyright are removed after notification.

The protections of copyright are necessary in our economy – as with other types of property, the government must protect intellectual property from theft.  But additional protections of intellectual property to penalize websites that are trying to follow the rules would undermine the open exchange of ideas that currently exists on the Internet.  For that reason, I cannot support the Stop Online Piracy Act.