The Arab American Civic Council strongly opposes SB 771 and urges California lawmakers to reject this harmful bill.

As an organization serving Arab Americans across California, we have witnessed firsthand how social media is both a lifeline and a platform for our community. In times of crisis, particularly during war and humanitarian disasters, social media provides access to information that is uncensored, diverse, and vital to amplifying the voices of the marginalized.

SB 771, however, threatens these freedoms by incentivizing censorship, undermining constitutional protections, and disproportionately targeting Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian users.

This bill:

• Violates First Amendment protections and Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act by attempting to impose liability on platforms for user-generated content, despite federal precedent rejecting such measures.
• Legitimizes discriminatory censorship of Palestinians online, reinforcing a documented pattern of shadowbanning and biased moderation that silences advocacy for Palestinian rights while allowing harmful content that dehumanizes Palestinians to spread unchecked.
• Codifies unreliable and biased hate data, relying on the Anti-Defamation League’s reports, which have consistently conflated Palestinian advocacy with antisemitism, blacklisted Arab American organizers, and worked to delegitimize Black and Arab-led civil rights movements.

Rather than offering meaningful protections, SB 771 creates new tools to suppress dissent and silence communities who already face systemic marginalization. It risks institutionalizing biased practices that erase Palestinian voices from the digital public sphere.

We urge California legislators to stand on the side of free expression, equity, and justice. Reject SB 771 and protect the rights of Californians to speak truth to power without fear of censorship or repression.