The U.S. is a signatory to the U.N. Human Rights Resolution, which establishes precedent for treating all of us with dignity. The extension of rights to good lives to all of us would give more stability to the society as a whole.

Panelists made a plea to all of us who care to keep up the pressure, and lend support to our world by – most especially – continuing to vote for leaders who keep striving to bring rights into actual existence over years of resistance.

In light of the Massachusetts Senate elections, which Republican Scott Brown won by a narrow but clear margin, I have been comparing the 1994 congressional elections to those coming up this year. In particular, I have been conversing with some old friends – people who were actually there in ’94, reading the newspapers and watching the news.

These conversations eventually came to the subject of two intriguing factors that were apparently quite important in 1994 but almost totally absent today.

Ever since the FCC decided to reclassify broadband as a communication service — preserving its basic regulatory authority over high-speed Internet — the big telephone and cable companies have been on the attack.

One telecom industry front group, Americans for Prosperity, announced a $1.4 million ad blitz to smear the move as a “government takeover of the Internet.” And the telecoms also enlisted their allies in Congress to speak out against the move. Rep. Gene Green (D-TX) is pushing a letter which calls on the FCC to abandon its plans to oversee broadband — a move which would in effect end efforts to protect consumers and extend Internet access to all Americans.

Last week, I urged black members of Congress not to sign this letter. But we quickly learned that Representatives G.K. Butterfield (D-NC), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Lacy Clay (D-MO), Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), Greg Meeks (D-NY), Bobby Rush (D-IL), and Bennie Thompson (D-MS) didn’t get the message. ColorOfChange members quickly reacted, placing more than 1750 calls in the span of 48 hours. From our recent press release:

The big phone and cable companies are pulling out all the stops in their campaign against network neutrality, the set of principles which keep the Internet free from corporate gatekeeping and censorship. Part of that campaign involves enlisting members of Congress to echo their talking points, and right now, telecom lobbyists are hitting Capitol Hill hard, putting maximum pressure on members of Congress in both parties to sign letters to the FCC.

ColorOfChange.org is reaching out to every member of the Congressional Black Caucus today to warn them about a letter that is being circulated by Rep. Gene Green. We’re worried that some CBC members will sign the Green letter without fully understanding what’s at stake, and we want to make clear how important this issue is to the ColorOfChange.org community and to African-Americans in general, and why our members see it as a 21st century civil rights issue.

Below is the letter we sent to CBC offices this morning.

The Congressional Black Caucus met with President Barack Obama the other day. He maintained his post-racial stance. Is First Lady Michelle Obama the only person reaching out the most to the black community?

A little over a week ago I delved into a troubling topic: Why are so many civil rights groups and members of the Congressional Black Caucus opposing net neutrality? It seemed strange to me that leaders in communities of color would be echoing discredited telecommunications industry talking points.

The African American members of congress never fully embraced Barack Obama during his campaign. Will they overcome that error in judgement and become relevant in 2009 politics?