Demand Progress
Demand Progress is a US-based internet activist-related entity encompassing a 501(c)4 arm sponsored by the Sixteen Thirty Fund and a 501(c)(3) arm sponsored by the New Venture Fund. It specializes in online-intensive and other grassroots activism to support Internet freedom, civil liberties, transparency, and human rights, and in opposition to censorship and corporate control of government. The organization was founded through a petition in opposition to the Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, sparking the movement that eventually defeated COICA's successor bills, the Stop Online Piracy Act and the PROTECT IP Act, two highly controversial pieces of United States legislation.
Official logo | |
| Formation | 2010 |
|---|---|
| Type | 501(c)4 (sponsored by Sixteen Thirty Fund) and 501(c)(3) (sponsored by New Venture Fund) |
| Legal status | Active |
| Purpose | Civil liberties, anti-corporatocracy, and government reform advocacy |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C., and Providence, Rhode Island |
Region served | Worldwide, most focus on U.S. |
Membership | Approximately 2 million members, open enrollment via email |
Executive director | David Segal |
Co-founder | Aaron Swartz |
Program director | David Moon |
| Website | demandprogress |
The organization has played key roles in forwarding the passage of net neutrality rules, blocking expansion of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, under which co-founder Aaron Swartz was indicted, and other key legislative efforts. Estimated membership numbers in early 2015 weigh in at over two million.