KOSA’s reintroduction is an unforgivable betrayal of LGBTQ youth who are just trying to survive Trump
Full list of organizations opposed to KOSA can be found at StopKOSA.com
Despite continued opposition from LGBTQ youth, the parents of trans kids, reproductive rights groups, and free speech experts, KOSA has been re-introduced by Senators Blumenthal and Blackburn, after failing to pass last Congress due to disagreements on its merits and genuine concerns over its constitutionality.
Fight for the Future has opposed KOSA since its advent for its approach: putting control over speech in the hands of the government is a mistake, a concern that is especially prescient during a Trump administration that has used its agency power to stifle speech, crack down on protected minorities and important resources, and has made its commitment to advancing structural discrimination against trans youth abundantly clear. We warned Congress in December: the incoming FTC chair, who would have enforcement power over online speech if KOSA was passed, would weaponize his position against marginalized people. Andrew Ferguson, Trump’s pick for the position, has fallen in line with the larger conservative agenda for online spaces, parroting transphobic narratives and doing Trump’s dirty work. This power in Ferguson’s hands could do unmitigated damage to abortion funds who provide resources and fundraise online, LGBTQ organizations who resource young people, and any other speech that rightwing lawmakers don’t like.
The bill’s authors have claimed over and over that this bill doesn’t impact speech. But the Duty of Care is about speech: it’s about blocking speech that the government believes is bad for kids. And the people who will be determining what speech is harmful? They are the same ones using every tool to silence marginalized communities and attack those they perceive as enemies.
Passing KOSA in this environment, when young people need online spaces more than ever to find resources and for political action, is a slap in the face to the young people KOSA claims to protect. The sponsors take this a step further, flaunting the support of Elon Musk himself who has overseen a gutting of the very federal resources that actually protect young people from harm.
Marginalized people are under attack from all sides right now. Hundreds of trans parents have written to Congress begging them to take their kids into account, who depend on online spaces and resources, especially as access to gender-affirming healthcare is shrinking. As they said in their letter, “We need to hold these companies accountable and regulate them, not cut our kids off from resources that can help them thrive. Big Tech is hurting our kids. KOSA would hurt them even more.” Hundreds of thousands of young people themselves have called and written to Congress, telling them that this legislation makes them less safe, not more safe. Many more directly implored progressive lawmakers to listen to them and disengage from this win for rightwing ideology, but they haven’t listened.
“We know the truth: rightwing actors want to stifle young people’s voices online,” said Sarah Philips, campaigner at Fight for the Future. “They’ve laid this strategy out in Project 2025. They’ve told us over and over again that they intend to strip speech so that marginalized communities can’t speak truth to power. They can say this is about accountability for Big Tech all they want, but with the likes of Elon Musk standing next to them, none of it rings true. Our communities are trying to survive repression and the gutting of important resources, and online spaces are a safe haven for LGBTQ youth when their resources in their schools and communities shrink. It is unbelievable that Senator Blumenthal and Senator Schumer can ignore everything going on around them for more political theater on a bill that would help silence any opposition to Trump. Senate Democrats need to wake up and look around. Any Democrat still sponsoring KOSA is co-signing fascism. Stop doing their dirty work.”