Turkish Dissidents Organize a 'Virtual Protest Walk'

If you are fearful of government reprisals for protesting, a virtual protest may be the best way to go. You need to cover your digital tracks, but that seems a lot easier and safer then marching on the streets. It is exactly what Turkish dissidents must have thought when they organized a 'virtual protest walk' to protest government censorship. It also has the added benefit of making it easier for people to attend. Instead of needing to travel to the protest location, people all over the world can log on from the nearest computer or any device with full internet access and with a few clicks add their voice to the movement in a way that is easy to visualize.

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/visualize_dissent_turkish_users_protest_censorship.php

"The "virtual protest walk," our source said, is being staged to protest Web censorship. "Thousands of Turkish users gathered on virtual Taksim Square of Istanbul to protest censorship. When prostestors achieve the target number, they will walk to Ankara, pixel by pixel, to the parliament house."

The virtual protest uses Google Docs' "anyone can edit" function. Each protester is able to edit the document and put her or himself on the map. Our source tells us that since the map can be edited by anyone, "it also becomes a social game, with people moving and editing others' position."



See the protest in action here. Users around the world are invited to join in and express their support for Turkish Web users and their disapproval of Internet censorship."