1,000 signatures reached
To: Amazon.com KDP services and Amazon.com Corporate CEO and related offices.
Stop Amazon.com Censorship
Amazon.com - We have been made aware that you are violating the founding principles of this country by banning books from independent publishers you "find to contain objectionable content" without explanation or virtue. You are doing this while selling books from large publishing houses which contain the same, and worse material.
We understand the need to ban ILLEGAL books (such as Child Pornography and Terrorist Handbooks), however, these are not the only books you are banning.
The fact you are selling books from authors such as George R.R. Martin (whose books contains explicit adult situations), Terry Goodkind (whose books contain a Demon Rape Scene), Stephen King, as well as many Harlequin titles (not to mention The Bible), proves that it is not the material that is as much of an issue as it is the nature of independent publishing.
We, the signers of this petition, agree that a proper Age Notice on titles containing explicit or violent material may be warranted, but we do NOT agree that banning such books who DO NOT violate ANY LAWS is appropriate.
What you are doing right now constitutes electronic BOOK BURNING!
WE DEMAND that you CEASE AND DESIST your book burning activities! If you need to create an age limit rating system, then do so now! Do not ban any more books! We also demand you remove the bans on the independent titles you have banned which do NOT violate federal laws!
These actions MUST NOT STAND!
Why is this important?
Amazon.com KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) messageboards are aflame with reports from people whose books are being banned for objectionable content. While many of these books may indeed have content that is not fit for everyone, none of these books whose bans we are protesting are violating Federal or State Laws.
This very same content that Amazon believes to be Objectionable from Independent Publishers is "permissible" when it comes from big name authors and book series such as George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones series, Terry Goodkind and his Sword of Truth Series (which contains a demon rape scene), Stephen King's various novels, and the explicit scenes contained within The Bible.
These are unfair business and sales practices being conducted by Amazon.com's KDP services to marginalize Independent Publishers in favor of the large publishing houses. These unfair actions are disgusting at best, anti-trust at worst. This IS CORPORATE CENSORSHIP akin to ELECTRONIC BOOK BURNING and BOOK BANNING and IT MUST BE STOPPED NOW!