The Peaceful Return is a human-powered movement rising to meet the urgency of this moment in U.S. history. Its mission is to free our democracy from corporate capture, beginning with the Digital Exodus: a peaceful, strategic walkout from the Big 5 tech monopolies. It is not a protest: it's a reclamation of our power, our attention, and our future.
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Peaceful Return Mission
To reclaim our democracy - peacefully, powerfully, and together. We seek to build a system that reflects the values of fairness, liberty, and justice for all. The Peaceful Return movement is:
  • Peaceful and nonpartisan
  • Focused on digital sovereignty, democracy, and climate resilience
  • A call for divestment and a reduction of tech monopoly power
  • Committed to dialogue and solutions, not chaos or collapse
  • Decentralized, sustainable action that embodies the principle of  "the means are the ends".
The Digital Exodus
The Digital Exodus is a peaceful migration off the Big 5 Tech platforms and monopolies that have embedded themselves, without our consent, into our lives and our government. What once felt like tools for connection have become the very infrastructure of addiction, manipulation, and social control. They've sold our data, eroded our privacy, amplified division and now stand complicit in a corporate-backed coup that threatens both the foundations of our democracy and the lives of billions around the world through climate denial and delay.
Why Tech? Why Now?
While the Peaceful Return includes long-term goals like reversing Citizens United and reforming lobbying, we recognize that these actions will be nearly impossible without first getting a seat at the table of the power structure that is accelerating right now. What's at stake is our ability to organize at all.

Corporations, especially Big Tech, wield massive influence over policy, media, and the economy. As many are realizing, what we’re witnessing isn’t just political chaos; it’s an ideological coup aligned with the goals of Project 2025 and backed by wealthy pro-monarchy technocrats. But this moment could not unfold at the scale it has without the tools and complicity of the Big 5 tech platforms, the infrastructure that tracks us, distracts us, and amplifies division. And it’s moving fast. Waiting four more years is not an option. We may not even have until September.

This isn’t about perfection. It’s about leverage. It's about taking our power back. We must act with focused, collective power NOW and hold the line until we are given a voice. Even if you can leave 4 of the 5 platforms or reduce usage by 80% that's good enough. Don't let perfection be the enemy of the good. Every single action, every single person matters.
The Plan: Migrate off the Big 5 Platforms
The journey began on Earth Day, April 22, 2025, with the early adopters moving first to scout out new digital terrains and alternative platforms, so we can help others. It's all about progress, not perfection. Every deleted app, every platform left, is another step towards freedom. Even if you only leave four out of five, or reduce your use by 70%, it all matters, and in numbers, it adds up to a powerful mass movement.
  • Amazon - Stop buying on Amazon; cancel Amazon Prime, any subscriptions related to is as well as Wash Post.
  • Apple: Stop buying new Apple products, Cancel Apple Subscriptions (+TV, News, Music). Use Spotify instead of Apple Music for now.
  • Meta: Deactivate or delete all Meta platforms (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads), or else drastically reduce use and delete FB/IG/Threads off your phone.
  • Google - Migrate off Gmail (forward to another web-based email like Proton); switch from Chrome browser to DuckDuckGo or Firefox, use a non-google search engine like yahoo as much as possible; use MapQuest instead of Google Maps (even Apple Maps is better as they don't monetize your data and have much better privacy.)
  • X - delete or deactivate
  • Remember – Progress not perfection. Aim for a B- (80%). If you can only do 4 out of 5, or disconnect from 80% of most of the companies' apps, that is wonderful!

For some, the migration off the Big 5 will be permanent. For those that want to return, be prepared to stay off for a week to several months. But again, it's about progress not perfection. Every bit you can do all adds up.

We cannot afford to wait for permission. We don’t need to wait for politicians to lead. The power is with us, the people, and it always has. The Exodus is not just about digital detox. It’s about reclaiming our agency and our future.
Exodus Preparation Guidebook:
For more details on the strategy, alternative platforms, and resources:
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Sign up for the Peaceful Return mailing list for updates, calls to action, invites to online gatherings, technical support, and connection to a growing community. If you are interested in providing feedback or volunteering for the cause, but don't want to be on yet another email list, you can send a message on the contact form on the Contact Page.

Longer-term Vision

Once we interrupt the momentum of corporate-driven authoritarianism, we can return our attention to the systemic reforms that matter most. The Peaceful Return shares deep alignment with both Bernie Sanders' vision of putting people over profit and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). But rather than tackling everything at once, our strategy begins with one foundational priority: reducing corporate monopolies and concentrated power. Only by breaking that grip can we create the conditions necessary for meaningful progress toward the SDGs.
  • Reverse Citizens United and Reform Political Campaign Finance
  • Limit Corporate Lobbying
  • End Corporate Welfare & Unfair Tax Breaks
  • End the "Revolving Door" Between Government and Corporations
  • Strengthen Anti-Trust Laws
  • Implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Regulations
1. Reverse Citizens United (2010 Supreme Court Ruling)
  • Action: Push for a constitutional amendment to undo the Citizens United decision, which allows unlimited corporate donations to political campaigns, giving corporations undue influence over elections and elected officials.
  • ​Why It’s Critical: This ruling has turned elections into a battle of money, not ideas, making it harder for everyday citizens to have their voices heard in the democratic process.
 
2. Enact Legislation to Limit Corporate Lobbying
  • Action: Advocate for stricter limits on corporate lobbying and corporate-funded political action committees (PACs). This includes:
    • Caps on lobbying expenditures by corporations.
    • Transparency laws requiring public disclosure of lobbying activities and expenditures.
  • Why It’s Critical: Corporations often have more influence on policy than the voters who elected representatives, because of their access to lobbyists and campaign contributions. Limiting this influence can help ensure that legislation better reflects the needs of the people, not just corporate interests.
 
3. End Corporate Welfare and Unfair Tax Breaks
  • Action: Push for legislation to end corporate welfare and close tax loopholes that allow large companies (like Apple and Amazon) to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. This could involve:
    • Tax reform that closes offshore tax shelters and ends tax breaks that disproportionately benefit large corporations.
    • Equitable tax policies that require big corporations to pay taxes commensurate with the benefits they receive from public services like infrastructure, education, and healthcare.
  • Why It’s Critical: Corporate welfare disproportionately benefits the wealthiest companies, while small and medium businesses, as well as regular citizens, end up carrying the tax burden. This creates an unlevel playing field and further entrenches economic inequality.
 
4. End the "Revolving Door" Between Government and Corporations
  • Action: Enact stronger laws to prevent the "revolving door" between government agency heads and corporate positions. This can be done by:
    • Implementing waiting periods or outright bans for former government officials to take corporate positions that could lead to conflicts of interest.
    • Increasing transparency on government employees who transition into corporate roles, particularly in industries they once regulated.
  • Why It’s Critical: When top officials from regulatory agencies join the very companies they were supposed to oversee, it creates a conflict of interest that prioritizes corporate power over public interest. Stopping this practice would help ensure that the public’s interests come first.
 
5. Strengthen Anti-Trust Laws
  • Action: Advocate for the strengthening of anti-trust laws to break up monopolies and prevent corporations from becoming too large or too powerful.
    • Enforce anti-competitive practices laws that prevent large corporations from using unfair practices to dominate markets, pushing smaller businesses out and increasing consumer prices.
  • Why It’s Critical: Monopolies stifle innovation, harm consumers, and contribute to the growing concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a few corporations.
 
6. Strengthen Political Campaign Finance Reform
  • Action: Push for the reform of political campaign financing, including:
    • Public financing of elections to level the playing field for candidates not backed by wealthy donors.
    • Capping individual contributions to political campaigns to prevent the ultra-wealthy from having disproportionate influence.
  • Why It’s Critical: Campaign financing reform can reduce the undue influence of corporate money and ensure that elected officials work for their constituents, not corporate donors.
 
7. Implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Regulations
  • Action: Mandate stronger CSR regulations that require corporations to report on and be held accountable for their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impacts.
    • Encourage the adoption of sustainable business practices that prioritize environmental stewardship and community welfare over profits.
  • Why It’s Critical: Holding corporations accountable for their societal impacts can reduce harmful practices and incentivize them to prioritize people and the planet alongside profits.