Reddit, in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), will be shutting down normal operations on Jan. 18 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET.

During that window, visitors to the site will find a message about SOPA and its sister bill in the Senate, the Protect IP Act (PIPA). There will also be links which will provide more information about the two bills and suggestions on how to take action against SOPA and PIPA.

The decision was not an easy one to make. The Reddit community has been very active and outspoken in its opposition to SOPA. Redditors have created anti-SOPA websites and mobile apps, campaigned against elected officials they perceived to be pro-SOPA and they have posted and discussed any article related to SOPA they could find.

Paul Ryan, target of the Reddit community's "Operation Pull Ryan," has recently announced his total opposition to the bill.

However, the site's users are characteristically known to meet any downtime with emotions ranging from annoyance to antipathy.

"Many of you stand with us against PIPA/SOPA, but we know support for a blackout isn’t unanimous," said the Reddit team in a blog post.

"We're not taking this action lightly. We wouldn’t do this if we didn’t believe this legislation and the forces behind it were a serious threat to reddit and the Internet as we know it. Blacking out reddit is a hard choice, but we feel focusing on a day of action is the best way we can amplify the voice of the community."

The Reddit team, ever respectful of their community, has invited all users to leave suggestions on what to do with the site during the SOPA blackout.