ResourceBlog Article: Patriot Act Riles An Unlikely Group: Nation's Librarians

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Monday, 27th October 2003

Patriot Act Riles An Unlikely Group: Nation's Librarians

Patriot Act
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Full-Text, "Patriot Act Riles An Unlikely Group: Nation's Librarians"
From the article, Library associations in most states have passed resolutions against the Patriot Act's Section 215, which gives the FBI broader access to the "business records" of people who aren't suspected of any crime. Speaking to Congress this past June, Attorney General John Ashcroft said that could include educational records and genetic data -- and information gathered in libraries. Libraries that say they might once have kept information on their patrons have purged it in a show of defiance. In Skokie, Ill., library director Carolyn Anthony says the only patron records she now keeps are on Skokie's small population of home-bound borrowers. In tiny Paulding County, Ohio, library director Susan Hill is one of many librarians nationwide who posted signs on public computers warnings users that "due to national security concerns," their "Internet surfing habits, passwords and e-mail content" might be monitored by federal agents. After being dogged by librarians and other protesters during a cross-country tour to boost support for the Patriot Act, Mr. Ashcroft last month accused librarians of being "duped" by liberals, and for two days running accused them of "hysteria." He also announced that the FBI hadn't requested any business records under the Patriot Act. "Section 215 has not been used. Period. Zero times," says Mr. Ashcroft's spokesman, Mark Corallo, who adds that "the 20% of the people who oppose the Patriot Act get 95% of the publicity." The full-text of this article will be available (free) for the next week.

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