For librarians around the country, concerns about the Patriot Act and patron privacy rights have only increased in the wake of recent news about the administration’s proposed Patriot II legislative initiative.
From Sunday’s Ohio Toledo Blade, this article, Libraries fear loss of privacy as FBI searches for terrorists, illustrates the conflicting positions at issue involving public access to the Web and e-mail as it impacts the fight against terrorism.
In December 2002, The Office for Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association (ALA) announced a series of training institutes across the country, to begin February 27-28 in Washington, D.C, titled “Lawyers for Libraries.” The purpose of these institutes is to “ensure that attendees know about the most up-to-date, accurate and relevant legislation and case law related to the First Amendment in libraries.”