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The USA Patriot Act:
How does it affect libraries? ... ” —Ben Franklin
The USA PATRIOT Act (the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) is described simply as a bill “to deter and punish terrorist acts in the United States and around the world to enhance law enforcement investigatory tools and for other purposes” (H. ... The USA PATRIOT Act was introduced to the House of Representatives on October 24, 2001 and was passed on the same day by a vote of 357 (yeas) to 66 (nays). ... On October 26, 2001, the USA PATRIOT Act became a law with the signature of President Bush. While this act has been instated with the safety of our nation in mind, the American Library Association (ALA) has become very concerned with the power it affords the government. ... The Government views this law as a means to stop terrorism, while activists working for civil liberties see many parts of this act as radical, trampling on American’s constitutional rights. “The Act sacrifices our freedoms in the name of national security and upsets the democratic values that define our nation by consolidating vast new powers in the executive branch of government” (Chang, p. ... This act eliminates that system by opening up the potential for abuse, especially since officials do not have to disclose what they are doing. ... Even though the PATRIOT Act does not mention libraries specifically, the ALA is mostly concerned with three points that will affect its member institutions: “1) the broad definition of terrorist to include any cybercrime; 2) access to library records [Section 215]; 3) use of library systems for active surveillance and wiretapping. ... Section 215 amends the Right to Privacy Act, violating the ALA’s stance on privacy. ... However, libraries must comply with government officials who produce a warrant for access to records. ... ” (Educause)
The United States government has infringed on Americans’ rights during times of war in the past, which gives libraries good reason to take notice of the USA PATRIOT Act. ... As an example of the government using libraries to infringe on rights, the “Library Awareness Program” was instated during the Cold War era, and FBI agents attempted to get librarians’ assistance to spy on Soviet student’s library records and research. ... Librarians should consult legal council, update procedures, train their staff and promote education of the Patriot act to their patrons. All policies need to be updated that are affected by this act, especially those concerning patron privacy.
Approximate Word count = 2044
Approximate Pages = 8.2
(250 words per page double spaced)
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