The Aftermath: Recent Restrictions on Information

1. The Aftermath: Recent Restrictions on Information The Aftermath

2. “As nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression. In both instances, there is a twilight when everything remains seemingly unchanged… http://www.cwu.edu/~schuettd/dhc.htm The Aftermath

3. …And it is in such twilight that we all must be most aware of change in the air, however slight, lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness.” — Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas The Aftermath

4. “A popular government without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy;or, perhaps, both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives”James Madison The Aftermath

5. “Democracy means people have a right to express peaceful dissent from the prevailing view of the government, and the government is obligated to permit and defend that right.” Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) May 5, 2003 The Aftermath

6. “The library must make available valid interpretations of current facts and events. Manipulations of the truth for any reason, public hysteria or indifference, over-confidence or despair, will impair the national war effort…” The Aftermath

7. “…The library can help materially to combat such irrational attitudes by providing not only trustworthy facts but reasoned interpretation.”Excerpts from a statement of library policy…ALA December 29, 1941” The Aftermath

8. “Let our patriotism be reflected in the creation of confidence in one another, rather than in crusades of suspicion.” John F. Kennedy http://ksbalachandran.com/Mynotebook3.html The Aftermath

9. “Security concerns also have great implications in the online environment. Government information on the web in electronic format is widely accessible, heretofore considered a good thing, but now is being reconsidered. Francis Buckley Jr. http://www.gcn.com/vol20_no15/interview/4406-1.html The Aftermath

10. "Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us." Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, "The One Un-American Act." Nieman Reports, vol. 7, no. 1 (Jan. 1953): p. 20. The Aftermath

11. Lack of privacy and confidentiality has a chilling effect on users’ choices. All users have a right to be free from any unreasonable intrusion into or surveillance of their lawful library use.” — Privacy: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights The Aftermath

12. “They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759 http://www.wam.umd.edu/~mlhall/contents.html The Aftermath

13. Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.” Benjamin Franklin The Aftermath

14. Is the PATRIOT ACT a threat to American libraries? The Aftermath

15. How do the PATRIOT Act, Homeland Security Act, and other post 9/11 legislation and actions affect academic institutions? The Aftermath

16. True or False? The PATRIOT Act has no provisions that specify libraries or librarians or that are directed to libraries. The Aftermath

17. The CDC and the National Cancer Institute have • Removed health information from their web sites on condoms • Removed information about how to prevent AIDS • Bowed to political pressure from the Bush administration to “suppress alternatives to abstinence for teenagers.” • All of the above The Aftermath

18. SEVIS (Student Exchange Visa Program)is… • Technologically flawed • Functioning poorly • A disaster • A crisis • All of the above and more (Schatz 2003). The Aftermath

19. The Federal Depository Library Program • Was established to ensure that people had information about their government. • Provides expert help to people seeking information. • Offers permanent archives to government access on the web. • Has been compromised by a May 3, 2002 memo… • All of the above are true. The Aftermath

20. Why are some librarians alarmed? How should librarians respond to requests from law enforcement for patron information? What policies and procedures should be implemented? The Aftermath

21. Why are some librarians alarmed? • Section 215 suggests that “any tangible thing” may be taken by the FBI • Business records (library patron records) may also be examined. • If placed under a gag order, patrons may not be informed. • As Internet Service Providers, we may be required to furnish information about patron use of the internet. The Aftermath

22. How many libraries have been affected? • Assistant Attorney General Viet Dinh reported libraries had been “contacted approximately 50 times” in the last year using the PATRIOT Act (Elan, 2003) • Survey of 906 libraries by the Library Research Center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign found that law enforcement agents visited at least 545 libraries to review patron records (Library Research Center 2002). The Aftermath

23. The Library Research Center survey found that… • About 1/3 of the 545 visits were from the FBI. • Most were from police or local law enforcement • 83.1 % received verbal requests for voluntary cooperation • 8.9 % had written requests for voluntary cooperation • 22.3 % were served with subpoenas • 17.4% with court orders (Minnow 2003) The Aftermath

24. How have libraries responded?The Library Research Center study found that • “…roughly half the librarians cooperated with investigators without demanding a subpoena or court order…(Scheeres 2003)” The Aftermath

25. Has section 215 been used to obtain library records? This question was posed from the House Judiciary Committee to the Justice Department. The Aftermath

26. Answer (posted 10/13/2002) • “The number of times the Government has requested or the court has approved requests under this section since the passage of the PATRIOT act, is classified…” The Aftermath

27. What you should do if served… (Minow,2003) • Ask for identification • Tell the agent who is in charge at the library • Ask for a copy of the search warrant • Ask for a brief delay to assemble personnel • Fax the warrant to the attorney for review. • Remind staff of their roles/non-essential staff should stay out of the way. The Aftermath

28. What your attorney should do… • Speak to the agent-in charge (by phone if necessary). • Verify that the warrant is signed. • Ask for a delay. • Examine the warrant. • Delegate someone to take notes. • May ask law enforcement to desist. • Request copies of all documents. • Inventory any items seized. The Aftermath

29. Follow-up Steps • Keep track of expenses. • Double check for gag order • Apprise governing authority • Draft “talking points” for press The Aftermath

30. Freedom to Read Protection Act of 2003 • Introduced in House March 6, 2003. • Sponsored by Bernie Sanders • Exempts “bookstores and libraries from orders requiring the production of any tangible thing for for certain foreign intelligence investigations.” (freedom to read, 2003) The Aftermath

31. What are some of the major issues of post 9/11 legislation on academic institutions? Impact on Academic Institutions The Aftermath

32. P. 104-132, passed in 1996, required the identification of hazardous biological agents…and registration of labs that transported them. P.L. 104-208 created SEVIS--the Student Exchange Visa Program in 1996. Pre 9/11 legislation The Aftermath

33. U.S. PATRIOT Act • Funded SEVIS and gave the government access to more student records. • Placed controls on select hazardous agents. The Aftermath

34. Post-PATRIOT Act • Regulation of biological agents and toxins • A person identified by the Attorney General as being involved in “terrorism” may not gain access to regulated agents or toxins. • Could affect a scientist who regularly uses these agents. The Aftermath

35. Impacts of post 9/11 legislation • Security and tracking costs for academic laboratories. • Censorship of science articles. • Loss of foreign students/foreign technical workers. • Disappearing government documents. • New “sensitive but non-classified” category. • Freedom of Information Act weakened. The Aftermath

36. “Sensitive but Unclassified” • White House memo of 3/19/02 • Extends length of classified from 10-20 years. • Classifies previously unclassified material when appropropriate • Creates a new category of “Sensitive but Unclassified information”. The Aftermath

37. OMB memo 5/3/02 • GPO printing let out for bid • May affect GPO’s ability to distribute information to libraries • Public’s access to Government publications and information may be impaired • Disappearing Information The Aftermath

38. Disappearing Information • PubScience removed • Shrinking public access to toxic chemical inventory data • Changes in GPO printing • Removal of information from agency websites • Restrictions on presidential papers The Aftermath

39. Increased Monitoring of Foreign Students will impact science The Aftermath

40. Freedom of Information • Increased tension--material formerly disclosed now subject to scrutiny • Agencies take too long to respond--a year or more • Agencies have not identified most commonly requested documents. The Aftermath

41. Is the climate of secrecy trickling down to local government? • Concern that school boards, zoning boards and other local governing bodies will restrict information that should be public. • When information is denied in Arizona, there is no recourse but a lawsuit. The Aftermath

42. For discussion: • Freedom of Information Act • Disappearing Information • “Sensitive but non-classified” • Contributions of foreign students to scientific research The Aftermath

43. "Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us." Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, "The One Un-American Act." Nieman Reports, vol. 7, no. 1 (Jan. 1953): p. 20. The Aftermath

44. Works cited • Drake MA. 2003. Safeguarding patrons’ privacy. Information Today. Feb 2003. 20(2):35-37. • “First Steps for the Library Director or Designee.” LLRX.com. Web page [accessed 5/29/03]. Available at http://www.llrx.com /features/draftsearch.htm. • Library Research Center, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois. “Public Libraries’ Response to the Events of 9/11/2001: One Year Later.” Web page, [accessed 24 March 2003]. Available at http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,57256,00,html • Minow, Mary. “Sample of Search Warrant Procedures for Libraries” LLRX.com. Web page [accessed 7/10/03]. Available at http://www.gcn.com/vol20_no15/interview/4406-1.html. • Oder, Norman. “Survey: librarians divided over post-9/11 privacy issues: split revealed over voluntary compliance with law enforcement requests; number of terrorism inquiries still unclear. Library Journal. Feb 15, 2003, v 128 (3) p.16. Survey available at www.lis.uiuc.edu/glis/research/civil_liberties.html. Scheeres, Julia “Librarians split on sharing info.” Web page, [accessed 24 March 2003]. Available at http://www.wired.com/newsprivacy/0,1848,57256.00.html. • Schatz, Willie. 2003. “Foul-ups test foreign students and schools.” The Scientist. Web page, [accessed 7 April 2003]. Available at www.the-scientist.com. • The Scientist, Web page, [accessed 26 March 2003]. Available at www.the-scientist.com. The Aftermath