Law enforcement officials have made at least 200 formal and informal inquiries to libraries for information on reading material and other internal matters since October 2001, according to a new study that adds grist to the growing debate in Congress over the government's counterterrorism powers.
In some cases, agents used subpoenas or other formal demands to obtain information like lists of users checking out a book on Osama bin Laden. Other requests were informal - and were sometimes turned down by librarians who chafed at the notion of turning over such material, said the American Library Association, which commissioned the study.
The association, which is pushing to scale back the government's powers to gain information from libraries, said its $300,000 study was the first to examine a question that was central to a House vote last week on the USA Patriot Act: how frequently federal, state and local agents are demanding records from libraries.
The above is from Eric Lichtblau's "Libraries Say Yes, Officials Do Quiz Them About Users" in this morning's New York Times.
For more information on the American Library Association, check out their home page. Check out their resources.
Also refer to The Bill of Rights Defense Committee.
I'll also note Brian's highlight of Sara Paretsky for Women's History Month because she's been a strong voice on this issue.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
