FC: ACLU vows court challenge to U.S. filtering law

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

http://www.aclu.org/news/2000/n121800a.html

                          Blocking in Libraries

     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
     Monday, December 18, 2000

     WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union said that it will
     soon launch a legal challenge to legislation adopted by Congress
     last week that would mandate the use of blocking software on
     computers in public libraries.

     "This is the first time since the development of the local, free
     public library in the 19th century that the federal government has
     sought to require censorship in every single town and hamlet in
     America," said Chris Hansen, ACLU Senior Staff Attorney. "More than
     100 years of local control of libraries and the strong tradition of
     allowing adults to decide for themselves what they want to read is
     being casually set aside."

     The measure, which was included in the year's final spending bill
     that was approved on Friday, was introduced by Senator John McCain,
     R-AZ. It would require libraries and public schools to adopt
     acceptable use policies accompanied by a "safety technology" -
     i.e., blocking software - that would block access to materials
     deemed "harmful to minors."

     Earlier this year, an 18-member commission appointed by Congress
     rejected the idea of mandating the use of blocking software, which
     is notoriously clumsy and inevitably restricts access to valuable,
     protected speech. A wide spectrum of organizations have opposed
    blocking software mandates, including the American Library
     Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, the
     conservative Free Congress Foundation and state chapters of the
     Eagle Forum and the American Family Association.

     "There was an Alice in Wonderland quality to this debate," said
     Marvin Johnson, a Legislative Counsel with the ACLU's Washington
     National Office. "With its vote, Congress rejected the advice it
     asked for from the panel it appointed."

     The ACLU said that because blocking programs can be so restrictive
     and overreaching, they significantly reduce the amount and
     diversity of speech and information available to individuals. For
     example, House Majority Leader Richard "Dick" Armey, a staunch
     proponent of Internet blocking, found his own web site censored,
     because it contains the word "dick." And a recent report by
     Peacefire found that several dozen websites of candidates for
     Congress had been blocked by censorware.

     Over the last five years, the ACLU has successfully challenged a
     wide range of government efforts to censor the Internet, including
     the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Reno v. ACLU and, more
     specifically, in Mainstream Loudoun vs. Board of Trustees of the
     Loudoun County Library, where a federal district court found
     mandatory use of blocking software unconstitutional in April 1998.





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