Letter to the Editor: Orcas Library and the Patriot Act

The USA Patriot Act was signed into law in October, 2001, and reauthorized  in March of 2006. The intent of the legislation was to update wiretap and surveillance laws for the internet age, to address realtime communication  and stored communication (email, voicemail, etc.), and to give law enforcement wider powers for conducting searches and investigations.

Section 215 of the legislation, known as the “library provision,” which grants wide authority to law enforcement to search records and investigate library patrons, is due to sunset on December 31, 2009. Congress is debating this authorization, and while libraries everywhere are hoping that Section 215 will be modified to coincide with state’s laws and regulations, it is not at all clear that this mitigation will occur.

Our Orcas Library Board of Trustees would like to engage Orcas library users in this discussion, since they feel that a democratic society must provide free access to all forms of self-expression and information without undue interference or monitoring. Many libraries have reported misuse of the Patriot Act where it has been used for other than its stated rationale, and it has clashed with people’s constitutional rights concerning research, exploration, and reading.  The Orcas Library is pledged to consent to legal court orders to obtain specific information about specific individuals, but it stands behind its users’ rights  to privacy and freedom of inquiry, and plans to resist vague and non-specific “fishing trips” by law enforcement officials.

Our Library Board feels it is important for the public to share their thinking about this issue, and we invite participation at our next Board meeting on Monday, November 9^th, at 9a.m. You’re also welcome to provide comments directly to me, since I serve as the Community Services Chair.

Alan Lichter, Trustee, Orcas Public Library