"Librarians don't use the patriot act - it uses us." That's what my cyber chat with the AOL screen name "lsulibrary" yielded as an answer when questioned about what information is shared with the federal government about patrons of the LSU library pursuant to the U.S.A. Patriot Act. The Patriot Act - passed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 - increased the ability of law enforcement to obtain information about American citizens to prevent future attacks. Included in this increased information are the library records of everyday patrons - including those of the LSU Libraries. Wondering how this law affected students led me to have a cyber session with my new friend on AOL. What follows is a transcript of one of our exchanges. DonaldDuck313: So am I correct in assuming that the LSU Libraries does not turn over anything in regards to the USA Patriot Act? lsulibrary: No information is ever "volunteered" to the federal government DonaldDuck313: Yes, but when the federal government ASKS, what does the Library turn over? lsulibrary: It is my understanding that we could be asked for information DonaldDuck313: what sort of information though? lsulibrary: Your best bet would be to contact Public Affairs DonaldDuck313: Is there someone else I can speak to at the library, Public Affairs is never helpful. lsulibrary: Our Head of Reference is Tom Diamond When contacted via e-mail, Thomas Diamond, head of the Reference and Collection Development Services, proved to not only be of no help, but also exhibited poor customer service. It took him 212 hours to respond to the simple question. But given that staff often believes we students are here for them as opposed to them being here for us, it came as no surprise that Diamond did not respond until the Dean of LSU Libraries, Jennifer Cargill, was contacted. Cargill finally responded, saying "I am unaware of federal government officials asking for information about patrons of LSU Libraries. A subpoena or warrant would be necessary if such a query was made." But given that information such as which books we read, which Web sites we visit on library terminals or the e-mails we send over the servers could be accessed by federal law enforcement officials, we should all be concerned by the increased violation of privacy by our government. Echoing this sentiment, the American Library Association proclaimed in a statement that "Libraries provide a place to exercise intellectual freedom: a free and open exchange of knowledge and information where individuals may exercise freedom of inquiry as well as a right to privacy in regards to information sought. "Privacy is essential to the exercise of free speech, free thought, and free association; and, in a library, the subject of users' interests should not be examined or scrutinized by others. "ALA considers that sections of the USA PATRIOT ACT are a present danger to the constitutional rights and privacy rights of library users." This warning issued by the ALA should give pause to all of us who utilize libraries, including the various libraries on campus. Knowing our every move can be monitored by "Big Brother" should be a frightening prospect to all freedom loving citizens. To safeguard against the unnecessary intrusions, the LSU Libraries should not wait for a subpoena or court order to release records, but rather should be proactive in its commitment to student privacy. No records should be kept on library patrons. No computer logs of users should be stored. E-mails of students using library computers should not be monitored. To prevent any attempted violation of our civil liberties, the LSU Library should do just as the Bush Administration would do - issue a preemptive strike against those who we do not agree with. The LSU Library should stand up to federal law enforcement agencies utilizing the provisions of the Patriot Act to snoop upon us ordinary law-abiding citizens who just want to be left alone. And just as my new cyber buddy proclaimed so eloquently that the Patriot Act uses them - I say it's time for us to use them. Let us use every tool available to us to safeguard the very underpinnings of freedom itself - lest we be accused of hating freedom as Sean Hannity so often accuses the liberals of today.
---- Contact Donald Hodge Jr. at dhodge@lsureveille.com
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