EFFector Vol. 14, No. 6 Apr. 2[*], 2001 editor@eff.org
A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424
EFFector Vol. 14, No. 6 Apr. 2[*], 2001 editor@eff.org
A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424
For more information on EFF activities & alerts: http://www.eff.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, April 2, 2001
Contacts:
Will Doherty, Online Activist / Media Relations, wild@eff.org, 415-436-9333
Katina Bishop, Offline Activist, katina@eff.org, 415-436-9333 x101
April 2, 2001 -- The Electronic Frontier Foundation today issued a call to action for nationwide protests on Friday, April 20, 2001, opposing implementation of Congressionally-mandated Internet blocking in schools and libraries. The protests will take place at Federal Communications Commission offices, other federal offices, libraries, and Internet blocking companies, as well as in "blackouts" of websites in support of the protest.
Local organizers interested in protesting Internet blocking are invited to contact EFF to co-sponsor nonviolent protests, to obtain an Internet blocking protest kit, and for help in publicizing the protests.
"The government-mandated requirement for Internet blocking in schools and libraries violates the free expression rights of American, adults and minors alike," explained Will Doherty, EFF Online Activist. "We must protest Congressionally-mandated Internet blocking because it censors Constitutionally-protected materials, stunts the intellectual growth of American children, and weighs unfairly on disadvantaged and 'controversial' communities."
Internet blocking technologies underblock what they are supposed to block and overblock what they are not supposed to block. They rely on subjective control from software product companies many of whom exhibit clear political and religious biases, rather than relying on local communities to decide for themselves. The products are error-prone, vulnerable, problematic, and unfairly discriminatory, denying access to constitutionally protected and educationally important materials that schools and libraries would otherwise provide. Government-mandated censorship does not solve problems better handled through local decision making and educational efforts.
Some protests will take place at offices of the Federal Communications Commission because it is the agency tasked by Congress with enforcement of the Children's Internet Protection Act (CHIPA a.k.a. CIPA) blocking law.
EFF, along with co-sponsors such as the Online Policy Group ( http://www.onlinepolicy.org ), called the protests to demonstrate the widespread public opposition to use of Internet blocking in schools and libraries.
The San Francisco Bay Area protest will take place at 1200 noon on Friday, April 20, in front of the FCC office at 5653 Stoneridge Drive, Suite 105, Pleasanton, California 94588 (accessible by Dublin/Pleasanton BART).
More information on the Internet blocking protests will be available on the EFF website at:
http://www.eff.org/br/br1.html
The Electronic Frontier Foundation ( http://www.eff.org ) is the leading civil liberties organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and government to support free expression, privacy, and openness in the information society. EFF is a member-supported organization and maintains one of the most-linked-to websites in the world.
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Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Release, April 2, 2001
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, April 2, 2001
EFF & ACLU Take on Library Internet Blocking Law in Court
Contacts:
Lee Tien, Senior Staff Attorney, tien@eff.org, 415-436-9333 x102
Will Doherty, Online Activist / Media Relations, wild@eff.org, 415-436-9333
On March 20, 2001, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) joined the ACLU and other organizations in challenging new federal law requiring Internet blocking in schools and libraries participating in certain federal programs. Framed on free speech grounds, the lawsuit seeks to prevent Congress from requiring libraries to censor constitutionally protected speech under the Children's Internet Protection Act (CHIPA).
EFF Senior Staff Attorney and CHIPA case co-counsel Lee Tien said, "EFF believes that Internet blocking in libraries violates the First Amendment not only by unnecessarily restricting the rights of adult library patrons, but also by depriving child library patrons of online access to information that they need to be fully informed citizens." Tien noted that U.S. Circuit Judge Richard Posner recently warned of "the danger of allowing government to control the access of children to information and opinion. Now that eighteen-year-olds have the right to vote, it is obvious that they must be allowed the freedom to form their political views on the basis of uncensored speech before they turn eighteen, so that their minds are not a blank when they first exercise the franchise."
In addition to library patrons, the litigation also broadly addresses the rights of librarians and website owners who will be adversely affected by the law, including public libraries from Portland, Oregon, to Portland, Maine; Congressional candidates whose websites were blocked; PlanetOut.com, a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community site; and the Planned Parenthood Federation.
EFF's participation in this case also reflects its members' commitment to free speech; James Geringer, one of the individual library patron plaintiffs, is an EFF member.
The legal challenge was filed at the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, which previously ruled on the Communications Decency Act and the Child Online Protection Act. Participants in the litigation include the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the law firm Proskauer Rose, and Tom Sponsler, an attorney from Multnomah County, Oregon.
The American Library Association (ALA), along with a number of local library associations, also filed a legal challenge to CHIPA on March 20, 2001, in the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia.
Each case challenges both CHIPA itself, and the closely related (and strangely named) Neighborhood Chldren's Internet Protection Act (NCIPA), passed as part of the same legislative package.
More information on the ACLU case is available on the EFF website at:
More information on the ALA case is available on the EFF website at:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation ( http://www.eff.org ) is the leading civil liberties organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and government to support free expression, privacy, and openness in the information society. EFF is a member-supported organization and maintains one of the most-linked-to websites in the world.
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Mark Your Calendars for BayFF on Sunday, May 6!!
Join EFF in a Panel Discussion on Censorware in Schools and Libraries
WHAT: "BayFF" Panel Discussion on Internet Blocking in Schools and Libraries - Law, Litigation, and Community Response
WHEN: Sunday May 6th, 2001, at 200 PM Pacific Time
WHERE: San Francisco Public Library
Room: Koret Auditorium
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
Tel: +1 415-557-4400
This event is free and open to the general public. The Electronic Frontier Foundation ( http://www.eff.org ) is the leading civil liberties organization working to protect rights in the digital world.
This event is sponsored by:
For more information, see:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation:
http://www.eff.org
BayFF Meetings Info Page:
http://www.eff.org/bayff
(more information on this event including speakers will be
posted there as it becomes available.)
Contact:
Katina Bishop
Director of Education & Offline Activism
Electronic Frontier Foundation
+1 415 436 9333 x101
katina@eff.org
EFF has endorsed the following statement. Many prominent individuals and 20 organizations, such as the ACLU, the California Association of Library Trustees and Commissioners, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and Rock Out Censorship, are also initial endorsers of this statement.
Joint Statement Opposing Legislative Requirements for School and Library Internet Blocking Technologies
With the United States Congress' passage of legislation requiring the use of Internet blocking technologies in all public schools and libraries participating in certain federal programs, it has become clear that these schools and libraries are facing a variety of challenges.
The following individuals and organizations oppose mandatory Internet blocking technology requirements in public schools and libraries because blocking technologies
We also believe government-mandated censorship does not solve problems better handled through local decision making and educational efforts.
The undersigned organizations and individuals commit to working together on the legal challenges to legislation requiring Internet blocking technology.
We commit to a public education campaign on the effects of blocking technology on online access, free speech rights, and civil liberties of students and library patrons. We commit to sharing effective strategies to assist young people in learning to use the Internet safely and effectively to enhance their education.
We will share our research and documentation and will provide educational materials and consulting services to school and library administrators, the general public, and the media. Our goal is to educate everyone potentially affected by the operation of Internet blocking technology in public schools and libraries, regardless of the outcome of legal challenges to legislative requirements for the use of Internet blocking technology.
Any individuals or organizations in agreement with this joint statement are welcome to sign on by sending an email to statement@onlinepolicy.org.
The joint statement and full list of endorsers is available on the EFF site at:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation seeks an Online Free Expression Campaign intern to focus on issues related to Internet blocking technology and related public policy. This intern will research Internet blocking issues, prepare leaflets, reports, and media releases, and organize forums and protests.
Basic HTML skills and general computer competence necessary. Very helpful if you have your own laptop and/or home Internet access.
Interns will be in the San Francisco Bay Area, and in the EFF office at least two days per week. School credit may be available.
Timeframe Needed immediately, for summer and fall semesters. Minimum commitment 2 days per week for at least three months.
For more information, see the EFF website at:
http://www.eff.org/jobs#vol5
Or contact Will Doherty, Online Activist / Media Relations, wild@eff.org
EFF has been assessing the feasibility of a study to examine real-life conditions of Internet access in schools and libraries.
We are seeking university partners for this project, volunteers with experience in social science study design, administration, and research, as well as potential funding sources.
For more information, please contact Will Doherty, wild@eff.org
Here are some basic ideas about how to get involved in preventing the spread of Internet blocking, especially in schools and libraries:
For more information about community responses to Internet blocking, see the EFF Blue Ribbon Campaign website at http://www.eff.org/br
To let EFF know what you are doing about Internet blocking so we can work together and publicize our activities, you can email freespeech@eff.org
For additional background on the blocking debate, see:
http://www.censorware.net
http://www.peacefire.org
We seemed to be implying in the last issue's alert on medical privacy regs that we supported both implementation and repeal. This of course made no sense. Actually we DON'T want it both ways. What happened was an editing error. The following paragraph was accidentally cut off after the introduction header to Rep. Paul's letter:
"Rep. Paul identifies clear loopholes in the existing proposal, in the dear-colleague letter below, and EFFector readers should be aware of them. While we agree with Rep. Paul's observations, we believe his position, that the entire HIPAA should be repealed, is too extreme. The regs - even with these loopholes - would be a net gain for American privacy. Instead we hope that either Congress will fix the loopholes directly with an amendment, or that recently announced plans to amend the regs from within HHS are carried out, and that these problems are solved."
We apologize for any confusion created by the omission.
PS: The editor would like to apologize further to any who received two copies of the last issue, one with an incorrect subject line. I was unable to stop the mail queue fast enough to prevent some of the incorrect copies going out.
[* EFFector is now dated as of the date we expect the entire list to have received the issue; presently this is up to a couple of days, due to the large and rapidly growing number of subscribers. We will work on our server issues very soon to improve this dramatically (i.e. hours instead of days.)]
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