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The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and other book industry organizations are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to lift a gag order preventing a Connecticut library from discussing the chilling effect of a National Security Letter (NSL), which seeks to compel the release of customer records.
On Monday, September 26, a number of free expression and civil liberties groups, including the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE), faxed a letter to U.S. Senate conferees and potential U.S. House conferees to urge them to support a data mining amendment included in the House version of the USA Patriot Act reauthorization bill. Section 132 of the House legislation, which was introduced by Rep.
Just 10 days before the kick off of this year's Banned Books Week, an Arkansas school board voted on Thursday, September 15, to lift restrictions that it had imposed on three sex education books. At a special board meeting attended by about 70 people, the Fayetteville School Board voted four to three to drop its requirement that students obtain parental permission to check out the books from the schools' libraries, as reported by the Northwest Arkansas Times (NAT).
 There is still time for participants in the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP) to garner support for the Senate version of the Patriot Act reauthorization bill, which provides more stringent safeguards to reader privacy than its House counterpart.
As Banned Books Week continues through Saturday, October 1, Bookselling This Week is asking participating booksellers to let us know how they marked the occasion and to send photos of Banned Books Week promotions and displays for inclusion in a future article. Photos and contact information should be sent to [email protected].
The sponsors of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP) are encouraging booksellers, librarians, and other First Amendment supporters to sign a petition asking the Justice Department to voluntarily lift a gag order that is preventing a Connecticut library from revealing that the FBI is trying to obtain the records of one of its customers.
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Banned Books Week will begin on Saturday, September 24, and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) has made a variety of materials available online that booksellers can use as part of their celebrations. The ABFFE Banned Books Week Handbook includes lists of banned books and books about free expression; downloadable images and posters; display, event, and fundraising ideas; a list of websites offering Banned Book Week information; and a number of other valuable resources.
A federal judge has lifted a gag order that prevented a Connecticut library from revealing that the FBI is trying to obtain the records of one of its customers. The judge ruled on Friday, September 9, that the gag ordered violated the librarian's First Amendment right to participate in the current debate over the reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act and did not pose a danger of exposing the FBI's counter-terrorism investigation.
Even before the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Congress had set a busy schedule for September, including the confirmation hearings of Judge John Roberts and the reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act. It is now not known whether the conference committee on the Patriot Act reauthorization legislation will meet as scheduled during the week of September 19.
The recent revelation that the FBI is attempting to obtain patron records from a Connecticut library clearly demonstrates that the Patriot Act needs to be amended to restore readers' right to privacy, according to a statement released this week by the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP). The sponsors of CRP are the American Booksellers Association, the American Library Association, the Association of American Publishers, and PEN American Center.
This week, the sponsors of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP) -- the American Booksellers Association, the American Library Association, the Association of American Publishers, and PEN American Center -- announced that they would be distributing signed petitions calling for an amendment of Section 215 of the Patriot Act to Senate offices in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, September 13.
CRP calls supporters to action during final weeks of campaign to amend Section 215
Last week, Senators Larry Craig (R-ID) and Richard Durbin (D-IL) asked their Senate colleagues to encourage Senate conferees to defend the Senate-passed version of the USA Patriot Act reauthorization bill, the USA Patriot Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 (S. 1389), when House and Senate conferees meet this fall to reconcile their different bills.
The U.S. House and Senate conferees are scheduled to meet in the fall to reconcile their two very different bills regarding Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. With the Senate version of the Patriot Act legislation offering greater safeguards to reader privacy, ABA is strongly urging booksellers to intensify their efforts to collect signatures on the Campaign for Reader Privacy petitions over the coming weeks and to send in the signed petitions they already have.
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About ABA
The American Booksellers Association, a national not-for-profit trade organization, works with booksellers and industry partners to ensure the success and profitability of independently owned book retailers, and to assist in expanding the community of the book.
Independent bookstores act as community anchors; they serve a unique role in promoting the open exchange of ideas, enriching the cultural life of communities, and creating economically vibrant neighborhoods.
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