Free Expression

At press time, BTW learned that, on Tuesday, June 14, Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is planning to add an amendment to the House Commerce, Justice, State (CJS) Appropriations Bill, which funds the Justice Department, that would cut off funds for bookstore and library searches under Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act.

The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression's (ABFFE) Online Auction, featuring some of the best bargains for booksellers anywhere, including many new items from last week's BookExpo America, is entering its final week. The Online Auction offers the latest books, book sidelines, and services, and a wide variety of entertainment items, ranging from DVDs and video games to original artwork and baseball tickets.

The Vermont Congressman discusses crucial closed-door meetings and a possible Senate run

In a letter dated May 23 to Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Pat Roberts and Vice Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV, booksellers and free speech groups, including ABA, the Association of American Publishers (AAP), and the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) expressed their opposition to granting the FBI in national security investigations "administrative subpoena" powers. Administrative subpoenas would allow the FBI to write its own search and disclosure orders with no judicial approval.

On Wednesday, May 18, ABA e-mailed a letter to a targeted list of approximately 300 ABA member bookstores in the Congressional districts of key House Representatives who could play an important role in amending Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. ABA is urging these booksellers to help its efforts to persuade these representatives that Section 215 needs to be amended to protect the privacy of bookstore and library patrons.

By Joan Airoldi

It was a moment that librarians had been dreading.

On June 8, 2004, an FBI agent stopped at the Deming branch of the Whatcom County Library System in northwest Washington and requested a list of the people who had borrowed a biography of Osama bin Laden. We said no.

The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's closed session "mark up" of legislation that would re-authorize and further broaden the powers of the USA Patriot Act, including Section 215, scheduled for today, has been postponed until next Thursday, May 26.

On Wednesday, May 18, officials told the New York Times that the Bush administration and Senate Republican leaders are looking to "significantly expand the F.B.I.'s power to demand business records in terror investigations without obtaining approval from a judge."

First Amendment activist and bookseller Cammie Mannino, owner of Halfway Down the Stairs Children's Bookshop in downtown Rochester, Michigan, was instrumental in securing the re-election of two incumbent school board candidates. The contentious campaign, which pitted the two incumbents against two newcomers supported by a newly formed conservative political action committee (PAC), ended on May 3 with a record turnout and two-to-one victories over both PAC candidates.

When Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and a group of Vermont booksellers and librarians first called attention to Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act in March 2003, criticism of the provision, which eliminated the safeguards for the privacy of bookstore and library records, was hard to come by in the mainstream media.

On Tuesday, May 10, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary (SCJ) continued its oversight hearings on the USA Patriot Act and heard testimony from a number of the act's critics. Among those testifying before the committee were Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Larry Craig (R-ID), sponsors of the Security and Freedom Enhancement Act (SAFE) of 2005.

Tickets for this year's BookExpo America Book Industry Foundation Benefit starring comedian Bill Maher may sell out before the June 2 - 5 trade show, according to Tina Jordan, the show's public relations/special events director. This would be a first for BEA's annual Saturday night event, which benefits the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Association of American Publishers Get Caught Reading Campaign.

On Monday, May 9, booksellers and free speech groups, including the Southeast Booksellers Association (SEBA), scored a victory in the battle against Internet censorship when a judge in the U.S. District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, permanently enjoined a statute that would have criminalized any work communicated on the Internet that is accessible in South Carolina and contains a depiction of nudity or sexual conduct considered to be "harmful to minors."

On May 10, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit dismissed a lawsuit filed in 2004 by a coalition of public interest groups that urged the court to order Vice President Dick Cheney to reveal the names of the people who participated in meetings of an energy task force he appointed in 2001. The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and other organizations had filed an amicus brief proposing a compromise in the case.

Four Weeks and Counting

This week, BTW shines a spotlight on American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) programming at this year's BookExpo America. BEA will be held from Thursday, June 2, to Sunday, June 5, at New York City's Jacob Javits Convention Center.

"Is Someone Reading Over Your Shoulder?"

Those who believe conservatives and progressives can't agree on anything should take note of the continuing battle to amend the USA Patriot Act. Over the past two-plus years, politicians of all political persuasions have joined forces in an effort to amend provisions that threaten civil liberties and the right to privacy.