Free Expression

After Betsy Burton of the Kings English in Salt Lake City wrote the following opinion piece, which appeared in the Salt Lake Tribune, the store was swamped with customers who wanted to sign the Campaign for Reader Privacy petition calling for an amendment of Section 215 of the Patriot Act.

On April 14, Senator Orrin Hatch's Senate Judiciary Committee field hearing on the USA Patriot Act in Salt Lake City made for strange bedfellows, as liberals, libertarians, and conservatives joined together to voice their concerns over a half-dozen provisions in the Patriot Act, as reported in the Salt Lake Tribune. One such provision is Section 215, which gives law enforcement officials broad authority to demand that libraries or bookstores turn over books, records, papers, and documents.

The name might be Off the Beaten Path Bookstore, but Leslie Ryan wanted to make sure that the residents of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, didn't have to wander too far to find out about the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP). To help promote CRP -- a nationwide grassroots petition drive to raise awareness about the threat to the privacy of bookstore and library records posed by the USA Patriot Act -- the store ran two quarter-page ads in its local newspaper. "It was quite successful," Ryan told BTW in a recent interview.

At this year's BookExpo America, the Book Industry Foundation will be selling two book-related posters based on cartoons featured in The Complete Cartoons of The New Yorker, coming from Black Dog & Leventhal in September. Proceeds from sales of the posters will benefit the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) and the Association of American Publishers' "Get Caught Reading" campaign.

Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) has planned a Senate Judiciary Committee field hearing on the USA Patriot Act for April 14, at 10:00 a.m. MST in the Moot Court Room of the University of Utah law school in Salt Lake City, Utah. The hearing is open to the public.

Last week, ABA announced that phase one of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (www.readerprivacy.com/) petition drive would culminate with a CRP presentation during BookExpo America, which will be held from June 2 - 6 at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. ABA has asked booksellers to continue collecting signatures (and periodically to mail them to ABA) through the weekend of May 15, and on May 17 to mail all remaining petitions to ABA.

The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) is urging publishers, booksellers, and others to support the fight for free expression by contributing to the ABFFE Silent Auction, which will be held during BookExpo America. Every year, ABFFE auctions books, book sidelines and services, tickets for concerts and sporting events, and much more to raise funds to support its efforts to protect First Amendment rights.

ABA announced today that phase one of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (www.readerprivacy.com/) petition drive would culminate and conclude with a CRP presentation sometime during BookExpo America, which will be held from June 2 - 6 at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. Booksellers are urged to continue to collect signatures (and periodically mail them to ABA) through the weekend of May 15, and on May 17 mail all remaining petitions to ABA.

In February, organizations representing booksellers, librarians, and writers launched the Campaign for Reader Privacy (www.readerprivacy.org), a nationwide grassroots petition drive that aims to restore the safeguards for the privacy of bookstore and library records that were eliminated by Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act.

In "Reading Over Your Shoulder," a March 9 article by staff writer David Mehegan, the Boston Globe provided readers with a clear picture of efforts to amend Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act by a broad spectrum of groups that spans the left and the right.

On Monday, March 15, the Colorado Senate State Affairs Committee restored to a "minors' access" bill a measure to ban the display of materials considered harmful to minors -- a move that booksellers hope will ultimately backfire because, they contend, it renders the "harmful to minors" bill blatantly unconstitutional. Colorado's House of Representatives had eliminated the display provision from the bill over a month ago.

In mid-February, the American Booksellers Association, the American Library Association, and PEN American Center launched the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP), a petition drive that calls for Congress to amend Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. And booksellers participating in the campaign who spoke to BTW say it is vital that all independent booksellers join the cause -- and now, before it's too late. "I think it's a critical time to do this [petition campaign]," said Neal Coonerty of Bookshop Santa Cruz in California.

Since the official launch of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP) on February 17, the efforts of booksellers and librarians who are gathering signatures on petitions urging Congress to restore safeguards for reader privacy that were eliminated by Section 215 of the Patriot Act have garnered press coverage, ranging from New England to Seattle. Now, ABA has created a press release template that bookstores can use to bring the campaign to the attention of their local media. To access the sample release, click here.

The Campaign for Reader Privacy (www.readerprivacy.com), a nationwide grassroots effort to restore safeguards for the privacy of bookstore and library records eliminated by Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act, officially launched this week, but many independent booksellers have been collecting customer signatures on petitions calling for an amendment of Section 215 since early January. And those who spoke to BTW reported that customers do not need to be prompted to lend a hand, literally, to the cause.