Free Expression

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.

On Tuesday, February 17, organizations representing booksellers, librarians, and writers announced the official launch of the "Campaign for Reader Privacy (CRP)," a nationwide grassroots effort to restore the safeguards for the privacy of bookstore and library records that were eliminated by Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act.

On January 29, Chief Judge J. Gavan Murtha of the U.S. District Court in Brattleboro, Vermont, issued a judgment and order that permanently enjoined a Vermont Internet law that would have prohibited the distribution on the Internet of non-obscene sexually explicit materials that are defined as "harmful to minors" if these materials could be accessed by persons under 18. The plaintiffs had claimed that the law violated constitutionally protected free speech rights and the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Since early January -- when ABA launched a petition campaign to gather signatures of bookstore customers who support amending Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act -- booksellers have been actively collecting signatures toward an ABA-member goal of garnering at least one million signatures. ABA is now urging booksellers who have yet to join the petition campaign to do so, and is also strongly encouraging those booksellers who are participating in the campaign and are sending back signed petition lists to keep collecting signatures.

This week, the Colorado House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in favor of H.B. 1078, a bill that would make it illegal to allow a minor access to any material considered "harmful to minors." The bill has members of the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Association (MPBA) up in arms because, MPBA contends, the bill is vague, would be impossible to uphold, and could place severe restrictions on the availability of constitutionally protected materials.

Michigan Agrees Not to Enforce Minors' Access Law Until Hearing

Last week, Michigan's Solicitor General, Thomas Casey, came to an agreement with a coalition of booksellers, publishers, magazine distributors, and free expression groups not to enforce a minors' access law until a hearing on the coalition's request for a preliminary injunction. In exchange, the plaintiffs will not ask for an expedited schedule.