Public libraries throughout Illinois took the political battle over Internet freedom directly to their own patrons on Monday, lobbying libraries’ computer users to oppose state legislation requiring software that filters out pornography.
As part of a loosely coordinated, one-day statewide campaign, libraries in the Metro East area passed out fliers, bookmarks and, in one case, installed computer screensavers — all calling attention to what librarians say is an onerous proposal that would infringe on the budgets of libraries and the privacy rights of library patrons.
A handful of libraries in other parts of the state made that point by shutting down their own Internet services for the day.
One conservative group claims the lobbying efforts may have been an illegal use of public resources.
“They’re using taxpayer time to defend the rights of perverts who want to look at porn in the public library,” said David E. Smith, executive director of the Illinois Family Institute, which is promoting the legislation. “Librarians are government employees. If they want to lobby on their own time, that’s fine, but don’t do it on my dime.”
Most public libraries have anti-porn policies, and many already have filtering software in place to adhere to federal funding requirements. But the proposed state law would go further, being specifically tied to state library grants and imposing new requirements that librarians claim are philosophically and logistically troublesome.
“I don’t see any problem going up against legislation that’s potentially harmful to the community,” said Barbara Rhodes, director of the Collinsville Memorial Public Library.
The library passed out on Monday bookmarks that display a stop sign and encourage patrons to call their state lawmakers to oppose the Internet-filtering legislation.
Rhodes acknowledged that the bookmarks were produced with public library equipment. “If we put out (anti)-child-abuse bookmarks, they wouldn’t be opposed to that,” she said. “This (legislation) gives a false sense of security” about kids being safe on the Internet at libraries.
Internet filters work by identifying words associated with pornographic websites and preventing those sites from coming up on the screen. Critics say the filters are notoriously ineffective, flagging nonpornographic sites about, say, breast cancer, while being easily circumvented by typing in foreign obscenities or obscure sexual slang.
A handful of libraries around the state shut down their Internet connections Monday to call patrons’ attention to the issue of Internet freedom.
“We turned off all of our regular (Internet) workstations,” said Phil Cohee, assistant director at the Danville Public Library. The library brought in one new terminal “so patrons could see what it would look like.”
“We’re hoping they will contact their senators and let them know how they feel about it,” he said.
Metro East area libraries contacted Monday hadn’t gone to that extreme but brought the issue to patrons’ attention in other ways. Edwardsville Public Library installed screensavers on its computers alerting patrons to the expense and alleged ineffectiveness of the proposed new law.
At Six Mile Regional Library in Granite City, library staff gave computer users a written statement Monday that asks them to contact legislators and encourages them to vote against the bill. “The proposed law is ill-conceived and would create an undue burden for Illinois libraries,” the statement reads in part.
“It would be an advantage to keep things out that we don’t need, but it sounds like a lot of extra work” for librarians, said Trena Fischer, 48, of Granite City, who was using a computer at Six Mile on Monday afternoon. She said she did not have Internet access from her home computer and sometimes used the library computer for e-mail.
Todd Kirk, 31, of Godfrey, is employed in Granite City and said he often stopped by the library before work to check e-mail or catch up on the news.
“I think there are good and bad points to it,” Kirk said, referring to the legislation. “I think it’s an invasion of our privacy. I think they need to concentrate on a lot of other things before they worry about what we’re looking at in the library.”
Fischer and Kirk said they did not mind getting the handouts. “I’m glad they explained it,” Fischer said.
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