University library the new 'Big Brother'
Donald Hodge Jr.
Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: Opinion
"Librarians don't use the patriot act - it uses us."
That's what my cyber chat with the AOL screen name "lsulibrary" yielded as an answer when questioned about what information is shared with the federal government about patrons of the LSU library pursuant to the U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The Patriot Act - passed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 - increased the ability of law enforcement to obtain information about American citizens to prevent future attacks. Included in this increased information are the library records of everyday patrons - including those of the LSU Libraries.
Wondering how this law affected students led me to have a cyber session with my new friend on AOL. What follows is a transcript of one of our exchanges.
DonaldDuck313: So am I correct in assuming that the LSU Libraries does not turn over anything in regards to the USA Patriot Act?
lsulibrary: No information is ever "volunteered" to the federal government
DonaldDuck313: Yes, but when the federal government ASKS, what does the Library turn over?
lsulibrary: It is my understanding that we could be asked for information
DonaldDuck313: what sort of information though?
lsulibrary: Your best bet would be to contact Public Affairs
DonaldDuck313: Is there someone else I can speak to at the library, Public Affairs is never helpful.
lsulibrary: Our Head of Reference is Tom Diamond
When contacted via e-mail, Thomas Diamond, head of the Reference and Collection Development Services, proved to not only be of no help, but also exhibited poor customer service. It took him 212 hours to respond to the simple question.
But given that staff often believes we students are here for them as opposed to them being here for us, it came as no surprise that Diamond did not respond until the Dean of LSU Libraries, Jennifer Cargill, was contacted.
Cargill finally responded, saying "I am unaware of federal government officials asking for information about patrons of LSU Libraries. A subpoena or warrant would be necessary if such a query was made."
That's what my cyber chat with the AOL screen name "lsulibrary" yielded as an answer when questioned about what information is shared with the federal government about patrons of the LSU library pursuant to the U.S.A. Patriot Act.
The Patriot Act - passed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 - increased the ability of law enforcement to obtain information about American citizens to prevent future attacks. Included in this increased information are the library records of everyday patrons - including those of the LSU Libraries.
Wondering how this law affected students led me to have a cyber session with my new friend on AOL. What follows is a transcript of one of our exchanges.
DonaldDuck313: So am I correct in assuming that the LSU Libraries does not turn over anything in regards to the USA Patriot Act?
lsulibrary: No information is ever "volunteered" to the federal government
DonaldDuck313: Yes, but when the federal government ASKS, what does the Library turn over?
lsulibrary: It is my understanding that we could be asked for information
DonaldDuck313: what sort of information though?
lsulibrary: Your best bet would be to contact Public Affairs
DonaldDuck313: Is there someone else I can speak to at the library, Public Affairs is never helpful.
lsulibrary: Our Head of Reference is Tom Diamond
When contacted via e-mail, Thomas Diamond, head of the Reference and Collection Development Services, proved to not only be of no help, but also exhibited poor customer service. It took him 212 hours to respond to the simple question.
But given that staff often believes we students are here for them as opposed to them being here for us, it came as no surprise that Diamond did not respond until the Dean of LSU Libraries, Jennifer Cargill, was contacted.
Cargill finally responded, saying "I am unaware of federal government officials asking for information about patrons of LSU Libraries. A subpoena or warrant would be necessary if such a query was made."
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Brandon
posted 4/17/08 @ 11:44 AM CST
Thank you for writing this article. I wish everyone could be made aware of the overreaching effects of the Orwellian named Patriot Act.
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