“Librarians aren’t a subversive bunch, as a rule. But a perceived erosion of First Amendment and privacy rights under the USA Patriot Act has spurred them to undertake a quiet rebellion across New York and the nation.”
“Institutions founded as repositories of information are moving to pare the data on patrons and their borrowing habits to an absolute minimum out of concern they are open to FBI review.”
“Quite a number of librarians are taking action to make sure they’re only keeping records they need,” said Diane Berry, an automation consultant at the Mid-York Library System, serving Madison, Oneida and Herkimer counties. “I tell them: ‘If you have any unnecessary records, dump them.'” (from The Times Union)
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