Grand Rapids Library Says
Anti-Filter Policy Complies with Law
The board of the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Public Library decided November 28 to accept a staff recommendation that the library’s filter-free policy already complies with a new statewide Internet law requiring libraries to shield minors from viewing sexually explicit fare online.
“Our current policies are working,” GRPL Director Robert Raz said in a memo to trustees of the library’s existing Internet policy, which permits staff to suspend the library privileges of patrons who view sites that might be harmful to minors. Raz argued that “many libraries are moving too quickly into providing filters when there is no real evidence . . . that there is any real problem that warrants purchase and maintenance of this software.”
Nonetheless, Youth Services Coordinator Sarah McCarville is investigating at the board’s behest the efficacy of filters currently on the market, according to the November 29 Grand Rapids Press. “I think giving a choice [between filtered and unfiltered access] provides comfort to some users,” trustee Kristen Sheline noted.
Posted December 4, 2000.
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