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AAUP Joins in Patriot Act Brief
By Gwendolyn Bradley
In August, the AAUP joined with other organizations in filing an amicus brief in a case challenging the constitutionality of a section of the USA Patriot Act. At issue in Gonzales v. John Doe is section 2709 of the act, which allows federal officials access to materials in order to “protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities.”
In the brief, the AAUP, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the American Library Association, the Association of American Publishers, the Freedom to Read Foundation, and the PEN American Center argued that by giving the government an unprecedented ability to intrude on the intellectual and academic freedom of their members and patrons and the general public, section 2709 violates the First Amendment in at least two respects. First, it authorizes the compelled disclosure of constitutionally protected information without the government’s having to demonstrate that the information will actually further a terrorism investigation or any other substantial governmental interest. Second, it un-justifiably imposes a blanket ban of secrecy upon recipients of orders to disclose such information, without requiring demonstration of a need for such secrecy.
Earlier, a district court ruled that the law violated the First Amendment because the secrecy provision was not tailored narrowly enough to advance the government’s compelling interest in protecting terrorism investigations, and because the permanent ban on disclosure “operates as an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech in violation of the First Amendment.” The federal government has appealed that ruling.
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