Statement by Patrick A. Trueman, President & CEO of NCOSE
Washington, DC – President Obama has announced his intention to nominate Dr. Carla Hayden, former president of the American Library Association (ALA), to the post of Librarian of Congress. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) believes that the pro-pornography agenda of the ALA raises concerns about Dr. Hayden’s nomination.
“The American Library Association (ALA) has been on a campaign to prevent the use of pornography-blocking Internet filtering systems on public library computers since the 1990s,” said Patrick Trueman, president and CEO of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. “The ALA even filed suit in 2001 against the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), written by U. S. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). The act was designed to protect children from pornography by requiring the use of Internet filters on computers at public libraries receiving federal funds. The U. S. Supreme Court upheld this statute as constitutional. Yet, the ALA during Dr. Hayden’s tenure as president, opposed this common sense measure as it continues to do to this day.”
“CIPA specifically requires blocking of pornography that is obscene, child pornography, and when children use library computers, content that is ‘harmful to minors’ (a legal term normally referring to soft-core porn),” Trueman continued. “Even though the U.S. Supreme Court upheld CIPA just before the start of Hayden’s term as ALA president, the ALA persists in confusing local public libraries about the law’s requirements and about the availability and nature of pornography on the Internet. The ALA wrongfully advises that only ‘a very small fraction’ of available Internet pornography is not protected by the First Amendment, leading library boards to believe they have an obligation to provide for all other pornography under ALA guidelines, which call for ‘free and unfettered access to the Internet for any library user, regardless of age.'”
“Many children have been exposed to pornography or have been sexually exploited, and many librarians and patrons have been sexually harassed at public libraries that follow ALA guidelines. It is for this reason that the ALA has been on NCOSE’s Dirty Dozen List for four years running. Dr. Hayden’s history with the ALA, as its former president, raises concerns about the poor example she may continue to set for American libraries in the influential position of Librarian of Congress,” Trueman concluded.
