Youth Access for Information and AgeBased Policies

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Youth Access for Information and Age-Based
Policies
Infopeople Webcast Thursday March 1, 2007
1200 noon to 100 p.m
Janis ODriscoll, Coordinator of Youth Services
for the Santa Cruz Public Library

• Mary Minow, J.D., A.M.L.S. LibraryLaw.com

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Legal Disclaimer

• Legal information
• Not legal advice!

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Youth Access to Information

• A partnership of young people,
• families, and libraries

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Children develop intellectually and emotionally
at different ages.
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What is the librarys responsibility in designing
childrens access to information?
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Childrens Access to Information LEGAL VIEW

• Same as adults except
  
• school may limit to educationally suitable
• harmful to minors

www.ala.org/ala/oif/ifissues/issuesrelatedlinks/mi
norsrights.htm
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Libraries need clearly written policies and
procedureswhich are reviewed on a regular basis.
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Libraries should require ongoing continuing
education for ALL library staff on intellectual
freedom issues.
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What is each familys responsibility when
children use the library?
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• Do You Want ME to Decide What Your Children Read?

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Janis ODriscoll Coordinator of Youth
Services Santa Cruz Public Libraries
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Can Community Demand that Library Move Childrens
Books to Adult Areas?

• City council
• 300 petitioners may demand childrens books go to
  adult area

Sund v. City of Wichita Falls, 121 F. Supp. 2d
530, (N.D. Tex. 2000)
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Can Community Demand that Library Move Childrens
Books to Adult Area? NO

• City council
• 300 petitioners may demand childrens books go to
  adult area
• Court
• Significant burden on access
• Children who wish to browse will never find the
  censored Books.

Sund v. City of Wichita Falls, 121 F. Supp. 2d
530, (N.D. Tex. 2000)
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Harry Potter and the Order of the Cedarville
School Board

• School board required parents permission to read
  Harry
• COURT Burden for children
• HARRY RETURNS TO OPEN SHELVES

Counts v. Cedarville Sch. Dist. 295 F. Supp. 2d
996 (2003)
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Libraries can offer public information programs
for library users of all ages
Live Oak branch, Santa Cruz Public Libraries
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.Libraries can provide tools for parents to
make good decisions. Thats our message.
Parents receive very little advice about what
kids look at online.
www.ala.org/ala/alsc/greatwebsites/greatsitesbroch
ure.pdf
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Childrens Personal Information Online LEGAL
VIEW

• Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act
• Applies to
• commercial websites
• May not collect personal information of children
  under 13 unless verifiable parental consent

www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/coppa/intro.htm
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Swimming pools can be dangerous for children.
To protect them, one can install locks, put up
fences, and deploy pool alarms. All these
measures are helpful, but by far the most
important thing that one can do for ones
children is to teach them to swim.from Youth,
Pornography and the Internet, 2002
books.nap.edu/html/youth_internet/
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Can Libraries Restrict MySpace?

• Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA)
  reintroduced Jan. 4, 2007 as part of S.49
  (Stevens R-AK)
• Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act
• would require e-rate libraries to block MySpace
  et al.

Creative commons license Attribution-ShareAlike
2.0 uploaded by SpooSpa Sept. 22, 2006,
www.flickr.com/photos/spoospa/250064505/
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Childrens Internet Protection Act (CIPA)
libraries must block images
Applies to libraries with certain e-rate
CIPA Key Issues for Decision Makers by Bocher
and Minow at Webjunction.org 9/9/03
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Violence is NOT HARMFUL TO MINORS

• graphic violence is not "harmful to minors
• laws restricting violent video games struck down
  by courts

Video Software Dealers Assn v. Schwarzenegger,
401 F. Supp. 2d 1034 (N.D. Cal. 2005) Similar
rulings at www.theesa.com/facts/industry_self_reg.
php
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Observations about Childrens Whereabouts
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Giving Out Childrens Circulation Records
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Childrens Library Records and Privacy LEGAL
VIEW

• Registration and circulation records shall not be
  disclosed except
• (a) Administration of library
• (b) Written consent by individual patron
• (c) Court order
• Registration records - information required to
  borrow materials
• Circulation records" information identifying
  patron as borrowing particular materials

Cal Gov Code 6267
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Trend More States Allowing PARENTS Access to
Childs Records
But not in California
Koenigsberg, Sidne. Note. Library records open to
parental scrutiny a new set of Internet access
controls for minors? 29 Colum. J.L. Arts
361-384 (2006)
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Problem Parents Responsible for Fines
Libraries may disclose records of fines imposed
on borrowers
Cal Gov Code 6254
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Technological Solutions
Many libraries anyone with card number and PIN
can login or telephone to get records
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Aged Based Policies and Unattended Children

• No magic legal age
• Santa Cruz
• Under 9 must be supervised by someone 14

• STAFF MUST KNOW
• How long to wait
• Who to call
• Emergency evacuations

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How much information do we allow youth to have?
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