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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2000)
aprii 21.2Û0Û F7Î77TÏÏ77ÎT1 news s media watchdog Gay and Les bian Alliance Against Defama tion was preparing to issue its updated report on the impact Internet filtering products have on gay and lesbian electronic resources— a report that says right-wing groups are leading the push to filter public terminals— commis sioners in a small Texas county were voting to limit Net access at their public libraries. The commissioners court in Montgomery County, north of Houston, decided in mid- March to filter the Internet after reviewing information provided by a group called Adults Helping Out Children. A D H O C is made up of members of the Republican Leadership Council, the Christian Coalition and other right-wing groups. “We think the Internet is a somewhat defec tive product that needs to be fixed up, and the fix is filtering,” says A D H O C President William Elmer. The Montgomery County decision stands in contrast, however, to a recent failed ballot ini tiative to filter the Net at libraries in Holland, Mich.— evidence that the issue continues to be divisive. Yet the subject is one about which Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court have already spo ken. Despite being advised against the move by the library advisory board, the librarian and the county attorney, Montgomery County commis sioners voted to require publicly accessible Internet terminals at the county’s libraries to fil ter out obscene and pornographic material. County Judge Alan Sadler, who presides over the comissioners court, said he does not think filtering violates the First Amendment rights of citizens. “We do not believe taxpayers are obliged to pay for patently obscene or pornographic mate rials to be made available in our libraries— whether in published or electronic form,” he said. “We do not wish to deny anyone’s right to free speech, their access to knowledge or their research needs. We have not done so." While A D H O C is concerned, according to Elmer, with the flawed nature of the Internet, it is the flawed nature of filtering software that concerns G LA A D . Some Internet filtering software sifts out gay and lesbian resources that are not pornographic, meaning information that could be valuable to people questioning their orientation would not be available from terminals equipped with those types of filtering software. “We just have not found filtering software that doesn’t filter out some good resources and support information,” explains Loren Javier, G L A A D ’s digital media director. F ractious F iltering Infernet filters that block sites with gay content continue to be a hot-button issue by Gip Plaster For that reason, G LA A D does not favor fil African Americans; and the personal site of a tering at places such as libraries and questions reporter for gay and lesbian newspapers. The case is still pending, but the A C LU has whether it should be used in homes. made clear its opposition to what it calls “cen- “G LA A D is opposed to filtering in public institutions,” Javier says. "In private homes, we sorware” programs. Filters are a particular threat to the gay and lesbian community, says A C LU want parents to he educated about what they are spokesman Eric Ferrero. installing.” “Increasingly, people are turning to the Most filtering programs keep their lists of Internet for support and information as they blocked sites secret from everyone, including grapple with coming-out issues. Censorware the software’s users and the owners of the programs often block Web sites that can offer blocked sites, but at least one company’s list has potentially life-saving support and information,” been compromised. The American Civil Liberties Union is rep he says. The A C LU was also involved in a 1998 Vir resenting three Americans who own Internet ginia case in which a dis sites that include so- trict judge ruled that called “mirrors," or copies, " Increasingly ; people are turning forcing adults to use of the decoded secret list of sites blocked by popular to the Internet for support and blocking software in pub lic libraries “offends the filter Cyber Patrol. information as they grapple with guarantee of free speech." The information was The U .S. Supreme decoded by people outside coming-out issues. Censorware Court had already ruled, the United States who programs often block Web sites in 1997, that communi have settled suits with cations on the Internet Cyber Patrol and agreed that can offer potentially life couldn’t be limited to to give the company the copyright to the decoded saving support and information. " what is suitable for chil dren. information. — ACLU spokesman Eric Ferrero Congress had its say, Cyber Patrol’s lawyers too, striking down the have tried to use those Communications Decen settlements in its legal cy Act. proceedings against the G LA A D is also con three A C LU clients, but cerned that efforts to fil the civil rights organiza ter the Internet are coming from conservative tion has argued that new legal proceedings are and sometimes anti-gay groups. necessary. The Holland, Mich., vote against Internet Among the sites blocked by Cyber Patrol, filtering demonstrates that not all conservative according to information provided by the voters want filtering software in public libraries, A C LU , are those belonging to Gay.net, an interactive site that also carries news and infor according to Karen Schneider of the Shenede- mation; the Sexuality Information and Educa howa Public Library in New York. “The intense push for filtering is being tion Council of the U .S.; BLK.com, for gay Value added service that matches your family’s values /~m Jerry and Paul Poirier have a lot of experience addressing the special needs of our community, both as Realtors" and as fathers. Together with their sons Kevin and orchestrated by conservative political groups like the Family Research Council and the American Family Association,” she says. “In fact, Holland’s pro-filtering initiative was bankrolled by the American Family Association to the tune of more than $40,000.” Whether the filtering system in Montgomery County will limit access to nonpomographic gay and lesbian sites is still unclear. County library director Jerrilynn Williams said there was no mention of gay and lesbian matters during any of the discussions of the issue. She said the concern was with children accessing pornography. And Farley Stewart, chief executive officer of Internet Products, says the county will have to go out of its way to block gay sites. Internet Products makes iPrism, the device the county will use for filtering. The device looks similar to a modem or a router, Stewart says, that is attached to the computer network server. It is the only Internet filtering product that is a device rather than software. The iPrism blocks only by URL, a method sometimes preferred over less efficient keyword blocking. Users can choose to block or monitor certain categories. Most gay and lesbian sites are included in the “social issues” category— the same as sites on euthanasia and gun control. If the user decides to turn on blocking for that category, all social issues sites would be blocked. Users can also add a list of individual sites they want to block. Stewart says electronic “robots” seek out cat egorized sites, but a person reviews each site before determining whether it should be blocked. He notes that gay and lesbian sites that contain nudity, for example, will be cross-refer enced in the nudity category, which will likely be blocked by the user. “These products are never going to be IOC percent perfect on either side of the equation,” he says. “What we’re hoping to do here is pro vide more access by providing finer granularity.” The iPrism device was first sold in late 1999 and is now in use in fewer than a dozen libraries, Stewart says. Elmer would not say whether he thinks gay and lesbian sites should be blocked. “I’d kind of circle around your question to say that anything related to a community on the Internet— rights should not be taken away from that community,” he says. “We’re concerned about smut, pornography and obscenity.” ■ G lP PLASTER writes far dozens of gay and lesbian newspapers and magazines. He also maintains a list o f gay publications at www.gayscribe.com. He lues in Fort Worth, Texas, with his partner, David. Jerry and Paul Poirier Sales Associates Sean, the Poiriers are proud to ( 503 ) 284-7755 belong to Portland’s extended family. pager 909-4964 • e-mail jerrypoirier@aol.com Combining pride and integrity with the expertise that matters, Jerry and Paul Poirier care more about your best interests than making a sale. 0 Wndermere Cronin A Capian Realty Group, Inc. 1607 NE 41st Avenue • Portland, OR 97232 19
