Parents upset over library’s porn viewers

By Stephanie Bertholdo bertholdo@theacorn.com

Parents upset about the men who view Internet pornography at the Oak Park Library came to last week’s Oak Park Unified School District Board of Education meeting to voice their concerns.

Some of the 40 parents who attended wanted to be sure students wouldn’t have access to the same computers where the pornographic websites are being viewed. Other parents want to monitor patrons who view the electronic porn.

Two middle-aged men are said to be using the public computers to view Internet porn.

The library has 19 student computers, 10 adult computers and six juvenile computers.

Oak Park resident Scott Dobbie asked if a sign could designate a specific work station as the "pornography computer," which might shame people from using it.

"If access (to public library computers) has to be granted, make it extraordinarily uncomfortable for the individual or individuals (to use them)," Dobbie said.

Tony Knight, OPUSD superintendent, said public library patrons are protected by First Amendment freedoms, but added, "We have to honor the First Amendment but have a responsibility to parents."

Under the Children’s Internet Protection Act, which was passed by the U.S. Congress in 2000, libraries that receive federal funds are allowed to use filters on their computers. The Oak Park Library does not receive any federal aid, so the protection act does not apply.

Computers used for school purposes, however, are filtered and students are monitored closely by librarians and teachers, Knight said. A student must be 18 years old to access an adult computer. He said privacy screens offer some protection for the children. Knight also said that the school district can’t declare the person viewing Internet pornography as a danger if the activity is not illegal. "We don’t have any evidence that (he) is a criminal."

District Board Member Cindy Vinson suggested the adult computers be placed in completely enclosed cubicles.