While Robert Ellis Smith recognizes the need for additional steps to combat the threat of terrorism, he thinks that many of the government's new security measures are ineffective and violations of civil rights. During a lecture Sunday, February 24 at 2:30 p.m. at the Providence Public Library, Smith, an activist best known as the founder of the monthly newsletter Privacy Journal, will outline his views on preserving privacy in the post-September 11 environment

Part of the problem, Smith believes, is the way in which anti-terrorism measures can infringe on everyone, not just terrorists. Internet service providers, for example, now have authority to monitor and intercept communications without demonstrating a link to terrorism. The effect of such measures on privacy rights often goes unquestioned, though, because of the atmosphere of anxiety about possible threats.

Similarly, the government has prioritized airport security, but some of the new measures do little to improve security, Smith says. More attention is being paid to identity documents but, as Privacy Journal (www.townonline.com/privacyjournal/) explained in October, "an estimated 20 percent of driver's licenses and state IDs used in the US are counterfeit or issued erroneously." Smith believes a greater focus on screening luggage would prove more effective.

While much emphasis has been placed on airport security, few precautions have been taken to prevent terrorism in other settings. Smith recommends restricting the sale of fertilizers that can be used to create explosives like those used in Oklahoma City and implementing the use of tagging technology to trace such products.

Disappointed by citizens' eagerness to relinquish privacy rights without fully understanding the implications, Smith urges people to defy the conventional wisdom. "Stick up for your rights," he says, adding that it's more patriotic for people to support the Bill of Rights than to accept new laws and technology without considering their risks. After all, privacy rights have been contested since the time of the Revolutionary War, he notes, and despite pressure to the contrary, "We have kept these rights in the past."

Smith's lecture is part of the Providence Public Library's continuing lecture series, "Safe and free: Civil Liberties since September 11."

Issue Date: February 22 - 28, 2002