SAF Demands Immediate Fix To Conn. School District's Website Blocking

BELLEVUE, Wash., June 20, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Second Amendment Foundation today is demanding that school officials in Connecticut's Regional School District 14 immediately rectify the district's blocking of websites belonging to firearms rights advocacy groups, including SAF, and is considering prompt legal action if this is not accomplished.

The situation was revealed Wednesday when a student at Nonnewaug High School discovered while researching a class project that access to such sites, and other conservative websites, was blocked while access to anti-gun-rights websites was available.

"It's an outrage," said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. "Not only was our website apparently blocked, but so was a website belonging to our friends at the National Rifle Association. Yet, this student was able to access websites belonging to the Michael Bloomberg-funded Moms Demand Action group, and the anti-gun Newtown Action Alliance.

"We may not be able to help student Andrew Lampart," he added, "but we're going to make sure this doesn't happen to other students."

In a letter to School Supt. Jody Ian Goeler, SAF General Counsel Miko Tempski was blunt. "Your public response to this offensive censorship has been to call for clarification from your subcontractor and to point out that teachers can selectively unblock some content," Tempski wrote. "This response is insufficient as it allows the District's Constitutional violations to continue while you investigate."

Tempski reminded the district that the U.S. Supreme Court has already made it clear that "once a school chooses to provide internet access, the First Amendment prohibits it from selectively censoring access to websites based on their particular viewpoints."

"Regardless of the District's intent in this matter," Tempski concluded, "you are violating the Constitutional rights of your students and many organizations by allowing this filtering system to remain in place. If you allow the District's censorship to continue, you could be subject to legal liability and the expense of litigation."

The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation's oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms.  Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control. 

SOURCE Second Amendment Foundation