ACLU sues library for blocking Wiccan websites

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Eastern Missouri sued a local public library for allegedly blocking websites related to Wicca, a modern pagan religion.

Anaka Hunter of Salem (MO) said she tried to access websites about Wicca, Native American religions and astrology for her own research, but the library's filtering software blocked the sites. According to the ACLU, the software labeled the sites as "occult" and "criminal." Hunter said she talked to Salem Library director Glenda Wofford, who unblocked portions of the sites, but much of the material remained censored. According to the lawsuit, Wofford said she would only unblock the sites for patrons who had a legitimate reason to view them and said she had an obligation to report people who accessed the sites to the police.