Fellow Code4Libbers,
As promised on Slack, here are the outcomes our the Tor exit node
breakout session at Code4Lib 2016 in Philadelphia.
Running a Tor exit node is a great way to support freedom of speech and
the right to privacy, but many institutions are reluctant to do so
because of the Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt surrounding doing so. Our
breakout identified two key strategies for making the case to those in
your institution who are in a position to make this kind of decision:
forming partnerships, and having ready answers prepared for common
questions.
Partnerships
• Library Freedom Project - they've done this before!
• Local law enforcement - better to get them involved early, so they're
not surprised
• Computer Science, Political Science, Social Sciences,
Communications/Journalism departments on your campus (where applicable)
• Social Justice institutions (on campus and in your community) - free
speech and privacy are social justice issues
• Local libraries around academic institutions - cross the
public/academic divide
• State consortia - leverage those networks we already have in
place
• Cryptoparties of local community members - get the community
interested in and supportive of preserving their rights by giving them
the knowledge and tools they need to get started themselves
Answers to have ready to give
• What’s Tor?
• Why should I be involved?
• What’s my risk?
• How much does it cost?
• Who else is doing this?
Open Questions
• What will it cost to run an exit node, both in terms of $$ and
bandwidth?
• List of names of institutional peers to point to.
I hope by broadcasting this to our community, we can start to form a
pool of those libraries who have interested libtech workers, so when we
go to our directors/deans/boards, we can point to peers/aspirational
peers and say "see, we're not alone!".
Thanks,
Ian Walls
