Illinois going down 'slippery slope' with library 'Bill of Rights,' lawmaker says

[June 15, 2023]  By Andrew Hensel | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – As Illinois implements more requirements on local libraries in order to access state tax dollars, some are questioning whether state government is overstepping its boundaries.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday signed a first-in-the-nation law that restricts state tax dollars for local libraries that don't follow certain guidelines from a national group. House Bill 2789 requires state libraries to adopt the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights if they want to receive state grants.

According to the ALA, material cannot be removed from the shelves for partisan or personal reasons. Supporters say the guidelines make clear that people have access to even controversial material while opponents say the law takes away control from locally elected library and school board members.

State Rep. Adam Niemerg, R-Dieterich, told The Center Square that the decision on what books are suitable for children should be left up to the parents.

"This measure encroaches on parents' rights," Niemerg said. "In my mind, it's parents that have an obligation to raise their children, not the public education system, not the government."

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, whose office manages taxpayer-funded grants for libraries, spoke at the bill signing alongside Pritzker in Chicago and said parents still have the final say on what their children will read.

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias holds up a bill signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker
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"Parents still have the right and the responsibility to restrict their children, and only their children's access to library resources," Giannoulias said. "In other words, you get to decide what's right for your children, but you don't get to make that decision for anyone else."

Niemerg said that he is not worried about certain works of literature but is bothered by there being no safeguards to protect children from potentially graphic books.

"This legislation effectively makes it impossible for local library boards to block pornographic material from their shelves. It strips away local control of libraries and continues the war on families in Illinois," Niemerg said. "Supporters of this new law are deliberately misrepresenting the views of legislators like me who support the rights of parents. No one suggests we take 'The Catcher in the Rye' off shelves."

The bill states that no books shall be forbidden or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval. Giannoulias explained what those books entail.

"Is it any surprise that these objectional books are predominantly by or about people of color, LGBTQ or other ethnicities," Giannoulias said. "They are books containing information about history, race, gender or social justice."

Beginning next year, libraries that do not follow the law will lose access to state funding.

Andrew Hensel reports on issues in Chicago and Statewide. He has been with The Center Square News since April of 2021 and was previously with The Joliet Slammers.