On May 3, the Illinois Senate passed legislation that would strip local libraries of their ability to receive state funding unless they adopt the American Library Association’s Library “Bill of Rights”, which comes from a little-known national board not beholden to the voters of the 45th Senate District. State Senator Andrew Chesney (R-Freeport) voted against the measure and issued the following statement:
“This is yet another example of extreme Democrats in the General Assembly taking rights away from parents and local communities and deciding what is best for people. This law, if signed by the Governor, installs a statewide doctrine that provides that all content will be equally available to minors and adults. Through its very nature, this legislation will subject minor children to inappropriate adult content.
“It is becoming commonplace at the Capitol for the majority party to push through legislation that tramples on the rights of people who don’t agree with them or don’t share their same liberal ideology. They’ve been pushing their agenda in our schools, and now they are forcing it upon our libraries. This isn’t about adults going to their library and viewing adult content. It’s about children having unfettered access to that same content, and that’s simply unacceptable.”
Source: ALA Access to Library Resources and Services for Minors
https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/minors
