With many states and smaller local governments in the U.S. banning or attempting to ban books, Illinois’ state government is doing the opposite, penalizing book bans by withdrawing funding from libraries that restrict or remove books due to “partisan or doctrinal” disapproval.
Banning banning things is my kind of freedom!
If only it had been included in the Bill of Rights…
I don’t personally care for the penalty that’s imposed, as removing access to libraries inherently affects less affluent socioeconomic groups much more harshly. Political action towards banning a book from a library should result in all libraries receiving the book in question to be stored accessibly in the appropriate book section. Like a weaponized Streisand effect in the pursuit of greater literacy and the protection of the ideal that knowledge is a human right.
