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GQ

The books being made available to children in public schools and libraries was the topic of a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday, with an Illinois law thrust into the spotlight.

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias testified before the committee to explain the legislation. Beginning next year, Illinois will withhold tax dollars from public libraries that limit what types of books are available.

“This legislation is important because both the concept and practice of banning books contradicts the very essence of what our country stands for and what our democracy was founded on,” Giannoulias said.

Republicans have taken issue with the definition of book bans adopted by Pen America, which said books being pulled off the shelves in schools for review constitutes a ban.

“This is not a ban. This is about schools deciding what’s appropriate for school children, and sexually explicit and obscene, pornographic material isn’t appropriate,” U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, said.

The hearing took a racy turn when U.S. Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana, read passages from a couple books, including a profane paragraph from “Gender Queer,” which has appeared on Pen America’s banned book list.

“No one is advocating for sexually explicit content to be available in an elementary school library or in the children’s section of the library,” said committee chair U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois. “That is a distraction from the real challenge.”

Read more and view the video here.

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Bull Loose

A mad bull has gone rogue and is loose in a small town – 100.9 The Eagle

Know a good matador? 1,600-pound bull loose in Barrington HillsWBBM 780

1,600-pound bull missing, on the loose in a Chicago suburb, officials say NBC Chicago

Baffled by a bovine: Bull found roaming in Barrington Hills – CBS2 Chicago

Bull on the loose in Barrington Hills (In more ways than one)CBS2 Chicago

Bull missing after escape from Barrington propertyABC7 Chicago

‘Have you seen this bull?’ Escaped bull on the loose in Barrington HillsWGN-TV

Bull on the loose in Barrington HillsCNN – Regional

Stray bull on the loose in Chicago suburb caught on cameraFOX 32 Chicago

Bull Still On The Loose In Barrington HillsAlgonquin Patch

Escaped bull caught on security camera in IllinoisUPI

 

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June 23 BOT

Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. A copy of the agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.

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220 Admin

The District 220 Board of Education meets this evening at 7:00 PM at the District Administration Center, 515 W. Main Street. Topics on their agenda include:

  • Consideration to Approve BHS Athletic Program Donation Agreement
  • Consideration to Approve Strategic Plan, and
  • Consideration to Approve BSEO Job Reclassification

A copy of the agenda can be viewed here. The meeting will be livestreamed on the district YouTube channel.

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Gender Queer

Pritzker has voiced support for measure backed by secretary of state

SPRINGFIELD – A bill that would block libraries from receiving state grants if they ban books cleared the Illinois Senate Wednesday and will soon be sent to Gov. JB Pritzker, who is expected to sign it.

House Bill 2789 is an initiative of Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, whose office oversees the Illinois State Library and administers several grant programs for public and school libraries.

It would require that as a condition of qualifying for those grants, libraries adopt either a written policy prohibiting the practice of banning books or the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, which includes a statement that “(m)aterials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.”

“This right-to-read legislation will help remove the pressure that librarians have had to endure from extremist groups like the Proud Boys who have targeted some of our libraries and their staff,” Giannoulias said during a news conference after the Senate vote. “This first-of-its-kind legislation is important because the concept of banning books contradicts the very essence of what our country stands for.”

In June 2022, the Community High School District 99 school board came under pressure to remove the book “Gender Queer” from its library shelves. According to a Chicago Sun-Times article, that pressure came from a group of conservative parents as well as members of the far-right Proud Boys. The book, written and illustrated as a graphic novel, is a memoir about a nonbinary person grappling with issues of gender identity and sexuality as a teenager and young adult.

According to the American Library Association, “Gender Queer” was the most frequently challenged book in 2022, drawing 151 requests for its removal because of its focus on LGBTQ issues and allegedly explicit sexual content. All told in 2022, the ALA said it documented 1,269 demands for books and other resources to be removed from libraries, the largest number of attempted book bans since the organization began collecting data more than 20 years ago.

Senate Republicans, however, argued that the bill would put too much power in the hands of the ALA and that putting the group’s Library Bill of Rights into law would force local libraries to enact extreme policies.

For example, Sen. Sue Rezin, R-Morris, cited a provision that said libraries that also provide exhibit spaces and meeting rooms to the public “should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.”

Read more here.

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Segrigated

Illinois State University is set to hold segregated, identity-based graduation ceremonies for the class of 2023.

The ceremonies will be hosted by registered student organizations in collaboration with the school’s Multicultural Center over the course of a month.

According to the school, these ceremonies provide “opportunities for our underrepresented students to celebrate their successes and graduation in a unique way.”

The first of these, called the “Lavender Graduation,” is scheduled to occur on April 22, and according to a press release, will honor “LGBTQIA+ lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and ace-identified graduates.”

The following week, the school plans to hold a “Nuestros Logros” ceremony, which will recognize “Latino/a/x graduates.”

Following this is the “MAPS” ceremony which will take place on May 6 and include “Middle Eastern, Asian, Pacific Islander, and Southeast Asian graduates.”

The final ceremony, the “Umoja: Black Graduation Celebration,” will honor students “of African descent and from the African diaspora” on May 11.

More here.

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April 2023 Adg

Our Village Board of Trustees will be conducting their regular monthly meeting beginning this evening at 6:30 PM. Topics on their agenda include:

  • [Vote] Amended Village Budget FY 2023
  • [Vote] Resolution Authorizing the Issuance of Notice of Award for the 2023 Road Program Project by the Village of Barrington Hills, Illinois Resolution 23 –
  • [Vote] Ordinance Amending Escrow Requirements for Tree Removal Permits as Set Forth in Title 4, Chapter 6 in the Village Code Ordinance 23 –
  • [Vote] Resolution of Proclamation Appreciating Trustee Bryan C. Croll for 8 Years of Dedicated Service Resolution 23 –
  • [Vote] Resolution of Proclamation Appreciating Trustee Colleen Konicek Hannigan for 10 Years of Dedicated Service Resolution 23 –

In addition, nominations for new or renewal appointments to Boards and Commissions will be voted on.  Four member of the Equestrian Commission is on the list of renewals, however there is a problem with the renomination of one of those members.

That member ran for and won a seat on the Barrington Hills Park District Board earlier this month, and now this represents a conflict. Therefore, an alternate should be considered at a subsequent Board of Trustees meeting.

A copy of this evening’s agenda can be viewed and downloaded here.

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April 23 RB

The Village Roads & Bridges Committee meets this morning at 11 AM to review bids received for the 2023 Roads Program.  A copy of the agenda can be viewed here.

Those planning to attend today should know the last three R&BC meetings have needlessly lasted an average of over an hour and a half due primarily to the lack of preparation and constant interruptions by the current Committee Chair.

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VBH 2023

UNOFFICIAL TOTALS:

  • DARBY HILLS: 568
  • JESSICA HOFFMAN: 585
  • JOHN CARPENTER CLARKE: 514

The results have us wondering if Dinky was out campaigning for votes, or if residents weren’t pleased with the Cecola Administration’s choice of Clarke to run for Village Board?  We should have an idea soon enough…

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State Rep. Anne Stava-Murray

State Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, D-Naperville, is the chief sponsor of a bill that would allow the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office to to deny grant funding to public and school libraries that ban books.

The Illinois House has approved a measure sponsored by state Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, of Naperville, that would allow the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office to deny grant funding to public and school libraries if they ban books or fail to devise policies against removing titles from their stacks.

The 69-39 party-line vote in the Democratic-led House reflected the partisan divide on the book-banning issue both in the state and nationally. The bill is now being considered by the Senate.

Illinois has not seen as many cases of book bans or attempted bans as states that lean more Republican, according to some research. But according to the secretary of state’s office, citing figures from the Chicago-based American Library Association, there were 67 attempts to ban books in Illinois in 2022, up from 41 the year before.

Democrats say book bans often discriminate against the LGBTQ community and other marginalized groups, while Republicans have argued that some titles need to be out of the reach of children if they contain pornography or obscene imagery.

Republican state Rep. Martin McLaughlin called the bill “a complete go-around and end-around on the local control and authority” of elected library boards.

I think it’s (a) very blatant attempt to strong-arm our local communities and how they want to direct their libraries to operate and function,” said McLaughlin, of Barrington Hills. “I don’t understand why we have local elections anymore if a bill like this passes.”

Read more here.

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