Public libraries in Aurora, near Chicago, were closed Monday after receiving bomb threats. They remained closed for much of the day, and were open reopened only after a thorough search bypolice found no threats in any of the buildings there. The threats follow others earlier this month that led authorities to evacuate several other libraries in the Chicago area.
At 11:17 a.m. on 9.14.23 officers were dispatched to the APLD branches after a threat was received through an online source. A physical search of each location was conducted, and no threats were located. Thank you to the Aurora Police Department for everything.
Illinois has prohibited libraries from removing books due to political pressure—a move described as a ban on book bans—which has made conservatives even madder.
The threats earlier this week came as Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias testified at a U.S. Senate Judiciary hearing on the state's first-in-the-nation ban against book bans. "…What I am concerned with is political attempts to ban books that are driving libraries to close their doors, stifle creativity, make librarians quit their jobs," Giannoulias said during Tuesday's hearing. "And just a few weeks ago, literally have to evacuate due to numerous bomb threats at multiple locations." The first-of-its-kind law, signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker on June 12, states that Illinois public libraries that restrict or ban materials because of "partisan or doctrinal" disapproval will be ineligible for state funding as of Jan. 1, 2024, when the new law goes into effect.
