Orland Park, Illinois (ECWd) –
The Orland Park Public Library Board is at it again, hating the public as much as ever. We’ve been reporting on the bad behavior of one trustee in particular, Diane Jennings, for over 3 years now and it’s not surprising to see her still behaving reprehensibly during public meetings. It may be a new year, but she’s still up to her old tricks. Jennings’ latest antics were posted to YouTube:
Several local residents came before the Board on December 19th to deliver a petition signed by 248 people asking the trustees to please do something about computers in the library where creeps are allowed to access pornography. This has been an ongoing problem at the OPPL for many years, with incident reports showing that staffers looked the other way and allowed people to abuse public resources by engaging in sexual activity in the computer lab. The OPPL Board has steadfastly refused to clean up their library and make it safe for children and families, despite community members still coming to board meetings month after month asking for the pornography in the library to end.
The Orland Park Public Library is the subject of the book SHUT UP!: The Bizarre War that One Public Library Waged Against the First Amendment, by Megan Fox and Kevin DuJan. It’s an interesting read because it documents the insanity of public officials refusing to admit they are wrong and instead choosing to lash out and attack the public.
At the latest OPPL meeting, Diane Jennings ripped into a concerned mom who wondered why porn couldn’t be blocked from the computers. Her unprofessionalism is deplorable. When the public takes the time to come before a Board with a petition, the Board has a duty to hear what the public is saying. Neither Jennings nor fellow trustee Joanna Liotine Leafblad showed any respect to the petitioners. Instead, they were hostile, with Leafblad going on at one point about creeps “enjoying porn” in the Library. As if she was talking about “enjoying hot chocolate on a cold day” or “enjoying a good book by a fire.” It’s never okay for anyone to be enjoying pornography in a public building that taxpayers pay for. Both Jennings and Leafblad should know this. They should also both show more respect for the public and not continue to embarrass themselves the way that they do.
One of the only responses given to the public was that the board made its decision “two years ago” – like there is never a possibility of a new vote and new decision after one is made. Also, the board shouted about the costs of filters, forgetting that they, two years ago, refused to take filtering software even when it was given to them for free.
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