Illinois Becomes First State To Effectively Ban Book Bans

Amid a growing national push from conservatives to pull certain books off the shelves of libraries and classrooms, Democrats in Illinois have become the first to push through anti-book-ban legislation that would punish libraries for partisan restrictions.

It requires public libraries receiving state funding to adopt the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, which calls on libraries to “challenge censorship” and says materials should “not be excluded because of origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.”

The legislation was spearheaded by Illinois’ newly elected Secretary of State...