Chaos to Calm During Orland Library Computer Filter Discussion

Emotions ran high during the beginning of the Orland Park Public Library board meeting Monday night, as people supporting the library’s current policy and those pushing for specific outlawing of pornography viewing shared their views.

About 80 people came to the meeting, including Megan Fox, Kevin DuJan, staff from the American Library Association, former library employees, Orland Park residents and nearby residents. No board decisions were made on library computer policies Monday night.

The meeting started with board president Nancy Healy reading a statement reaffirming the library’s First Amendment argument for not adding more filters on the library computers. Fox and DuJan followed. They said the library’s policies need to change for the sake of children, and the library needs to be more responsive to criticism.

Linda Zec, a former library employee, sharply criticized the library for not taking a stronger stance against pornography, describing situations where she tried to report people viewing porn, and was told she could accept the way things were or leave her job, she said. Kate Rimkunas, an Orland Park mother, said she used to love taking her kids to the library, but won’t do so in the future unless the library changes its policy.

People who spoke in defense of the library included former employee Diane Lieb, who encouraged parents to hold themselves directly responsible for their children. Dr. Michael Jennings suggested the board take time to make their decision, and consult with other experts on the issue.

Arguments, yelling and interruptions ensued during and after Tomasz Kusminder spoke. Kusminder began by facing Fox and DuJan, and sharply criticizing them while defending the library. Shortly thereafter yelling and interruptions ensued, and a few people left the meeting. From then on, it remained civil until the end of public comments.

Read the live blog replay above for a more detailed account of the discussion. 

Check out past posts related to the recent dispute over computer use policy:

• Library Porn Viewing Sets Mother on a Mission in Orland
• Woman Changes Story About Man Touching Himself in Library
• The Orland Park Public Library's Statement on Computer Use
• Megan Fox's Full Statement on Pornography at the Orland Library
• Chief: 2 Incidents in 11 Years Where Library Should’ve Called Police
• 11 Years of Weird Incidents at the Orland Park Library
• Photo ID Required, Fees and Other Orland Library Computer Use Policy Changes
• Mayor Asks Orland Library to Consider Internet Filtering on All Computers

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