“The 2022 Illinois Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Award is being
given to the students of Downers Grove High Schools, in particular, to a group of
student leaders who stood up to a book ban at their school. This award, presented by
the ILA Intellectual Freedom Committee recognizes the group for their outstanding
contributions in defending intellectual freedom.
When two parents of students at Downers Grove High School, Illinois School District 99
tried to ban Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe from the library due to its LGBTQ+ themes, a
group of five student leaders organized and rallied students and parents to support
keeping the book in the collection. The leaders: Lauren Pierret, Tabitha Irvin, Julia
Hanson, Josiah Poynter, and Emily Hernandez attended school board meetings to speak
out against censorship and support intellectual freedom. They also advocated for
intellectual freedom by publishing articles about the book challenge in the school
newspaper….”
Read more on the Illinois Library Association’s website (PDF)